Eva Longoria’s Love Letter to Mexican Cuisine

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Self-proclaimed cookbook nerd Eva Longoria chats about cooking like a person dreaming of the next meal while enjoying the one before her. What’s she dreaming about? Our guess is conchas. We caught up with Longoria to talk about her latest cookbook, My Mexican Kitchen: 100 Recipes Rich with Tradition, Flavor, and Spice and the ways in which her life in Mexico has influenced her everyday cooking. (Corn tortillas are making more appearances.)

Bon Appétit: In your introduction to the book, you share that your perspectives on Mexican cuisine changed since writing your first cookbook 13 years ago. What is different for you now?

Eva Longoria: Oh my God. Well, so much. One is that I married a Mexican and we moved to Mexico. I’m from Texas, so my first cookbook had a lot of Tex-Mex, which is very regional, a very different cooking style, especially from central Mexican cuisine. When I did my show, Searching for Mexico, I traveled around the country’s 32 states; it was so eye-opening. I knew Mexico was diverse. I knew the cuisine was diverse, but you have no idea. I was exposed to so many amazing chefs, and people who had ancient recipes and techniques that have been used for thousands of years. I was like, I’ve got to document all this. I want to share this with everybody, which inspired me to write this particular cookbook.

BA: There’s such a humbling feeling about cooking with such ancient ingredients and techniques once you understand the history and the generations keeping them alive in the cuisine today. What ingredients have you incorporated from pre-Hispanic times into your cooking now that weren’t a part of your canon prior to either moving to Mexico or working on the show?

EL: Definitely corn tortillas. In Texas, we are a big flour tortilla community. Let me tell you, flour versus corn is a big debate. When my husband met me, all I ate was flour tortillas. Now I make ’em weekly, if not daily. And it’s just a staple in our home. My son is growing up eating corn tortillas because of living in Mexico.

BA: But you know what, you can have both!

EL: Don’t tell my husband, he would debate you on that.

BA: What does a day of eating look like in your family?

EL: Sunday’s when I prep for the week, especially with my son. I prep the beans for the week, a large pot of pinto beans I purée and store in a big Tupperware. I use them every morning. You refry them in bacon grease, and they’re just to die for. My son will have a bean taco every morning, eggs and frijoles. I also make fresh flour tortillas. My son will not eat store-bought. He can tell the difference. I make ground beef, quinoa and rice for the week because my son, Santi, eats so much of it. During the week, I’m making protein bowls with meat, beans, avocado, some lettuce and tomato. Or I’ll make a tostada with refried beans on the bottom, add some cheese, meat, some toppings and sour cream. That’ll be dinner. I also buy two big rotisserie chickens, debone them into a Ziploc bag, and during the week I’ll make flautas or chicken tacos.

I make the biggest jar of the salsa verde from my book. My husband goes through it so quickly. Sometimes it’ll be gone by Friday—we don’t even make it to the next weekend. I’ll use it to make chilaquiles, chicken tacos, or enchiladas.

BA: What were some of the more challenging recipes in the book?

EL: Tamales are pretty labor-intensive. It’s just a lot of prep, a lot of time to make ’em, but it’s not necessarily hard. Because I’m not a baker, the other challenging recipe was my concha. I could eat them daily because it’s not that sweet, it’s like brioche with a sugar coating. They’re so unique.

BA: Do you have go-to places that you like to get them when you’re in Mexico City?

EL: There’s a place right down the street for me, Tomasa. You have to time it for when they’re coming out of the oven. I’ll call and ask when they are coming out. I love the vanilla.

BA: Speaking of vanilla, we have to talk about your vanilla chicken. Such an unexpected recipe!

EL: I know! That came from Veracruz, where vanilla originated comes from. The plant is endemic to Mexico, even though Madagascar produces about 80% of vanilla beans today.

We were in the vanilla fields of Veracruz, cooking with the daughter of someone who ran the farm. She’s like, “let’s sauté some onions. Now, we're going to put in vanilla.” And I was like…“I’m sorry, we’re going to make what?” It’s got heavy cream, butter, and vanilla, and it is so delicious.

BA: How has your work as an actor, director, and producer impacted how you approach cookbook writing?

EL: Overall, I’m a storyteller. When I get a cookbook, I read it front to back, and doggy-marking the recipes I’m going to make. I read the sidebars, I read the index. My first cookbook was a memoir of my life at that moment, told through food because I was married to a Frenchman. We were living in Paris and in Texas, and it was a hodgepodge of everything in my life at that moment. I learned about sauces in the north of France and Normandy, and then all my Tex-Mex recipes because I was still living in Texas. Now, I’m telling a different story.

The beauty of doing Searching for Mexico and now Searching for Spain is you get to tell that story in a narrative way. We can do a deeper dive into the story behind ingredients and the people behind the food. And that’s what I love most.

Originally Appeared on Bon Appétit