Pati's Mexican Table

Food Series / 11 Seasons

In each episode, Pati embarks upon an exciting and entertaining journey, where each dish serves as a point of departure into Mexico’s rich history and culture, Pati’s personal experiences, her family life, and her ongoing conversations with cooks in both Mexico and the US.

26m 46s / TV-G

The Nectar of the Mayan Gods

S12 E1201 / 26m 46s / TV-G

Pati is in the magic town of Maní to learn about something sacred to the Mayans - bees and honey. A cooperative of women who protect the endangered Melipona, a stingless bee native to Yucatán, invites her to join in a Mayan energy cleansing ritual involving buñuelos made with Melipona honey. Then she visits a family living by the traditional “Solar Maya,” meaning they grow everything they eat.

Guayabera World

S12 E1202 / 26m 46s / TV-G

In Tekit, or “The Capital of the Guayabera,” Pati encounters a tale of sons going against their father’s wishes to follow their own path. Pati meets Eliodoro Xicum, a farmer’s son who went against his father to build a family business making the iconic Guayabera shirts. Then she meets his son, Elio, who chose to become a chef and created a dish that resembles a Guayabera in honor of his father.

Flavors of Merida

S12 E1203 / 26m 46s / TV-G

Pati explores the vibrant streets of Yucatán’s capital, Mérida, in search of its flavors. She tries “the best tacos in Mérida” at Wayan’e. The aroma of freshly made cookies lures her to Dondé Fabric, where their globitos and bizcochitos are an important part of Mérida’s mornings. She has sorbet at a shop run by the same family for generations and tastes a unique Yucatecan liqueur at Casa D'Aristi.

A Family Affair

S12 E1204 / 26m 46s / TV-G

Pati visits Chef Wilson Alonzo in his hometown of Halachó to prepare a traditional Cochinita Pibil in an underground pit. They begin at the local market to source ingredients. Then Pati helps Wilson prepare the achiote marinade, along with his grandmother who taught him traditional cooking and isn’t shy to correct him. The final product is a meal that captures Yucatán’s history in every bite.

Ode to the Egg

S12 E1205 / 26m 46s / TV-G

Pati arrives in Motul, a town in the history books for Yucatán’s once thriving henequén industry and for the egg dish Huevos Motuleños. Pati meets Doña Evelia, who put Motul back on the map with her world-famous recipe. She also experiences the legacy of henequén at Hacienda Tamchén and encounters another egg dish in the kitchen, where chef Julio Dominguez makes Abuela’s Buttoned Eggs.

Yucatán Meats

S12 E1206 / 26m 46s / TV-G

Temozoón is the birthplace of Yucatán’s signature smoked meat Carne Ahumada and everyone in town claims to have a relative who invented it. Pati strolls around town to try different versions of Carne Ahumada. She also returns to Hacienda Tamchén for another traditional dish prepared by chef Julio Dominguez called Huidzi Bii Wai, which means “united tortilla.”

Recados

S12 E1207 / 26m 46s / TV-G

Pati returns to Mérida to meet sisters, Delia and Maria Elide, who love to cook and laugh and are famous for recados - pastes of spices and aromatic herbs that season Yucatecan foods. In Uxmal, she learns about ingredients only found in Yucatán that make recados unique, touring citrus, habanero, and chaya fields at an hacienda. Then traditional cook Rosa makes a Relleno Negro using a recado negro.

Maya Today

S12 E1208 / 26m 46s / TV-G

Today no trip to Yucatán is complete without seeing a beautiful cenote, natural freshwater pools in caves. But Mayans saw them as the gateway to the underworld. To learn more about Mayan communities, Pati visits Cenote Xocempich with activist and lawyer Zoila Cen, who has dedicated her career to helping Mayan people. The next day, Zoila invites Pati to her niece’s birthday celebration.

Pink

S12 E1209 / 26m 46s / TV-G

An ingredient Pati constantly uses is salt and Yucatán has one of the most unique salts. The Las Coloradas salt, which means blush red, gets its distinctive color from red algae. Engineer Felipe Perez takes Pati to the pink lakes where the salt is produced. Down the road in Rio Lagartos, conservationist Diego Nuñez takes her to see another pink wonder, Mexico’s highest concentration of flamingos.

A Mayan League of their Own

S12 E1210 / 26m 46s / TV-G

In Yaxunah, Pati discovers Yucatán’s “league of their own.” She joins the Amazonas, a softball team of indigenous women, for their morning practice. As they built a name for themselves, they overcame the mindset that women belong in the kitchen. After teaching Pati the ins and outs of the game, Doña Enedina invites her over for Brazo de Reina, a tamal with hardboiled eggs and ground pepitas.

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