Bacalao

This recipe hails from a handwritten Durango family cookbook from 1914, created in the northern Mexican state during a period of revolution and transformation. The manuscript, penned by women in the Irazoqui, Susana de Sánchez family, documents everyday recipes that reflect practical adaptation and culinary creativity under shifting circumstances. Salt cod—an import with centuries-old prominence in Catholic fasting and Spanish-influenced cuisine—serves as a canvas for blending local produce (tomatoes, chiles, potatoes) with imported or preserved ingredients (olives, pimientos morrones). The recipe reflects both home economies and the new availability of Mediterranean flavors, set in the context of early 20th-century Mexican upper-middle-class households.

Back in 1914 Durango, the essential tools for this recipe included a cazuela (unglazed earthenware pot) for stewing, a mano and metate (or a mortar and pestle) for mashing tomatoes and chiles, and a brazier or open flame for roasting chiles and bell peppers. Kitchen knives for cutting and paring, wooden spoons for stirring, and a basic stove likely fueled by wood or coal were staples. Tomatoes were peeled either by blanching or hand-peeling with a paring knife, and potatoes were boiled in heavy-bottomed pots.