Food & Tradition
Succulent Oaxacan Barbecue

Alvin Starkman, our Oaxaca correspondent, explains the traditional method of preparing this delicious in-ground oven barbecua.

The barbacoa begins with a visit to a local farm or market for the goats or sheep. Cattle are also cooked in the ancient style, as well as ram and sheep. Since the early nineties, here in Oaxaca the most popular animal for such purposes is the borrego pelibuey, a variety of sheep.

Each animal will feed between 25 and 40 people, depending on size. A typical barbacoa will be for 150 guests. The chivero and his assistant come to the house the morning before the feast to take stock. Is there enough firewood? Are river rocks the right size? What is the condition of the oven? What type of grate is there? Is the soil loose enough?

The goats are slaughtered in the afternoon. Every detail of the skinning, cutting and cleaning has its own time-honored procedure. Nothing is wasted; every entrail, organ and liquid is gathered, prepared, and set aside for later use. At the same time, in the kitchen vegetables are being cored, cut, and cubed. The barbacoa is very labor intensive and the whole household participates in the preparation.

By evening the maestro is ready to begin the curing of the oven. The terracotta bricks that line the barbecue pit are softer than those used to build houses. After the logs are lit, the chivero may opt to go home for a few hours. At around 2 a.m., he returns to put more wood on the fire to maintain a constant temperature. The river rocks are then put on top of the logs. At around 7 a.m. more wood is added and allowed to burn off, and maguey or agave leaves are charred. At this point skewered goat hearts are grilled for tacos.

Now the vegetables are boiled with some of the innards in a large cast aluminum cauldron which is set on top of the scorched stones. Another pot holds large, broken kernels of corn with special seasonings. An iron grate which holds the quartered goats - including heads and entrails - topped with avocado leaves and the grilled agave is gingerly lowered onto the vegetable cauldrons. The blood, encased in stomach lining, is readied. Then the whole affair is covered with a petate (a reed mat).

The oven is finally sealed with one or more grids of reinforced steel, a sheet of laminated metal, and a plastic or vinyl cloth. Then a hill of dirt (the loose soil) is shoveled onto the heap, lightly hosed, and compacted. A bottle of mezcal is buried in the mound. By the time the guests arrive in mid afternoon, the blood has curdled, the meat has roasted to perfection, and its juices have dripped into the vegetable casseroles. The corn has now turned into a flavorful mash.

The male guests may aid in the unearthing of the oven, and the one finding the mezcal - now very smooth - gets to serve shots to the others. The bouillabaisse is served first, followed by the most tender, savory and succulent meat imaginable, with sides of blood and cooked large grain. Often a band is playing.

A few honored guests are presented with the crania, which have been opened so that one can scoop out brains or an eye to put into a tortilla and top with salsa. Only the testicles are equal to brains and eyes as rare and much coveted delicacies. At one 5-goat feast I attended, someone absconded with all ten testes.