Chicken Baked in Paper

Mixiotes are the outermost layers of young maguey plant leaves called pencas. The membranes are removed in sheets and used to wrap little bundles of marinated meats and chiles that are then steamed, as you would tamales. This recipe was taught to me in Puebla by the mother of my former sous chef Alejandro Sanchez. If you can’t find mixiotes, you can use banana leaves, parchment paper, or even plastic sandwich bags wrapped in aluminum foil.