One Great Plate: Torta Ahogada at La Tapatia
Torta Ahogada sandwich from La Familia Tapatia
When food truck El Tapatio opened its brick-and-mortar spot, La Tapatia, it unleashed a very special takeout sandwich. Torta Ahogada is the reigning sandwich of Guadalajara (perhaps their equivalent of our Juicy Lucy?). Known as a “drowned” sandwich, it is a saucy thing, dunked to dripping in hot sauce and tomato sauce. Legend has it, the dish came about by mistake: a slip-up when a sandwich fell into a container of salsa. Soon, the Guadalajara locals, known as Tapatios, started to request it.
Here in St. Paul, Martha Leticia packs a crusty roll with marinated pork, refried beans, avocados, and onions. She provides the sauce on the side so that it travels well. Hear me: Pour the mild tomato sauce all over the sandwich first, even on top of the roll, then add the spicier chile de arbol sauce as well. The two mingle with the fatty pork, giving backbone to the other ingredients. It’s supposed to be messy, it’s supposed to be hot, it’s supposed to cure hangovers and head colds. Just grab a bunch of napkins.
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