When Rick wants to get away from the frantic pace of life in the restaurant world, he heads South. In this episode, he sets out to find the kind of ultimate serenity he’s always sought out in his favorite “secret gardens” of Mexico. It’s a search that takes him from a mountaintop in the jungle to a mellow natural products store in a quite corner of Mexico City and a traditional temescal—a spa and sweat-lodge where curanderos practice ancient healing arts. In his own secret garden in Chicago, Rick shows us how to prepare a soothing Chamomile Tea. Then, in Mexico City’s beautiful San Juan market, he checks out some of the fresh vegetables that are the cornerstones of healthy, Mexican comfort food, and back at home, he shows us how to turn them into a creamy Mushroom-Potato Soup with Roasted Poblanos. Finally, he heads for a secluded Mexican beach to pepare fresh fish Tikin Xic seasoned with a Yucatecan achiote rub and grilled on an open fire, right on the beach. What could be closer to nirvana? Only one thing—a final highwire thrill ride that sends Rick flying across a ravine under a dense jungle canopy.
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