The Dinner Goddess

To buy or not to buy meat locally
By Lila Shaw Lash, June 22, 2007

As a personal chef here in San Miguel, the one question I am often asked by clients and the curious is “Where do you buy your meat?” I always answer enthusiastically: “Here!” One thing I’ve noticed in my shopping, cooking and eating of meat from local butchers, is I am consistently, pleasantly impressed. It can be easy to get chicken breasts, pork loins to cut your own pork chops, beef loin to cut your own steaks from far away places and throw them in your freezer, but I think we all lose a little something. I do understand that there is often some hesitation in marching into your local Mexican butcher shop, as things aren’t as neatly packaged and shrink-wrapped for your immediate consumption. But I promise you that your adventurous spirit will pay off.

I remember back in the United States that unless you’re on the Atkins or the Zone diets, the sorrowful skinless boneless chicken breast is looked at with a bit of disdain, especially among serious foodies. Chicken just tastes better with all that skin and bone to add flavor and help retain moisture. Now, I can tell you that I’ve been locally buying and preparing skinless boneless chicken breasts for my clients and consistently get rave reviews about the actual taste of the chicken. They remind me of the free-range chicken we pay an arm and a leg for in the US.

So, this week I’m taking you with me to scout the chicken, pork, beef and crocodile available for sale in the butcher shops of San Miguel. OK, probably not the last one, but it was on the list of items in stock when I quizzed the counter guys at La Lonja. The real idea is to help you navigate the wonders of all these local Mexican shops.

I start at La Lonja on Mesones, because it’s my personal favorite. I buy almost 90 percent of my meat for my clients at La Lonja and I’ve never been disappointed. If La Lonja is not close to your house, there are several that are similar and spread out across town.

When you get inside, to order those skinless boneless chicken breasts, you simply ask for filetes de pollo, sin hueso, sin piel. You will get split chicken breasts ready for your pan. If you get them aplanado, they will be ready for your own milanesa, or maybe for rolling up with some fresh spinach, goat cheese from Luna de Queso and pine nuts from Bonanza. Brown them in a pan, open some chilled white wine and call it an evening. To order thighs, you ask for muslos, and to order legs, you ask for piernas.

A cut of pork that I highly recommend is the chuleta de puerco, or pork chop. They are usually cut directly from the loin, to your width specification and, in my opinion, begging for a nice, locally-sourced stuffing. You order the width of pork chops by dedos, or fingers; and for the plump, stuff-able, double-cut kind, you order dos dedos. These chops are very tender, well-flavored and just plain soul-satisfying.

Another very typical, versatile cut from the local shop is arrachera, or flank steak. If you wish to marinate and season it yourself, make sure you order it sin marinar. I made this mistake once and came home with a completely inedible, overly salted, entirely too soft cut of flank steak that more closely resembled bad veal. Arrachera, as many Americans know, is quite popular in many Mexican dishes, but it also lends itself well to some good American-influenced ones, as well. I’m quite a fan of a fresh green salad with seared sliced flank steak, a red wine reduction with some shallots and butter, and plenty of good-quality bleu cheese sprinkled on top.

I’m not a fan of the American-style approximations of a steak from the local meat shops, as these super-sensitive, expensive cuts tends to lean on the tough, stringy side. But there is always SuSazon on Ancha de San Antonio for that special occasion. The New York Strips come frozen in packs of two and will run you about 90 pesos. Add a nice Cabernet or Malbec, some buttery, sauteed mushrooms, and you are again ready for dinner in less than 15 minutes, excluding thaw time.

Now you’ve had a little peek into how I shop when it’s time to buy meat in San Miguel. Your purchase may come tossed in a plastic bag, or a little ragged around the edges, but it’s probably because it was cut when you ordered it and butchered fresh that morning, nothing shrink-wrapped, laying in styrofoam, or vacuum-packed. I would say be bold, step mightily, and always be empowered to try things once!

Stay tuned on July 6... The Dinner Goddess scouts out special summer treats coming in this week at the local fruit shop—peaches and fresh figs!

Lila Shaw Lash is a personal chef involved with The Dinner Goddess, a weekly dinner delivery and catering service. For more information, write to lila@dinnergoddess.com  or visit www.dinnergoddess.com. 



Double-Cut Locally Stuffed Pork Chops
4 servings


4 pork chops, cut w/ dos dedos

2 T olive oil

1 1/2 cups bread crumbs

3/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

2 links spicy Italian sausage from BBQ Bob's, removed from casing

Generous handful of fresh parsley, oregano, or marjoram, chopped

cooking string

2 T butter

2 T minced shallots

1 cup dry white wine


Preheat oven to 375 F/ 190 C


*Note: This recipe requires that you finish the chops in a skillet in the oven, so you should pick your all-metal skillet, no plastic handles

Lay the chops on their side on your cutting board. With a good, sharp chef’s knife, slit the chops horizontally down the middle, creating a pocket in which to stuff your stuffing. Put chops aside.

In a medium mixing bowl, put bread crumbs, cheese, fresh herbs, and sausage. Mix everything well with your fingers and season with salt and pepper.

With your fingers, put as much stuffing as you can inside each pocket while still being able to shut the slit. Secure chops with cooking string.

Put olive oil in an oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. When oil is hot, but not smoking, lay each chop in pan to brown. After 5 minutes, flip chop to other side, brown for 5 additional minutes. Place chops on a separate plate.

In rendered fat, add butter, then sauté shallots until fragrant. Add wine, let sizzle & simmer for 1 minute.

Lay chops back in pan, place pan in preheated oven until desired doneness is reached. For medium, roast chops for 12-15 minutes.

Pull skillet from oven, let rest on stovetop. Place each chop on a plate, remove cooking string, drizzle with pan juices, and serve immediately. Buen provecho!