A Taste of Yucatán at c5

The Mexico Tourism Board hosted an evening at c5 at the ROM to coincide with the opening of their new Maya: Secrets of Their Ancient World exhibit.

The kitchen was helmed by Ted Corrado (recently promoted to Executive Chef at Compass Group Canada, pictured below) with Special Guest Chef Jose Hadad of Frida and Special Dessert Chef Michael Sacco.

There were some lovely speakers of the night, particularly the beautiful Gloria Guevara Manzo, Secretary of Tourism of Mexico. But for me the true excitement lay in the food and kitchen.

At events like there is a lot of hurry up and wait, something that if you’ve worked in the film and television industry, you’ll be familiar with. The kitchen has to hustle out the appetizers, but then wait while the speakers take the stage before moving onto the first course.

During the frenzied times, they go into a formation that I like to call the huddle. This is where they converge in a small area, rapidly plating items and discussing what should go where. I love the huddle because it’s the moment when weeks or months of hard work come together and it happens in a flash.

And then there is another long pause until the next course and the huddle forms again.

The dinner was an ode to Yucatán. Here’s the menu:

Botanas:

Sopes Verdes

Gordita de Carnitas

Empanada de Rajas con Queso

1st Course:

Sopa de Lime

2nd Course:

Pescado Tikin-Chik & Pollo Pibil

3rd Course:

Chocolate Tasting Trio

Included in the press kit for the evening was a beautiful cookbook – Mayan Cuisine: Recipes from the Yucatán Region – that will allow you to create authentic dishes at home.

Just think about how much more exciting mealtime will be with this at your side instead of relying on old winter standbys like Shephard’s Pie and Roast Chicken that you’ve been making every Sunday for the last decade.

Bring some sunshine into the kitchen this winter with Mayan Cuisine.