“IT’S BUTTERY. THERE’S NO CHEW TO IT,” says Jerry Smith of the ideal chicharrón. “The meat itself has a crispy outside. But when you bite into it, you get that luscious fat penetrating this chunk of pork that just shreds apart in your mouth.”
Smith knows what he’s talking about. For the last six years at the World’s Largest Matanza, a traditional pig roast in Belén, his Rio Grande Matanzeros team has taken home the People’s Choice award for its plate of chicharrones, red chile, fried papas, and frijoles. The daylong event serves 1,500-plus pounds of chicharrones to folks who line up to rank meals from approximately 10 teams every January.
Although it only happens once a year, the World’s Largest Matanza is a prime place to find some of the finest food in the state—the kind you daydream about when you’re hundreds of miles from the nearest red or green chile.
When it came to compiling a list of New Mexico dishes worth traveling any distance to try, we couldn’t stop at food fests, fine dining, or tried-and-true tourist magnets. There’s too much culinary bounty to be found everywhere else, whether the next jaunt involves blue-corn-crusted Kool-Aid pickles; the Southwest’s tastiest tofu bánh mì; or a gourmet bastion’s latest standout, mussels posole. We rounded up what we’re craving now, plus a short list of who’s making our favorite classics and a few picks from some notable New Mexicans.
My Mom's Bowl of Love captures the soul-warming spirit of New Mexico comfort food.
Photograph courtesy of My Moms.
Chef Marie Yniguez, a 2022 James Beard Award semifinalist for Best Chef Southwest, is a pro at crafting meals worth the trip. At her cozy My Moms café in downtown Albuquerque, everyone in line has a favorite, from the police officer who orders green chile chicken tacos to the teenage boys drooling over the Cubano. I go for My Mom’s Bowl of Love, a warming kitchen-sink stew of earthy calabacitas, slippery fideo noodles, velvety pinto beans, and a choice of red chile pork or green chile con carne—I get a bit of both—that’s topped with cheddar and served with a flour tortilla. Spicy, bright, comforting, and filled with homegrown flavor, it tastes like the essence of New Mexico to me.
“Food brings people together,” Yniguez says. She serves everyone from the cops who work across the street to “guys who just got out of jail” and their lawyers. She says when they sit down to eat, they all tend to start reminiscing about their grandmothers’ cooking. “I’ve always wanted to make a space where it doesn’t matter who you are, we’re going to talk about food because that’s what’s on the plate.”
I tell Yniguez a stranger and I did just that, bonding over the richness of our separate Bowls of Love from adjacent tables. “You know what I mean,” she replies. “You feel good.” We hope these dishes bring that same spark to your own tables. So hop in the car, and while you’re here, plan to eat your heart out.
Read more: From roadside gems to James Beard Winners, these New Mexico dishes are worth every mile—and every mouthful.
