The Saffron TouchmarketsWorld cuisine with an Indian touch...

TOSMA or Mercado Sano

When I shared that I was going to San Miguel de Allende, my friend Susie told me about this organic market that’s held every Saturday, so the first thing on the agenda was just that.

We decided to walk to that Mercado. San Miguel de Allende is full of colorful shops along the city streets, beautiful homes that have some great doors that open into these cute little courtyards that are fascinating. It seems like each of these courtyard have something interesting to share. Some have cafes like Lavanda, orvegan cafes like Nectar, some have fancy restaurants like Aperi; and others have artisanal craft stores and a lot of them are actually art galleries. In fact I feel like San Miguel de Allende is an artists heaven.

Paper flower store
Colorful paperwork
Beautiful Kayaks
Pretty fountains

We walked towards Mercado de Sana and found this bazar that was just amazing. Local food, drinks, art and even some incredible products. People have this notion that Mexican food is mainly meat focused, but when you come to places like this is when you see all seasonal local ingredients showcased beautifully.

There was a stall that was selling the legit local food, fresh corn tortillas cooked on the comal, stuffed with your choice of filling. Fresh tortillas were being made with such amazing skill that one could not stop and watch it, it was very therapeutic. The fillings ranged from some classics like nopal, pumpkin flowers to some garbanzo, pork stew and so much more. I was salivating just looking at it.

There were some fantastic products for sale. Mexican Vanilla, cinnamon and even some spice mixes like Mole etc. It was just incredible to see so many complex flavors of spices combined beautifully in a paste ready to use. I also picked up some of the vanilla beans, can’t wait to cook with it. The cinnamon you get here is different from the Cylon variety.

Garbanzo beans
Different types of mole & spices
Agua Fresca
Adobo spice mix
Fresh corn tortilla

As I was checking out some products I ran into this wonderful gentleman David, loved his spirit and enthusiasm about San Miguel De Allende. He runs a magazine/newsletter that covers everything SMA and very aptly named Lokkal SMA. He hopes to expand this to other cities. Do check his website out!

https://www.lokkal.com/sma/magazine/2019/may/june2.php

He told me about this art and wine event happening at the Fabrica La Aurora, It an old renovated textile mill that houses cafes, shops & galleries with works by local artists in many mediums.

I was ready to explore as usual with my camera 🙂

If you want to read more about my experience of San Miguel De Allende, please click here

Mercado Ignacio Ramirez

After breakfast, we decided to go back to Mercado Ignacio Ramirez.

Ignacio Ramirez was a famous poet from Mexico and this market is named after him. When you walk past the cathedral and the gardens and navigate through some busy areas, you come to this market. There were some celebrations happening at the cathedral so I decided to not go inside. There were some vendors selling small craft items, young kids were also helping their parents, but I decided to keep focus on the market :), I get distracted very easily.

Cathedral
Garden
Kids hanging out
Paper flowers and mule

This place is full of all kinds of things, fresh fruits and vegetables, groceries like beans and rice, flowers, shoes, clothes and so much more.

We landed so early in the morning and were super hungry, when we saw Tortas being served with eggs, salsa and some tempting looking chilies, we decided to enjoy that with a glass of fresh juice. The Torta was not to die for but it was perfect for us, because we were starved. We also ordered some fresh juice and that was ok as well. We saw people around us eating seafood cocktails as well.

Salsa picante
Torta con huevo
Flowers market

When we came back the second time, we decided to explore the market more. You can see that there are different sections of this market. As you enter the market you see many stalls that sell fresh fruits and vegetables, and also some other things like dry chilies etc. You can get pre-made packets of spices and nuts needed to make the mole. I loved seeing the different types of dried chilies that were in the market. You can also buy rice and beans, a staple in Mexican cuisine.

Check out a video of the market walk below.

As you go deeper you also see stores that sell other household items along with things like shoes, bags etc.

I thought the market ended there but it was like a never ending treasure. I went further in to find many cool things. There was a whole market where you could buy vegetables, fruits, juices, cheese etc. They were also selling prepared food like Tacos, Tlayudas. They had such interesting toppings or fillings, it was super cool. Zucchini blossoms, Nopales and even purslane.

We were hungry and decided to give the Mexican breakfast food ‘Atoles’ a try. I had been reading signs for Tamales y Atoles, I knew about Tamales but had no clue what Atoles were. Atole is a drink made with masa, cooked with water to make a porridge enjoyed at breakfast. I tasted 4-5 different varieties like guava, cacao, coconut but my favorite was the one that was flavored like Arroz con Leche, touch of cinnamon and dulce de Leche.

I enjoyed a roasted ear of corn with some chili and lime, its not one of the hybrid super sweet corn, it was earthy, you had to chew a little but well worth that effort.

I continued going through the market and talking to people to learn and understand more about the food, culture, customs, its always so fascinating.

My walk was filled with interesting spices, some herbal medicines and so much more. I had a chance to taste the fresh cheese they were selling, and it was so delicious.

This lady was so helpful and explained not just what she was selling but how it was to be used. I was curious about some green balls that looked like spinach, she explained that it was purslane and often used in soups with potato.

I even tasted fruit of nopal, it’s called tuna (like the fish), an interesting tasting fruit. I would love to cook with it when I get back to California. This is the best part about traveling, meeting new people and learning something new about culture and food expands your horizons.

It seemed like that the Ignacio Ramirez market was never ending. As we made our way through the area where they were selling these vegetables, we could see some stores selling jewelry but also some clay pots and other crafts items. As we made our way towards those shops we saw a banner that said ‘Welcome to the Artisan Market’, there was a huge unending lane full of all kinds of artisanal things in Mercado Artesanias, we will take that tour in a different post

But for now if you want to go back to my original post on San Miguel de Allende, click here 🙂 .