How to Pair Mexican Food with the Perfect Drink?

At MexMax America's Largest Hispanic Wholesale Grocer, we believe great food is more than just food – it's about total indulgence. When you run a Mexican food shop, knowing the way your customer likes things is key. One of the solutions to this problem is to match the drinks to the dishes served, in this case – offering the best possible drink pairings. Mexican food is daring and full of spice, which translates to a difficulty in finding a drink suitable for the meal, but that is how it elevates the entire experience. Be it traditional tacos, or those with lots of shredded chicken enchiladas or perhaps buying Mexican sweets in bulk, an appropriate beverage would embellish the tastes and provide equilibrium to them.

In this blog, we'll explore how you can pair famous Mexican food with drinks to make your customers proud and keep them coming back.

Why drink pairings matter?

Drink pairing teem with gastronomy — it is not something that would work in most, if not all or every Mexican meal. Done correctly, the right drink partakes in the enhancement of the overall meal, cleansing the taste of the mouth, or introducing contrast in taste to the more savoury meals. As the Reliable Hispanic Food Distributor, we will suggest to you lots of different drinks that go well with Mexican food, as we know that it’s not just about the food! This will improve the overall dining experience, which could grow patron pride and loyalty.

While pairing drinks with Mexican food, there are a few aspects to remember:

1) Mellowing aggressive tendencies

It is a well-known fact that Mexican food has both the good and the bad, meaning it has good foods made up of hot chilli sauces, mole enrobed dishes, and sour zingy dishes that incorporate lime. The right beverage choice can even out such extremes thus enhancing the enjoyment of the overall dining experience.

2) Spice up

Cumin, coriander and garlic are some of the popular spices added in many Mexican meals. The ideal beverage can bring out the spice without making your taste buds feel assaulted.

3) Refreshing the palate

Tacos al pastor or carnitas are yummy but heavy. To avoid a situation of every subsequent bite becoming less and less tasty than the first, one may opt for a cooling drink between bites.

Classic Mexican drinks offered at your local Mexican grocery store

Here are some Mexican drinks that pair well with different foods:

a) Agua Fresca

This refreshing beverage is prepared with fruits, sugars, and water, offering a transparent, sleek drink that meshes with nearly every Mexican meal. Watermelon, tamarind, or hibiscus flower– agua fresca enhances the flavour profile, rich and spicy, but it remains in the background.

b) Horchata

A sweet and pleasing drink made from rice called horchata has a nice creamy content and a pleasant taste of cinnamon, which is especially appropriate when served with hot dishes such as enchiladas or spicy stuffed poblano peppers called chile rellenos. It is just the right way to cool down one’s mouth after chewing on some hot dish.

c) Jarritos

This sweet and tasty Mexican fizzy drink comes in a variety of fruity shades and tastes, and is enjoyed by both elders and the young ones. It is used as a sweet and fizzy refreshment especially in between foods like tacos, burritos among many others.  Offering this soda is an extraordinary way to meet customers who love carbonated drinks with their meals.

d) Beers 

Corona, Modelo or Pacifico, often accompanying Mexican food, are commonly used in everyday parlance as Mexican beers. All these are smooth pale lagers that are fruity and crispy and are ideal when one wants to eat grilled meat such as carne asada or meals such as ceviche. If one has an alcohol licence, Mexican beers can do very well in expanding one’s list of offerings.

e) Tequila and Mezcal

For those customers who are adventurous enough to consider more potent spirits, tequila and mezcal can also be harmoniously matched with certain dishes for a more sophisticated experience. When it comes to food pairings, seafood with tequila is ideal, while smoky mezcal goes well with grilled food.

Pairing drinks with favourite Mexican foods

These tips are simple but effective, and you can easily incorporate them into the menu at your Mexican food store.

i) Tacos

Tacos are one of the most versatile Mexican dishes with unlimited filling options. Depending on the form of the taco, you'll want to provide unique drink pairings. For example:

• Tacos al Pastor: Sweet and spicy pineapple pork works well with any light refreshing agua frescas like pineapple or hibiscus, both light auras who have relevant contrasts to help in shine.

• Carne Asada Tacos: For carne asada which has the smoky, grilled tastes, the best accompaniment will either be a most preferred chilled like just normal beer Model or better still any other drink like margarita which is tequila based. The Vitamin C from the lime cut off the herby drink is an added advantage as this balances the heavy meat, which is the reddish cow beef.

ii) Enchiladas

Enchiladas are commonly covered in a rich sauce, making them a hearty and filling meal. For this purpose, a clear drink can stabilise heaviness.

• Spicy Enchiladas: If you're serving enchiladas with highly spiced pink or inexperienced sauce, offer candy and creamy horchata to cool the palate. The cinnamon and horchata rice flavours offer a great contrast to the warmth.

• Cheese Enchiladas: This helps to improve the heaviness of the cheese and provides a pleasant, sour, extra taste when combined with the cheese griddles and the tamarind agua frescas.

iii) Tamales

Tamales are a traditional dish with a soft doughy texture, often packed with beef, steak or cheese. Depending on the filling, the exclusive liquids paint nicely.

• Pork Tamales: Composed of Pacifico, the mild beer complements the rich beef filling without overpowering the flavour. For a non-alcoholic option, citrus-flavoured agua fresca brightens the meal.

• Cheese and Chile Tamales: Pairing this tamale model with Jarritos candy and fruit soda brings a fun and playful element to the meal, especially for a younger clientele.

iv) Mexican candy

If your Mexican food store offers wholesale Mexican candy, consider pairing these sweet treats with lighter beverages. For example:

• Tamarind Candy: The unique sweet and bitter taste of this candy pairs nicely with simple agua fresca for depth stability. Hibiscus agua fresca is especially super healthy for tamarind-based chocolates.

• Chilli-Laced Candy: The spicy Mexican candy, which regularly contains chilli powder, can  be paired with a refreshing glass of horchata to help settle the heat.

Bottom Line: Enhance your meal plan with drink pairings

At MexMax America's Largest Hispanic Wholesale Grocer, we understand that providing a complete dining experience is about more than just food – it's about creating moments your customers will remember. Selling good quality and appropriate drinks along with even the simplest of the Mexican food will increase the effect of the food sold and therefore increase enjoyment of every meal.