Cochinita pibil tops list of world’s best traditional dishes

Published December 31st, 2021

A dish typical to Yucatán has topped a list of the world’s 100 best, compiled by the international traditional food website TasteAtlas.

The cochinita pibil — a marinated, shredded-pork dish typically red in color — has a 4.7 rating on the TasteAtlas Awards 2021, putting it in the first place.

It is followed by dishes from Brazil, Poland, Thailand, and Italy.

To prepare cochinita pibil, pork is marinated in a combination of annatto paste, bitter orange juice, and garlic and then slowly baked, shredded, and served on tortillas, tacos, or on its own with shallots, pickled onions, salsa, and various roasted vegetables.

The food guide speculated on the origins of the dish.

“Since cochinita means ‘baby pig,’ and pibil means ‘buried’ or ‘underground,’ it acts as proof that the original recipe used a whole suckling pig that was buried in a pit for roasting.”

It recommended Taquería El Turix in the Mexico City borough of Polanco and La Chaya Maya in Mérida, Yucatán, as two of the best places to sample cochinita pibil.

However, it wasn’t the only Mexican dish to be featured in the world’s top 100. Enmoladas — essentially enchiladas covered in mole sauce — was in 27th place; pozole — a corn stew — was in 58th place and alambre — finely chopped meat and vegetables with tortillas — was in 93rd place.

“Undoubtedly, Mexican gastronomy is magical and surprises us every day, so the place of cochinita pibil as the best food in the world is more than deserved,” the website said.

TasteAtlas is an online encyclopedia of 10,000 foods and drinks, presented as a world map, where users can browse local cuisines and restaurants. It also offers extensive recipes.