Fun, celebration, and a few fresh ingredients all you need to put together these easy Mexican food recipes. Mexican food shouldn't always be hard! Why? Because many of the most traditional Mexican food dishes are made by cooks for their own homes and are very simple to prepare. The truth is, most Mexican dishes that have gained popularity across cultures often come from street food or the kind of simple-to-prepare recipes traditionally eaten as a quick snack. So they should be easy!

You'll find some traditional but easy Mexcian food recipes right here below. This recipe for Pollo Rojo is perfect for enchiladas or tacos, and comes together in no time. Every one of these recipes is easy and tastes really authentic!

You'll also find more ideas for quick Mexican dishes on my Mexican Meals and Fiestas page, including another whole page devoted to Quick Mexican Recipes.

This Mexican main dish recipe is often served with rice and black beans. The combination of savory flavors with cocoa powder is unique to Mexican foods. The effect is deeply flavorful, but not difficult to execute.

Eat on its own as a main dish with tortillas. Or shred up the chicken and serve this fabulously flavorful chicken on warm flour or corn tortillas with a ton of cilantro, salsa fresca, and guacamole (recipe below) for tacos. Or use it to stuff a burrito. Or make enchiladas! This filling is good in almost any Mexican food recipe.

Note: This recipe has you put the tomatoes under the broiler to remove the skins. Want to make this easy Mexican food recipe even easier? Skip that step, or use canned tomatoes. It still tastes great!

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Ingredients:
1 1/2 lbs chicken meat, white or dark
6 tomatoes, large and ripe
1 white onion
3 tbsp. oil
2 C. chicken broth mixed with 2 C. water
2 tsp. Mexican oregano, crushed
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tbsp. garlic, peeled and minced or pressed
1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tbsp. red chile powder or paste
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste (I like plenty)

Instructions: 1. Liberally salt and pepper the chicken. In a large pan heat 1 tbsp. vegetable oil on high. Brown the chicken pieces on each side. Slowly pour chicken broth over chicken and reduce heat to medium high. Bring to a low boil. Reduce to a very low simmer.

2. While the chicken broth comes to a boil, cut the top off of each tomato and put cut side down in a casserole dish. Peel and quarter the onion and place in the dish. Drizzle remaining oil over them. Place the dish under the broiler and remove when the tomato skins become wrinkled and shriveled. These will need to cool for 1 minute.

3. When the broth simmers stir in the red chile powder, oregano, garlic, cumin and cocoa. Turn the chicken over in the pan.

4. When you remove the tomatoes, let them cool for one minute and then peel the skin from each tomato and remove the seeds. Break apart the tomatoes and onions and add to the pan with the chicken. The sauce will reduce as the chicken finishes cooking and reaches 170 degrees. Add salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy this easy Mexican food recipe steaming hot!

One of my favorite authentic but easy Mexican food recipes! This flavorful Mexican soup recipe uses chunks of beef and vegetables-- and like many easy Mexican food recipes, can be made with inexpensive ingredients. Try making this soup with mashed potatoes and ground beef to save even more money!

Serve each bowl of caldo de res with tortilla chips, lime wedges, and fresh cilantro. Also tastes wonderful with warm flour tortillas or bread.

Note: You can make this easy Mexican food recipe even easier by making it in the crock pot! Simply cook it on low heat for 8 hours or so. Like making a Mexican beef stew in the crock pot.

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Ingredients:
1 lb. beef shank, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 jalapeño, chopped (seed it if you don't like it too spicy)
1 large tomato, quartered
2 C. beef broth
2 C. water
1 med. potato, cubed
3 carrots, diced
1/2 medium head cabbage, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 C. chopped fresh cilantro
2 tsp. salt (or to taste)
2 tsp. ground cumin
2 fl. oz. fresh lime juice

Instructions: 1.Salt and pepper the beef shank and brown in a large pot over medium high heat.

2. Reduce heat to medium and add onions. Cook for 2 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and jalapeño and cook another minute.

3. Add broth to the pot and cover. Reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour.

4. Add 2 cups water, tomato, potato, cilantro and carrots and cook for 10 minutes. Add cumin, and cabbage to cilantro, salt and cumin. Add water if necessary to cover ingredients. Stir well and simmer until vegetables are tender. Add salt and pepper to taste.

5. Serve hot. Just before eating, squeeze in fresh lime juice to taste and sprinkle with remaining cilantro.

Avocados love the Mexican sun! And nowhere is their natural sweetness and wonderful creamy texture displayed better than in guacamole-- one of the more popular easy Mexican food recipes ever created. I'd like to find the person who picked a bunch of avocados, blended them with fresh ingredients, and created this tasty dip called guacamole, and give them a kiss.

Like salsa, your homemade authentic guacamole recipe can have many variations, depending on your tastes. The recipe below is for guacamole the way I like it-- and the way it's traditionally served most places in Mexico-- simple, a bit chunky, and very fresh.

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Ingredients:
4 ripe avocados
1 small tomato, peeled
1/4 C. white onion, finely minced chopped
Juice of 1 lime
1/4 C. cilantro, minced
1/2 tsp. Tabasco
Salt, to taste

Instructions: 1. Chop the avocado into small chunks and place in a medium bowl. Toss with the juice of one lime to prevent browning. Guacamole is meant to be a rustic dip with some bits of avocado still remaining. Use a fork to mash the avocados until you get just the right texture. (If they're really ripe, the avocados may not need to be mashed at all-- simply mixing in the remaining ingredients can be enough to get a chunky-creamy texture.)

2. Remove the seeds from the tomato and finely chop. Combine remaining ingredients in the bowl. Add salt to taste. Serve with tacos, quesadillas, or whatever you like! An addictive recipe!

And remember, you don't always need to have a special night set aside to make Mexican food. These easy Mexican food recipes can add spice to your regular cooking every day!

Check Mexican Food Central for some more easy Mexican food recipes!