"Fusion Revolution" – Mexico: One Plate at a Time

Fusion Revolution

Standing amid the excavated layers of ancient civilizations in the Templo Mayor, right in the heart of modern Mexico City, Rick Bayless points out that Mexican cooking has always been a product of diverse cultural influences layered one on top of another. It might even be called the original fusion cuisine.

And at the cloister of Sor Juana, now a university with a cooking school in Mexico City, Rick points out that of all the dishes in the Mexican repertoire, mole is doubtless the ultimate example of fusion food, born of a baroque melding of influences from nuns and native women who mixed old and new world ingredients to create a sauce of dazzling complexity.

In his home kitchen, Rick prepares a less baroque version, Apricot-Pinenut Mole, served with turkey breast.

Then it’s back to Mexico for a look at where fusion fever has taken the cuisine today, with Asian influences ranging from sushi in the Guadalajara market to Café Bistro MP in Mexico City, where the in-crowd feast on Asian-fusion small plates that reinvent classic Mexican antojitos, with ingredients like wonton wrappers and soy sauce.

Back at home, he reinvents one of these fanciful dishes, Seared Duck with Asian Flavors for Making Soft Tacos, a cross between a classic taco filling and Peking Duck.

And finally, Rick takes us way off the fusion radar screen to a tiny stand in the village of Pitillal, where two culinary traditions, burritos (which, we discover, are a North American invention) and grilled shrimp, come together to create a fabulous fusion snack, known only to locals.

Who says fusion has to be highfalutin'?

Episodes:

It's a Shore Thing: Seafood dishes that capture everything that's perfect and irresistible about a day at the beach.

Quest for Fire: Rick can't resist the kind of well-seasoned, simple food grilled over a fire pit Mexican food is famous for.

The Capital of Hip: Rick takes us on a dawn-to dusk culinary tour of Mexico City that separates the hip from the hype.

Eat, Drink & Be Mérida:
Fusion of Mayan traditions with Spanish influences resulted in Mérida—the "Paris of Mexico."

Fresh Chiles, Hot & Cool:
Everything about the Yucatán’s beloved habañero with its one-two punch of flavor and heat.

Yesterday, Today & Tamales: Mexico's past is present everywhere you travel in the form of tamales.

Yucatan Snack-a-Thon:
Who wouldn't like to snack from dawn to dusk on all kinds of Yucatecan specialties?

Modern Mayan: Mayan culture is experiencing a rebirth in the Yucatán today—in revitalized food, art and architecture.

Paste Sensations: Mérida's colorful, aromatic essential seasoning pastes are the key flavoring for many of the region's dishes.

Hacienda Renaissance: The hacienda is being reborn—as museums, as production facilities for fine rums and liqueurs, and as luxury hotels.