A Mexican cultural center since pre-Hispanic times, the central region has an ancient and sophisticated culinary tradition.

When the Spaniards arrived in this area on the altiplano, or high plain, they found an advanced civilization set among volcanic peaks and fertile valleys. The great pyramid of Cholula was a gathering place for worshippers who enjoyed the same foods that are sold in the town's markets and streets today. Blue corn tlacoyos – thick tortillas filled with a legume called arvejón – continue to be freshly made on portable anafres, small burners using wood charcoal. The salsas offered with them are similar to those served 500 years ago.

Corn, in its many guises, was, and still is, an important part of many central Mexican meals, along with beans, squash and chiles. Spaniards introduced crops that added variety to the native cuisine, and today, fruit orchards and grain fields are found throughout the states of Puebla, Tlaxcala and Hidalgo.

The volcanic mountain chains that cross this high plateau provide a variety of soil conditions, making for a large array of fresh produce in the area's markets. The culinary creativity found in restaurants in the central region, from small fondas to high-end establishments, reflects the availability of quality ingredients.

Central Mexico's most characteristic herbs and vegetables, such as nopales, purslane, watercress and epazote, are widely used by modern Mexican chefs, many of whom combine traditional ingredients and techniques with new presentations.

The maguey plant is important as the basis for the region's most famous beverage, pulque, and for the cooking of lamb and goat mixiotes and barbacoa. Domesticated turkey, the oldest bones of which have been found in the state of Puebla, continues to be the meat of choice for the region's famous mole poblano.

Puebla: The Cradle of Corn

The state of Puebla is divided into four culinary regions, one of which is the capital, also named Puebla. A Spanish settlement surrounded by indigenous communities, the city was instrumental in the formation of a mestizo national cuisine.

Home of Mexico's signature dishes, mole poblano and chiles en nogada, Puebla is considered a gastronomic center of the country. These dishes, as well as the eggnog-like rompope, were created by the nuns in Puebla's colonial convents, using imported spices and local produce.

At the Fonda de Santa Clara, in downtown Puebla, the menu offers a wide range of traditional specialties, including a tasting plate with mole poblano and the seed-based pipian rojo and pipian verde.

In the central part of the state, outdoor farmers' markets feature a wide variety of meat and dairy products. It was in this part of Puebla that Italian dairy farmers founded the town of Chipilo, whose butter and cream are famous throughout Mexico. At Restaurante Chialingo, fried cheese with epazote sauce reflects the region's characteristic combination of European dairy products with indigenous herbs.

Another culinary area is the Sierra de Puebla, a mountain range home to the indigenous Nahuas and Totonacs, guardians of pre-Hispanic cooking techniques. The abundance of fruit produced in their orchards is made into preserves and wines. The mountain streams contain trout that are grilled and used to fill tamales and chiles. This is also a coffee, anise and allspice growing region, where aromatic scents fill the air.

The Mixteca Poblana, southernmost of Puebla's culinary regions, is a desert crossed by springs where Mexico's well-known mineral water, agua de Tehuacan, is bottled. It was here that the oldest cultivated corn kernels on earth were discovered, giving rise to the name La Cuña de Maíz – The Cradle of Corn.

The rugged terrain is given over in large part to goat herding, and these animals are used in the traditional deep-pit barbacoa. At the other end of the dining spectrum is Tehuacan's Casa Cantarranas, featuring Mexican nouvelle cuisine made with local ingredients.

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