chef roberto santibañez helps spice up your menu to attract customers
Discover how to blend delicious Mexican flavors into your restaurant’s culinary creations.
Award-winning chef Roberto Santibañez, who served as Culinary Director for the extraordinarily popular Rosa Mexicano restaurants in New York and authored the cookbook Rosa’s New Mexican Table, is here to share his tips for incorporating fresh Mexican flavors into traditional restaurant dishes.
Spice up the Pantry
• Puree canned chipotles in adobo sauce. Store in a glass jar, refrigerated. Add a spoonful to mayonnaise, sour cream, sauces, or pasta to add a complex, smoky-spicy flavor.
• An arsenal of house-toasted chile powders gives you the ability to add zest to many items, from steak and chicken to soups and salad dressings. Try chipotle, chile de arbol, and pasilla powder.
• Harness the power of chorizo! Slices of this smoky sausage make nachos, Caesar salads, soups and vegetable dishes positively seductive.
• Quick-pickled red onions and poblano peppers are great ways of “Mexicanizing” all kinds of traditional American dishes.
Appetizers
• Nachos, chicken wings, and mozzarella sticks, those workhorses of the appetizer menu, become fresh and lively again with a few new twists
• Nachos topped with chorizo or adobo-marinated chicken are irresistible. Replace the usual Cheddar cheese with Mexican cheeses like Chihuahua, queso fresco or cotija,
• Serve chicken wings with smooth guacamole for dipping, or stir a touch of chipotle puree into the standard blue cheese dressing.
• Serve mozzarella sticks with salsa instead of marinara sauce. Oaxaca string cheese also makes a great substitute for mozzarella.
Entrees
• Pasta is delicious with a sauce of roasted poblano chiles, or a sautéed combination of diced tomatoes, jalapenos, onions, with cilantro and a touch of cream at the end.
• Add a scoop of guacamole to a turkey burger for instant appeal.
Side Dishes
• Spice up Swiss chard or spinach with sautéed jalapenos and chorizo.
• Coleslaw becomes a star attraction with the addition of mango, jalapeno, and cilantro.
• Sautee potatoes with adobo (a red chile paste with garlic and spices), or create a gratin studded with poblano peppers.
Desserts
• Add exotic appeal to brownies with pumpkin seeds, cinnamon, or espresso. Serve with ice cream and the rich Mexican caramel topping known as cajeta sauce.
Beverages
• Add fun for all ages to the beverage menu with Peanut Limeade. Puree roasted peanuts in the blender with lime juice and sugar. Strain, chill, and serve in a frosted glass.
