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Mary Sue Milliken
Mary Sue Milliken may be “a gringa from the Midwest,” but she fell deeply in love with Mexican food when first introduced to it more than 20 years ago. She and fellow chef Susan Feniger became friends in the late ’70s while working in the otherwise all-male kitchen of a prestigious French restaurant in Chicago called Le Perroquet. After honing their skills in fine restaurants in France and America, they opened their first restaurant, the highly celebrated City Café, in Los Angeles in 1981. These days, they divide their time between their three restaurants, Border Grills in Santa Monica and Las Vegas, and the upscale Ciudad in downtown Los Angeles. They also have authored five previous cookbooks, including Mexican Cooking For Dummies, host the popular Television Food Network series, Too Hot Tamales, and are heard regularly on Southern California radio.
Articles & Books From Mary Sue Milliken
Article / Updated 06-06-2016
The only thing that sounds like more fun than eating Mexican food is drinking Mexican drinks. Mexican beers, sangrias, and tequilas are so popular that they are the gateway for many people to tasting Mexican food for the first time. After you've munched on chips and salsa at a couple of parties, why not take the leap to tamales and empanadas, or to cactus (nopales) salad, the next time you're looking for an accompaniment to that ice chest of Mexican beers?
Article / Updated 04-26-2016
Achiote paste, a blend of spices and vinegar, gives this roasted chicken its distinctive orange hue and spicy aroma. Roasted achiote chicken is a recipe straight from the Yucatán — as Mexican as you can get!Preparation time: 20 minutes, plus 1 hour marinationCooking time: 1 hour and 30 minutesYield: 4 servings
3 serrano chiles
7 garlic cloves, peeled
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/4 cup achiote paste
1 tablespoon pepper
1 tablespoon salt
1 bunch cilantro, stems and leaves
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
3-pound roasting chicken
3 medium yellow onions
1 head garlic
1 orange
3 Roma tomatoes
Stem and seed the serrano chiles, if desired.
Cheat Sheet / Updated 03-27-2016
If you're new to cooking Mexican food, you're in luck — this Cheat Sheet offers tips for cooking festive and delicious Mexican dishes and a look at different types of chiles to give just the right flavor to your South-of-the-Border meals. In addition, handy charts help you convert cooking temperatures and measurements.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Tamales are made and enjoyed during fiestas, but wrapping tamales can be a party in itself. Gather friends and family to help wrap these tidy corn-husk packages. You'll find yourselves sharing stories and building memories before you enjoy the delicious results of your labor.
Soak dried corn husks in hot water for two hours or overnight.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
If you love to cook (and eat) Mexican food, these terrific tips will help you make the most of preparing delicious, festive Mexican dishes and beverages:
Garnish freely. That doesn't mean a sprig or two of wilted parsley strewn across a plate. In the Mexican kitchen, the garnishes — fresh diced onion, sliced radish, chopped cilantro, lime wedges, diced chiles — are integral to the dish.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
The right temperature keeps from overcooking (or undercooking) your favorite Mexican foods. Refer to this chart if you need to convert your cooking temperature to Celsius and/or Fahrenheit:
°Fahrenheit
°Celsius
250
120
275
135
300
150
325
160
350
175
375
190
400
205
425
220
450
230
475
245
500
260
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
Chiles are a staple in Mexican cooking. Take this list grocery shopping so you can recognize the type of chiles used for Mexican meals and choose the chiles with the flavor and degree of spiciness you like:
Serrano: A small, fresh, green hot chile. Used for spice and flavor in cooking and as a garnish.
Jalapeño: Larger than a serrano, though still small.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
If you run into a problem with measurements while cooking your favorite Mexican dish, use this quick guide to find the metric equivalents for common cooking amounts:
This Measurement . . .
. . . Equals This Measurement
1 tablespoon
15 milliliters
1 cup
250 milliliters
1 quart
1 liter
1 ounce
28 grams
1 pound
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
If you love Mexican food, you owe it to yourself to master basic margarita making. Now, you can toss out that margarita mix and dazzle friends and relatives with your suave style behind the bar.
Preparation time: 5 minutes
Yield: 1 serving
1 lime
Margarita or coarse kosher salt
2 ounces tequila
1 ounce orange liqueur, such as Triple Sec
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lime or lemon juice
1/2 cup ice cubes
Cut the lime into 5 slices.
Article / Updated 03-26-2016
A light fruit and wine drink like sangria is the perfect beverage for casual afternoon gatherings. Sangria looks especially nice when served in a glass pitcher, which lets everyone admire your fruit-filled handiwork.
Preparation time: 10 minutes, plus 2 hours steeping
Yield: 4 servings
1 orange
1 lemon
1 lime
1 bottle fruity red wine, such as Pinot Noir
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
2 cups ice cubes
Scrub the orange, lemon, and lime under running water.
