Mexico Culinary Vacation: Celebrating Flag Day

Every year on February 24 Mexico celebrates the national holiday El dia de la bandera (Flag Day). Flag Day commemorates the day in 1821, when Mexico won its independence from Spain, and now you can celebrate this Mexican holiday on an amazing cooking vacation in Mexico.

The celebrated colors of the Mexican flag are full of historic tradition.  In fact, the green, white and red stripes as well as the coat of arms in the center of the flag each represent a part of the story of Mexican history. The green stripe represents Mexico’s independence from Spain and also signifies hope. The white stripe represents the purity of the Catholic faith of the Mexicans, and the red stripe is representative of hero’s’ blood.

Why not participate in your own Dia de la bandera celebration by taking a Mexico culinary vacation and creating a traditional red, green and white Mexican dish called Chiles en nogada?

Chiles en nogada are stuffed chiles, similar to the ones used for chile rellenos  (green). They are covered in a creamy walnut sauce (white) and then topped with pomegranate seeds (red).  The dish dates back to 1821, when puebla nuns wanted to honor a visiting Mexican general with a special meal.

Interestingly, Italy has a similar culinary homage to its flag’s colors (also red, white, and green): the famous pizza margherita, named for Queen Margherita of Italy and said to represent with tomato, mozzarella, and basil the flag’s colors!

Check out our cooking vacations in Mexico and discover other traditional Mexican dishes you can create!

Try more authentic Mexican recipes including:

• Tacos de mariscos
• Mayan succotash
• Chiltomate sauce

By Liz SanFilippo Hall

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Originally published February 22, 2013.