Smoky.

Smooth.

Rustic.

Mezcal.

One of Mexico's oldest most celebrated elixirs.

Out here in the dusty, rolling countryside of Oaxaca this is Mezcal country, where small batch family owned productions seem to be stuck in another time.

>> Pati continues: This is a world I need to experience.

>> So we have the worm salt.

Mmm, so smoky.

>> Pati Narrates: And because Mezcal is even better shared, I'm inviting a few friends over for a refreshing Oaxaca sour.

And an overflowing plate of grilled steak salpicon.

>> It's so delicious.

>> Oh, salud!

>> [in unison] Salud!

>> (Pati laughs) ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ >> Pati's Mexican Table is made possible by: >> Some things are always there for you.

Like your alarm clock, right on time.

Your parking space.

Seriously?

Girl's night, always there.

And avocados from Mexico.

They're always there because they're fresh all year round.

>> ♪ Avocados from Mexico ♪ ♪ ♪ >> La Costeña, por sabor!

Taste that transcends.

More information at mexicorico.com Over 40 years, bringing authentic Latin American flavors to your table.

Tropical Cheese.

>> The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food.

Mexbest, and...

The National Agricultural Council.

♪ epic music plays ♪ ♪ ♪ >> Pati Narrates: Oaxaca.

Known the world over for its distinctive cuisine and vibrant folk art.

However, Oaxaca is now getting noticed for something we Mexicans have been loving for a long, long time: Mezcal.

Just an hour outside of the city of Oaxaca, the hillsides are covered in fields of agave from which this enchanting spirit is made.

>> We are on the way to Mezcal country.

The Mezcal and its source, the agave plant, is embedded in our culture, in our music, in paintings, in murals, in history.

>> Pati Narrates: San Dionision Ocotepec, the heart of Mezcal country, home to some of the best Mezcal producers in the whole wide world.

Just outside of town, there's a family that has been producing Mezcal for over 100 years.

>> This man is a 5th generation Mezcal maker.

He comes from a family of Mezcal makers.

Mezcal is like a cousin of tequila, but tequila has to come from blue agave plants that are grown and processed in the Tequila region.

Mezcal can be made absolutely everywhere with any kind of agave plant, and the process is a little bit more rustic.

>> Pati Narrates: It all begins with the harvesting of the agave plant.

The leaves are chopped away revealing the core, or the heart, which looks like a pineapple.

>> Pati continues: He shows me one of the huge underground pits where they cook up to 14 tons of agave plant hearts.

>> But it's stones?

>> 5 days.

>> So he says if you take care of this underground oven, it will last generations.

You come and go, and the new generations keep on using it.

Now Bernardo, did you intend for your son to become a Mezcalero like yourself?

>> Yes.

>> Yeah?

>> Yes.

>> Did he cooperate?

>> Now he's a master Mezcalero like you!

>> Are you so proud?

>> Yes, yes.

>> The life of a Mezcalero must not be an easy life.

They have to be outside all the time, and it takes so many tons of agave plants to make a bottle of Mezcal.

>> Okay, so it's sort of like a gigantic artichoke and you know it's ready when you pull one of the leaves out.

So meaty, I mean.

>> Delicious.

>> It tastes like a chewy, tart, citrus-y caramel, it's so delicious.

>> Pati Narrates: The cooked agave is crushed to produce a mash, and this part requires some horsepower.

>> What do you think is the most important part of the process?

>> So you're playing with the weather, with the amount of water, with the kind and quality of the agave plant, and then with how much heat, so that's why every Mezcal brand tastes different.

>> Yes.

>> Pati Narrates: In fermentation the sugars are converted into alcohol.

Here art meets craft, and every Mezcalero has their own secret formula.

>> Oh, this feels really nice actually.

It smells a little bit like, um, like molasses.

>> Ah, this feels so nice!

Oh, come see come see.

It looks like tamarind water.

>> Pati Narrates: After fermentation, the mash is distilled twice.

This one has only been distilled once.

>> Mmm.

It is very acidic, sour definitely.

I can feel the smokiness of it.

Mmm.

>> Pati Narrates: Now comes a real treat - cooking with his mother.

>> This family is very traditional.

Men work in the Mezcaleria, and the women tend to the home and the kids.

>> The mother rules the kitchen.

She's making one of the family's most traditional meals: sopa or soup.

>> So there was no money for meat or chicken, you could always find zucchini or the calabacita.

>> Yes.

>> Pati Narrates: Into the soup, along with the zucchini stems and leaves go a mix of zucchini blossoms, some wild greens, chayote and corn.

The result is the brightest of soups you have ever seen.

>> This is the agave worm.

It's toasted and it's mixed with a salt and - mmm.

Mmm!

Que rico!

The worms that are found in the Mezcal or the agave plant only feed from the agave plants.

Absolutely delicious.

>> Okay, I asked why and she says because it's gonna give it a really nice seasoning.

Carmen is going to show me how to make the worm salt, which is a specialty of Oaxaca and it is something that you need to have with the Mezcal and I think it's also used to season things.

Here she has the Mezcal worms.

She has the chile de arbol which are dried chiles.

>> So we have the worm salt.

Mmm, so smoky, so rich, delicious.

In Oaxaca they've preserved the techniques of making Mezcal and preserving all those really old methods in making Mezcal really gives Mezcal its taste.

Is there anything special we say when we toast?

>> Okay (Pati laughs) >> Mmm rico!

Different from the one I tasted before, this is a lot more crisp and clean and clear, and I can taste the flavors that I was tasting over there, but in a much more refined way.

There's this side of rustic in everything that's in Oaxaca and it's complimented by a layer of really delicate details.

You can see why it takes an entire family to be in the Mezcal business.

>> When I think of Mezcal, I think of great drinks, and I think of get togethers, so I invited some friends over and I'm going to make for them a salpicon which is the authentic Mexican version of a fajita salad.

You're gonna love it, it has so much going on!

Turning on my grill to medium-high because I want the meat to get a really nice char on the outside.

I'm gonna season the steak with salt and pepper.

I'm gonna brush some oil in my grill pan.

You can grill inside or outside, you could also throw the meat under the broiler so whatever is easiest for you.

I'm gonna add a little bit of oil on top.

I like to grill or broil my flank steak for exactly 7 minutes on one side and 6 minutes on the other side because that gives me the really nice char outside and pink inside.

I'm gonna do 14 minutes in here.

No, 7 and 6 is 13!

(Pati laughs) 13 minutes on my timer.

>> Pati Narrates: I'm going to peel and cut 3 potatoes into bite sized pieces.

I love the sound of the meat charring.

I am girlie today 'cause my friends are coming over, so I put my hair down, I'm wearing earrings, I'm wearing a cold shoulder and high heels.

When I grew up, I did not want to wear earrings, I did not want to wear a dress, I was such a tomboy (Pati laughs) >> Pretty.

Okay, so I'm gonna start cooking my vegetables, and I have water here that's already boiling, and I'm going to season it very generously because you want your vegetables to cook in nicely seasoned water so they can start getting seasoned from the first moment they begin to cook.

I'm going to let the potatoes cook for about 4 minutes because I still want them to have a nice bite.

Now I'm going to peel and slice half a pound of carrots.

The girliest way to cut a carrot I think would be diagonal and cute.

The benefit of cutting the carrots diagonal is that they look like you took a lot of effort in cutting those carrots and you really didn't.

So this salad is not only great for entertaining because of how beautiful and festive it is, but also because you can make it ahead of time and it gets better and better as it sits.

You want to try to have almost everything ready so that you can enjoy your get together along with your friends.

>> So now I'm gonna let the meat sit and sort of settle so all of the juices distribute and we're gonna have really lovely slices.

The potatoes must be ready, but to make sure, I'm gonna show you ... and yeah, see, now the tip of the knife is really letting me go in all the way through.

And in the same water, the carrots are gonna go in for about 2-3 minutes, I love them with a crunch.

Meanwhile, I'm gonna cut 1 pound of green beans.

I'm gonna make diagonal cuts.

I think this is a lot prettier, see?

It shows more beautifully the inside of the green bean, and it just looks a little bit more elegant.

Carrots come out and in go the green beans, for only 2-3 minutes so they won't overcook and they'll be bright and crispy.

You know, with 3 different boys and 3 different levels of pickiness, having the vegetables be pretty and crunchy and crispy is interesting.

So for example, one son has eaten everything that I've given him since the day he was born, and he hasn't had a picky day in his life.

But my other son had a very picky phase of about 10 years where he only wanted to eat pasta and bread, it was killing me.

Now he eats everything.

Now, the peas need to be cooked for 15 seconds, that's all.

The peas are gonna pop in your mouth because we didn't overcook them.

And now, I'm gonna make a super simple vinaigrette.

It's very flavorful and it makes everything that it coats super shine.

I'm gonna press 1 garlic clove, a teaspoon of salt, a half a teaspoon brown sugar, and black pepper.

Mix it up.

I'm gonna pour my white distilled vinegar, which I love because it doesn't mask anything, so I have about a third of a cup.

Next I'm gonna add equal parts of vegetable oil and olive oil, a third of a cup each.

I don't want the olive oil to take over, and I need, like, 2 to 1 oil to vinegar to make a balanced vinaigrette.

And to finish, I'm gonna sliver 2/3 cup of red onion.

I'm gonna let the vinaigrette sit so the onion has time to macerate.

[birds chirp] >> It is such a gorgeous day out, and my friends are about to get here, so I'm gonna make an Oaxacan sour.

It's a really funky cocktail you're gonna love.

The first thing I'm gonna do is a simple syrup, but it's not a simple syrup like any other, it is a chipotle simple syrup so it's gonna have a nice kick.

So I'm gonna add a cup of water, a cup of sugar, and you know your simple syrup is ready when you no longer see the sugar.

I'm gonna add a simple dried chipotle chile which is a jalapeño that has been picked ripe and then it has been dried and smoked.

I like to think of ingredients as characters, and these would be, like an out in the wild cowboy (laughs) Since we didn't open the chipotle chile, the simple syrup is not gonna be that spicy, it's just gonna get the essence of the cowboy chile in there.

So now I'm gonna turn it off 'cause there's no sight of the sugar anymore, and I'm gonna let it steep for 5-10 minutes or until the flavor develops.

You can use the chipotle simple syrup for so many things!

You can drizzle it over ice cream, over pound cake.

I'm gonna use 3/4 cups of freshly squeezed lime juice, I already squeezed half a cup, so I'm just gonna add a little bit more.

I'm gonna whisk the vinaigrette and pour some on my vegetables.

The bed for the salpicon will be lettuce.

We're layering that vinaigrette so that every bite that we take has that taste.

We're gonna cut the meat across the grain into thin slices, and by cutting it across the grain, we're gonna make it really soft.

And it's perfectly pink, just how I want it, charred on the outside, pink and juicy on the inside.

And all the onions, mmm!

I'm also gonna add some radishes, a little bit of salt on top of those radishes, some picked jalapeños on the side, then that's it!

Easy entertaining.

The perfect thing to do with the salad is to make some tacos with it.

>> Hola!

>> Hola!

Thank you for coming!

[girls greet each other] >> It looks fantastic.

>> You guys!

I made us salpicon, it's almost ready.

>> Wonderful!

>> Delicious.

>> I'm heating some tortillas for whoever wants to make taquitos, but I'm excited 'cause I know you love Mezcal.

>> I love Mezcal.

>> Do you guys like Mezcal?

>> Yes.

>> Okay, we're gonna make our Oaxaca sour.

>> What do you have there?

>> (Pati laughs) It's an out in the wild cowboy dumped in simple syrup.

>> The cowboys come later.

[all laugh] >> You wanna pass the Mezcal?

Do you guys wanna try a little sip before - yeah!

>> Salud!

>> Did you get one?

>> Pati gets one.

[overlapping cheers] >> It's yummy!

It's delicious!

>> It's smoky.

>> All Mezcal is smoky.

>> All Mezcal is smoky.

Always.

>> Always.

>> Okay so one and a half cups of Mezcal, 3/4 cups of fresh squeezed lime juice, 1/2 cup of pineapple juice, and then we're gonna add 1/2 a cup of the simple syrup.

>> Salud!

[overlapping cheers] >> Mmm.

>> Oh, delicious.

>> This is so good, so fresh, so citrus-y.

>> It's got that little smoky flavor in there - I really like it.

>> It is delicious.

>> And can you taste a little bit of the chipotle in there?

>> Yes!

>> Yes, absolutely.

>> But it's not spicy.

>> Not spicy.

>> No, it's nice and smooth.

>> This is a perfect summer drink.

And fall, and winter, and spring.

[all laugh] >> So if you want to bring your drinks outside, I'll finish assembling the salad and I'll bring it.

>> Okay!

>> We'll be waiting for you.

>> Okay.

>> Every taco deserves a slice of avocado.

I'm gonna do a little salt because everything has to be dressed, and that's it!

>> Wow!

[girls marvel] >> Oh you guys are the best!

>> With the avocado!

[indistinct commentary] >> So we have the salad which has the lettuce - >> Beautiful salad.

>> Wait until you taste the potatoes.

>> Yeah, I cannot wait.

>> And you know what I love so much?

The onions from the vinaigrette.

>> I love the dishes that you can make all in one, like, you have one dish, the presentation is beautiful, and you know, it's easier, isn't it?

>> Absolutely.

>> We have Mezcal, we have drinks, we have friends!

What more could we ask for?

>> Aww, salud!

>> [in unison] Salud!

>> To a perfect afternoon.

>> Thank you guys.

>> It's so delicious.

>> It's smoky, but the vinaigrette it gives a nice saltiness to it.

It could be oily, but there's nothing oily about the vinaigrette.

>> And we have the Mezcal.

>> She keeps talking about the Mezcal.

[all laugh] >> That was just what I wanted to say!

The food is great.

>> [in unison] And the Mezcal!

(laughs) >> I thought the carrots were gonna be harder and almost raw, but they're delicious.

>> This salpicon is the best I've ever had in my life.

It's amazing.

>> There's a lot more inside, and there's a lot more Mezcal for her.

[all laugh] >> Pati Narrates: For recipes and information from this episode and more, visit patijinich.com, and connect!

Find me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest @PatiJinich.

>> Pati's Mexican Table is made possible by: ♪ epic music plays ♪ ♪ ♪ >> The Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food.

Mexbest, and...

The National Agricultural Council.

A tradition of authentic Latin flavors and family recipes.

Tropical Cheese.

>> La Costeña, por sabor!

Taste that transcends.

More information at: mexicorico.com >> Some things are always there for you.

Like your alarm clock, right on time.

Your parking space.

Seriously?

Girl's night, always there.

And avocados from Mexico.

They're always there because they're fresh all year round.

>> ♪ Avocados from Mexico ♪ >> Proud to support Pati's Mexican Table on public television.