Romulo YanesMexico City-native Roberto Santibañez grew up staring into his grandmother's mole pot, but it took an education in French cooking at Paris's Le Cordon Bleu to change the way he saw the food of his home country. Just as his French mentors taught him that the battery of French sauce-making was united by a few "mother sauces," he suddenly saw that Mexico's amazing array of salsas, adobos and moles were united by certain simple techniques that make them taste, well, Mexican.

Rather than view Mexican cuisine through its incredible diversity - from the Afro-Caribbean seafood of Veracruz to the complicated moles of Oaxaca to from the Spanish- and Dutch-inflected Mayan cuisine of the Yucatan - Santibañez aims to show readers how much the seemingly disparate food of Mexico's many regions actually has in common.

His home cook-encouraging revelation is the core of his new cookbook, Truly Mexican, which teaches fundamental Mexican flavors and techniques. And once you've learned how to roast, say, tomatoes and garlic-without oil-and toast dried chiles, you're just an easy step or two away from so many dishes that you thought you'd have to travel well south of the border to find.

Check out Santibañez's collection of recipes that each exemplify a lesson that'll guide you toward future dinners full of vivid Mexican flavors. We've also got a list of four flavor-packed pantry staples that bring Mexican flavor to whatever they touch.

Scroll down the page to see the recipes!

The Spice Rack

Dried chiles: In contrast to the lip-tingling heat of fresh chiles, these lend a complex dried-fruit flavor-that's exactly what they are, after all- and pulpy texture to sauces. Toast them briefly in a hot pan to bring out their flavor, then soak them in cold water until they're soft and blend them into the cooking liquid for your next stew or chili.

Canela (Mexican cinnamon): This is real cinnamon, not the harsh stuff that passes for cinnamon in the U.S. (and is actually cassia). Also called Ceylon cinnamon, it's subtle, sweet and very aromatic. You can find it at Mexican and some Asian markets. Substitute it for regular cinnamon in any dessert or sauce and revel in the difference.

Mexican oregano: More floral, subtle and complex than regular oregano, it provides the right flavor for Mexican salsas and sauces. But because it's so tasty, you can use it in place of regular oregano, whatever you're cooking. You'll find it at most gourmet grocery stores and Mexican markets.

Mexican chocolate: Dark unsweetened chocolate mixed with crunchy grains of sugar and Mexican cinnamon makes for an intriguing substitute for regular chocolate in any recipe. Just about every supermarket stocks the Ibarra or Abuelita brands, but it's worth looking for artisanal products like the kind made by the Taza brand.