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🛒 Shopping List — Block 33–36: Mexican

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Where to shop: A Mexican grocery or Latin market is the right place for dried chiles, hominy, masa harina, fresh tortillas, tomatillos, Mexican oregano, achiote paste, and queso fresco. These are not optional upgrades — they're the correct ingredients.

⚠️ Equipment Check

  • [ ] Tortilla press — for making corn tortillas from scratch ($15–20, worth it)
  • [ ] Comal or flat cast iron griddle — for tortillas and carne asada
  • [ ] Blender — for chile sauces; must be high-powered to blend rehydrated chiles
  • [ ] Steamer / tamale pot — for tamales (large pot with rack works)
  • [ ] Dutch oven — pozole, birria, enchilada braise

🥩 Proteins — Block 31

  • [ ] Flank or skirt steak — 1.5 lbs (Mon carne asada)
  • [ ] Pork shoulder — 2 lbs (Tue pozole + Fri al pastor)
  • [ ] Bone-in chicken thighs — 4 (Sat enchiladas, or ground beef for picadillo filling)
  • [ ] Ground beef or pork — 1 lb (Sat enchilada filling — or use leftover braised pork)

🥩 Proteins — Block 32

  • [ ] Beef chuck — 3 lbs (Mon birria)
  • [ ] Chicken thighs — 4–6 (Tue mole)
  • [ ] Pork shoulder — 1 lb if making pork tamale filling (Wed; or use birria leftovers)
  • [ ] Eggs — 1 dozen (Fri chiles rellenos batter)

🌶️ Dried Chiles (buy at Mexican market)

  • [ ] Guajillo — 6 pods
  • [ ] Ancho — 4 pods
  • [ ] Mulato — 3 pods (mole)
  • [ ] Pasilla — 2 pods (mole)
  • [ ] Árbol — 4 dry pods (birria + salsas)
  • [ ] Chipotle in adobo — 1 small can (al pastor marinade + backup)

🥦 Produce

  • [ ] Tomatillos — 1 lb (Wed salsa verde + Fri chiles rellenos salsa)
  • [ ] Poblano peppers — 10 (Fri chiles rellenos × 4–6; spare for enchiladas)
  • [ ] Avocados — 6 (Wed guacamole + tacos throughout)
  • [ ] Jalapeños — 4 (various)
  • [ ] Serrano chiles — 2 (guac heat)
  • [ ] Cilantro — 2 bunches
  • [ ] White onion — 3 (various; always rinsed before adding raw)
  • [ ] Garlic — 3 heads
  • [ ] Limes — 8
  • [ ] Oranges — 3 (carne asada marinade + al pastor)
  • [ ] Tomatoes — 6 (pico de gallo, enchilada sauce)
  • [ ] Radishes — 1 bunch
  • [ ] Pineapple — 1 (al pastor Fri)
  • [ ] Mexican dried oregano (different from Italian)

🌽 Masa and Corn

  • [ ] Masa harina (Maseca) — 2-lb bag (tamales + corn tortillas)
  • [ ] Canned hominy — 2 × 29-oz cans (Tue pozole, or cook dried hominy from scratch)
  • [ ] Corn husks — 1 bag (Wed tamales)
  • [ ] Corn tortillas — 2 packs (various tacos; good to have even if you make some)

🧂 Pantry

  • [ ] Achiote paste — 1 small block or tablespoon (al pastor marinade Fri)
  • [ ] Cumin — ground, large jar
  • [ ] Mexican cinnamon (Ceylon) — 1 stick
  • [ ] Dark chocolate (70%+) — 2 oz (mole)
  • [ ] Raisins — small bag (mole)
  • [ ] Sesame seeds — (mole)
  • [ ] Pumpkin seeds (pepitas) — (mole + garnish)
  • [ ] Chicken or beef stock — 2 quarts
  • [ ] Lard or shortening — for tamale masa fat (lard is traditional; makes it better)
  • [ ] Refried beans — canned as backup; or make from scratch with pinto beans
  • [ ] Black beans — 2 × 15-oz cans or 1 lb dried
  • [ ] Long-grain white rice — 2 lbs (arroz rojo; rice sides appear multiple nights — completely the expected starch for this block)

Fresh cheeses (buy at Mexican market):

  • [ ] Queso fresco — 8 oz
  • [ ] Oaxacan cheese (quesillo) — 4 oz (chiles rellenos or quesabirria)
  • [ ] Crema Mexicana — 1 cup (not the same as sour cream; thinner and tangy)