Mexican food, explained plainly.

Lard is in the beans, the tamal masa and often the flour tortillas. Here is what it does, why oil is not a like-for-like swap, and how it compares.

Mexico has 59 recorded maize landraces, and the colour of a tortilla tells you which corn it came from. Here is what that changes.

Mexican oregano is not Mediterranean oregano, and epazote has no substitute. Here are the herbs that make the cuisine taste like itself.

Nopales are prickly pear cactus paddles, cleaned and griddled. Tart, a little like green beans. Here is what to expect and how they are prepared.

Masa harina is nixtamalised corn, dried and milled. Cornmeal is not, and cannot substitute. Here is why the difference is chemical rather than fussy.

A tomatillo is a husked relative of the tomato, tart rather than sweet. It is what makes every salsa verde green. Here is the difference.

Four fresh chillies cover almost every Mexican dish. Here is what each one tastes like, how hot it is, and where you will meet it.

Most Mexican sauces are built on three dried chillies. Here is what guajillo, ancho and pasilla each contribute, and how to use them.