So you want to celebrate Cinco de Mayo, but don’t really know how other than mixing up some margaritas, eh? Well, let’s start at the beginning!
1. Learn about the significance of Cinco de Mayo.
Literally “the Fifth of May,” Cinco de Mayo is a Mexican Holiday celebrating the Battle of Puebla, which took place on May 5, 1862. In 1861, France sent a massive army to invade Mexico, as they wanted to collect on some war debts. The French army was much larger, better trained and equipped than the Mexicans struggling to defend the road to Mexico City. It rolled through Mexico until it reached Puebla, where the Mexicans made a valiant stand, and, against all logic, won a huge victory. It was short-lived, as the French army regrouped and continued; eventually taking Mexico City, but the euphoria of an unlikely victory against overwhelming odds is remembered every May fifth.
2. Indulge in Mexican cuisine
Make Chiles Rellenos
This stuffed pepper dish originated in Puebla, and features chiles stuffed with cheese, vegetables and meat, and covered in a flaky crust. Try to use Poblano peppers, which originated in Puebla.
Make Mole Sauce
http://youtu.be/dEEK0CldwXI
There are many different kinds of mole sauce in Mexico, but the most popular ones are from the Mexican states of Puebla and Oaxaca. Ancho peppers, chocolate, pumpkin seeds, and bananas are all featured in different types of mole.
Make tamales
Although tamales are enjoyed throughout Latin America, they are especially popular in Mexico. A spiced meat mixture wrapped in masa and cooked in a corn husk, tamales are easier to make than you might think.
Try a tequila-based cocktail
The plant from which tequila is made, blue agave, is cultivated (mostly) in Mexico. There are a variety of drinks you can make with tequila, such as a margarita, a tequila sunrise, or this Cinco de Mayo cocktail: 2 1/2 oz. tequila, 1 oz. grenadine, and 1 oz. lime juice combined with ice in a shaker, strained into a chilled cocktail glass, and garnished with a lime.
3. Props!
Make a pinata
Buy a sombrero and some maracas, turn on some Mexican music and dance There’s more to Mexican music than mariachi bands!
There’s Tejano
http://youtu.be/HKQBCa1oFXM
Banda (sounds like polka)
and Mexican cumbia!
Put ’em all together and have some fun! Make sure to do it responsibly!