Sponsored by MegaMex Foods, LLC
After decades of eating increasingly authentic Mexican foods, America’s restaurant customers now know that burritos and tacos are just two players in this multifaceted cuisine.
Fascinated with real South of the Border foods, chefs on the hunt for genuine Mexican ingredients and recipes in the 1980s learned that timeless and rustic preparation techniques demanded patient and diligent labor. Shortcuts to proper moles, tender carne asada and moist tamales just didn’t exist.
Amid 2022’s ongoing and historic restaurant labor shortage, such time-consuming prep work is now too costly for most operations to justify. With kitchen wages at all-time highs and staff sizes below ideal numbers, chefs face a host of challenges when seeking to cook to acknowledged Mexican standards.
“I’ve talked to a lot of chefs about a lot of things over the years, and labor is on their minds more than ever,” says Dan Burrows, chef-owner of 3F Consulting. “Labor problems can’t be fixed quickly, so they need other options that save time in the kitchen.”
Any chef who has made a Mexican pepper paste from scratch knows it’s time-devouring. A simple guajillo paste requires soaking dried peppers until moist, removing their stems and seeds and cooking them with onions, garlic and an array of spices—for about two hours. Once the mixture is reduced, pureed and ready for use, three hours have passed since the process began.
“That’s really complicated for a lot of kitchens where they might not do much scratch cooking,” says Desiree Mimlitsch, referring especially to fast-casual Mexican chain operations. As senior brand manager, foodservice, for MegaMex Foods, Mimlitsch believes new speed-scratch solutions now available to the market will solve such problems. “Not only will those items make prep work less labor intense, they’ll open up a lot of menu opportunities for all restaurants.”
The ease of a squeeze
In 2021, MegaMex created the TRES COCINAS™ Authentic Pepper Pastes lineup to help chefs create vibrant and complex flavors in their foods while easing labor woes and boosting consistency in production.
These pepper pastes, stored in 7-ounce pouches, can be squeezed into casseroles, soups, marinades, sauces, mayonnaise, salsas—even desserts—to add bold or subtle hints of roasted, smoked and long-simmered chiles.
“Our job was to take a time-consuming process and make it simple,” says Burrows, a consultant chef who helped develop the TRES COCINAS™ product line. “Not only does this take a lot of labor out of the picture, the results you get with those flavors can have a big effect on a menu. Whether that’s in a Mexican restaurant that could substitute a paste in a long process, or a kitchen where a chef just wants really deep and complex flavors, it applies.”
Many flavors, many uses
The TRES COCINAS™ product lineup includes three pepper profiles:
- Ancho-Pasilla, which provides mild heat, hints of dark chocolate and dried fruit.
- Guajillo, has a medium heat that’s offset by slightly sweet hints of berries.
- Chipotle with Adobo, which delivers more substantial heat balanced with smoke and spice.
The possibilities with these flavors are almost endless, Burrows says.
- Adding guajillo paste to a cream-based pasta sauce delivers a robust edge to an otherwise dense and heavy sauce. Similarly, a simple tomato sauce gains depth and smoke with a squeeze of Chipotle with Adobo.
- Beef dishes form ideal matches for all three TRES COCINAS™ pastes. Mixed into a common meatloaf, this American standard gains memorable Mexican aroma and flavor characteristics. At the end of a long braising period for beef short ribs or oxtail, squeeze in some Ancho-Pasilla paste to the broth to create richness and chocolate back notes. The same works for large cuts of long-cooked pork and lamb.
- Soups made from light or clear broths come alive with the medium heat from a short squeeze of Guajillo. The paste’s slightly sweet notes also complement vegetal notes in the soup. Instead of floating sliced jalapeños or other chiles atop a bowl of ramen, just add the paste and stir to incorporate.
- Of course, TRES COCINAS™ Authentic Pepper Pastes are a natural in countless Mexican applications. Tomato and tomatillo salsas become smoky and addictive, chicken or ground beef burritos become unexpectedly complex, and the prep time to make great moles is slashed with the ready-to-use format.
- The slightly bitter and fatty properties of chocolate desserts also complement these pastes. Brownies become smoky and savory with a squeeze of Chipotle with Adobo, as do chocolate truffles and cakes.
- And don’t forget the possibilities behind the bar. Just 1/8th of a teaspoon of Chipotle with Adobo paste will bring smoke and delicious spice to a signature margarita. (Just add to the shaker along with tequila and sour mix, shake vigorously then pour through a fine strainer into a rocks glass [to remove any pepper particles] with fresh ice.) Even a small squeeze of pepper paste added to an adult milkshake creates genuine excitement for drinkers.
“Chefs could use new ways to innovate while managing labor, and these TRES COCINAS™ pastes really help with that,” Burrows says. “It was fun just developing them because it helped us see so many options.”
Easy to use and endless versatility make TRES COCINAS™ Authentic Pepper Pastes are a must have for any restaurant kitchen. For menu ideas and TRES COCINAS™ Authentic Pepper Pastes samples, visit www.megamexfoodservice.com/brand/tres-cocina
