In Santa Fe, food is another arty pursuit
SANTA FE, N.M. — Twelve knife-wielding cooks were crazily chopping roasted vegetables, apples, pears and lettuce into recipesize pieces. Overhead mirrors reflected the action, turning the 24 chopping hands into 48.
It was a class at the Santa Fe School of Cooking, and I was part of the frenzied action, dicing ingredients with the best of them. We were facing a tight deadline: lunch. We couldn’t eat until we prepared the food.
Cooking classes are just one way Santa Fe celebrates its love of food. The New Mexico capital city is a gourmet’s heaven, complete with celebrity chefs and a dazzling array of restaurants. You can find Asian, Mediterranean, Indian, Middle Eastern and other international favorites here, besides crazyhot green chile dishes.
My three-hour cooking class, which I took during an August visit, focused on celebrating summer in the Southwest. We learned how to grill encrusted pork chops and make sweet potato salad, and we prepared apple empanadas for dessert.
It was a lot of fun and added an interesting hands-on element to my visit — plus, the finished product tasted great (125 N. Guadalupe St.; [800] 982-4688, www.santa feschoolofcooking.com; $80$115 for a demo class).
If you don’t have time for a do-it-yourself outing, there are plenty of options. Looking for old-style Santa Fe cuisine? You can find it at vintage restaurants in town, including locals’ favorite Tía Sophia’s — credited with inventing the breakfast burrito in the ’70s — and other older restaurants that still serve New Mexican fare, a combination of Hispanic and Native American flavors.
Innovative fare is the new wave, rating kudos at highend restaurants such as the Compound on artsy Canyon Road and Julia, the new dining room at La Posada de Santa Fe Resort. Julia chef Todd Hall gutted the menu and added creative locally sourced dishes such as rock hen baked in Santa Fe red rock clay and a wonderful chocolate extravaganza in the shape of a pueblo.
One thing to remember: If your server asks, “Red or green?” he or she wants to know whether you want red chile sauce or green chile sauce with your New Mexicostyle enchiladas, tamales, chiles rellenos or huevos rancheros.
If you can’t decide, just answer “Christmas” and you’ll get both.