Adobo
In Mexico, adobo is a thick sauce of dried chiles, spices and vinegar used to marinate meat, which is then cooked slowly. Adobos season al pastor, birria, mixiotes and many other taco meats.
Definition
Larousse defines the Mexican adobo as a thick sauce of several dried chiles, spices and vinegar in which meat is marinated for hours and then slowly cooked. Vinegar is the ingredient that sets adobo apart from other chile sauces. The usual chiles are guajillo, ancho and pasilla, toasted, cooked and ground with tomato, onion and spices such as pepper, clove, cinnamon, thyme, oregano, cumin and garlic. Its color ranges from red to nearly black depending on the chiles. Pork is the most common meat, followed by chicken, beef and fish.
In tacos
Several classic taco meats are adobos. Chilango credits El Huequito with marinating pork in chiles, vinegar and achiote for Mexico City's red al pastor; Monterrey's tacos de trompo use a paprika-heavy adobo. Birria meat is coated in a chile and vinegar sauce and rested about 12 hours before cooking, and central Mexican mixiotes are marinated in guajillo, pasilla and spices. Chipotles canned in adobo are a staple topping.
Related terms
Larousse distinguishes adobo from simple salsas and compares the diversity of adobos to that of moles.
Reviews
Reviews and tips open at launch. Readers will be able to share where they found the best version of this and how they make it at home.
See also
References
- "Adobo". Larousse Cocina (Diccionario enciclopédico de la Gastronomía Mexicana). Retrieved 2026-10-10.
- "La historia del taco al pastor es la versión taquera de Romeo y Julieta". Chilango. Retrieved 2026-10-10.
- "Trompo Tacos Are So Much More Than Tacos al Pastor". Texas Monthly. Retrieved 2026-10-10.
- "Birria". Larousse Cocina (Diccionario enciclopédico de la Gastronomía Mexicana). Retrieved 2026-10-10.
- "Mixiote". Larousse Cocina (Diccionario enciclopédico de la Gastronomía Mexicana). Retrieved 2026-10-10.