100 Best Recipes Ever: Mexican

Chef Richard Sandoval first tasted the moist, creamy, slightly sweet Spanish Requeson cheese used here during childhood trips to the market with his grandmother. In the U.S., Requeson is sold at Latin markets and some supermarkets. If you can’t find it, substitute fresh whole-milk ricotta.

Except for its Velveeta-y chile con queso, San Francisco’s Tacolicious prizes local ingredients—both at its Ferry Plaza stand and at its restaurant.

Skinless turkey thighs and drumsticks are packed with flavor; they’re also low in fat and high in protein and essential minerals like selenium. Deborah Schneider braises the meat in beer until ultratender, then shreds it for tacos. “It’s also fabulous in a sandwich,” she says.

At Distrito in Scottsdale, Arizona, Jose Garces focuses on barbacoa dishes: meats cooked over an open fire or in a pit, many of them coated with intense spice mixes and served with sauces and glazes, like this sweet and sticky grilled chicken.

With only a few ingredients, Rick Bayless’s salpimentado (salt-and-pepper) ceviche is typical of what one would find at stands around the southern tip of Baja. Cooks often make it with sierra, a large and meaty Mexican fish, but tuna works just as well.