Winkler, MB
It is hard not to get swept up in the story of Flavours of Mexico, a small restaurant in Winkler, MB. Run by two sisters Luz and Arely, and their husbands, the atmosphere is vibrant, passionate, proud, and truly authentic. There is a particular focus on fresh, authentic Mexican cuisine- sometimes a surprise to customers who have only ever known the “Tex-Mex” style of Latin American cuisine. We can’t help but laugh as Luz explains that their biggest challenge is acceptance and appreciation for real Mexican food. “We are Mexican,” she says energetically. “This is real Mexican food!”
Tomatoes, jalapeños, garlic, onions, and cilantro are the essentials in their pantry and though the recipes they shared with us were simple cuisine found in most homes in Mexico, their ability to combine flavours into unique and exquisite dishes is unrivaled. Most of their recipes are top secret and of their mother’s creation, who grew up learning to cook for her brothers and sisters at the early age of seven. Family is very important to them and they work well as a team with each person helping to cook, clean, serve, and plan for the restaurant.
Luz and Arely leave no variable untouched as they walk us through how to re-create some of their dishes. For them, the technique is just as important as the ingredients and they work fantastically as team. Their love for what they do is obvious, as is their desire for others to enjoy it as much as they do!
Our first taste of their talent was with a colourful Pico de Gallo along with their homemade taco chips Arely explains to me the importance of the bright colour of each ingredient for the proper red, white and green portions of the Mexican flag to shine through in this dish.
Next were the tostadas-fried corn tortilla topped with a special style of slow cooked beef mixture, salad, cheese, and a homemade sauce. You can’t help but end up cradling the whole mess in your hands as you bite into it, but the bliss the adobe sauce brings will allow you to ignore anyone who might be staring at you in horror.
Only Jasmine rice is used in the restaurant and Arely shows us how to brown it and then cook it in a pureed mixture of tomatoes, water, onions, and other ingredients to give it life in the form of colour and flavour.
The empanada look like the easiest to make as we watch Luz use a tortilla press to create the rounds for the dough, fill them with beef, and fry them in oil. We attempted to do the same, but corn flour doesn’t have the gluten of wheat flour to hold it together and was difficult to keep it whole! Luz tells us how a story of a fundraiser they participated in where a handful of ladies in the community helped to make hundreds of tortillas and how amazing it was to see them all lined up and mastering the technique.
The richness of this restaurant stems from the resoluteness of its owners in showing their pride for their mother’s authentic Mexican style cooking, and the quality that they strive to achieve on every level. Their cooking is about touch and technique as much as it is about taste with an energy and passion that is reminiscent of their bold Mexican culture, and the chefs at Flavours of Mexico are incredibly excited to share it with you. If you are feeling REALLY brave, you might even make it onto their Tongue Taco Wall of Fame!
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