Sinaloa

The lead singer of the regional Mexican band Enigma Norteño, Ernesto Barajas, was shot and killed on Tuesday in the municipality of Zapopan in the state of Jalisco, Mexico, according to ABC 7.

The singer was killed by two individuals riding a motorcycle, according to authorities. The prosecutor’s office of the state of Jalisco has already opened an investigation into the murder, according to ABC 7.

The band from Sinaloa is known for its “viral drug ballads,” a musical style known to glorify organized crime. Enigma Norteño has dedicated its songs to members of the Jalisco Nueva Generacion and Sinaloa cartels. The genre has been banned by a third of the states in Mexico.

The killing of Barajas comes three months after the dead bodies of five members of the Mexican regional band Fugitivo were found in the northern city of Reynosa.

In July, the Council of the Judiciary of the State of Jalisco agreed to drop the criminal case against the Mexican regional band Los Alegres Del Barranco. The band came under investigation after it displayed a photograph of a leader of the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación during a show.

In April, the Mexican government announced a music contest to encourage Mexican artists to create music that does not glorify a violent lifestyle. The competition was created to encourage musicians to write songs about love, heartbreak and peace, according to Billboard.

“While the contest won’t solve this issue overnight, and we’re not neglecting the underlying causes — for that, there’s a whole national security program — we felt it was important to create creative spaces through culture for Mexican and Mexican-American youth who are passionate about music,” Claudia Curiel de Icaza, secretary of culture for Mexico, told Billboard Español.

Authorities from the state of Jalisco did not respond to a request for a comment in time for publication.

Incident is latest in months of intense violence between rival drug cartel members.

Twenty bodies, several of them decapitated, have been found on a highway bridge in the northwestern state of Sinaloa, Mexican authorities say, as rival drug cartel factions fight one another in the area.

The Sinaloa state prosecutor’s office reported a grisly scene on Monday: Four headless corpses were found on a roadside, 16 bodies were discovered inside an abandoned vehicle near the state capital, Culiacan, and five human heads were found inside a bag.

Authorities said the bodies were left with a note, apparently from one of the cartel factions – though the note’s contents were not immediately disclosed.

Feliciano Castro, the Sinaloa government spokesperson, condemned the killings and said authorities needed to examine their strategy for tackling organised crime with the “magnitude” of the violence seen.

“Military and police forces are working together to reestablish total peace in Sinaloa,” Castro said. Most in the state, however, say authorities have lost control.

Sinaloa has been gripped by months of violence fuelled by rival drug traffickers vying for control of routes used to produce and transport narcotics, including fentanyl, that are often destined for the United States.

The groups are split between members loyal to Sinaloa Cartel co-founders Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman and Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada.

The violence peaked after the arrest in July 2024 of Zambada, who is on trial in the US. The US announced it had arrested 76-year-old Zambada and 38-year-old Joaquin Guzman Lopez, “El Chapo” Guzman’s son, at an airport near El Paso, Texas.

Zambada accused Guzman Lopez of kidnapping him in Mexico and flying him to the US in a private plane against his will.

“El Chapo” has been serving a life sentence in the US for drug trafficking since 2019.

Guzman Lopez pleaded not guilty last July to drug trafficking and other charges in federal court in Chicago.

In September, Zambada pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking, murder and other charges in a New York court.

The violence in Sinaloa has killed more than 1,200 people, according to official figures.

Criminal violence, most of it linked to drug trafficking, has claimed about 480,000 lives in Mexico since 2006 and left more than 120,000 people missing.

A good plate of Sinaloa-style aguachile starts with liquid hot peppers, lots of lime, and freshly butterflied, raw shrimp. The flavor and heat build like a strong corrido: dramatic and full of contrast, tension and release. The chiles, the lime, the crunch of cucumber, the bite of red onion — it’s all deliberate. Bold, loud and alive. Just like Sinaloa.

In “Mexico: The Cookbook,” author Margarita Carrillo Arronte asserts that aguachile began in the sun-baked ranchlands of inland Sinaloa, not the coast. She says the original version was made with carne seca (sun-dried beef), rehydrated in water and jolted awake with chiltepín peppers. Picture ranchers grinding the chiles by hand, mixing them with lime and water, and pouring it over dehydrated meat to revive it like a delicious Frankenstein’s monster.

Francisco Leal, chef-owner of Mariscos Chiltepín in Vernon and Del Mar Ostioneria in Mid-City, shares a slightly different origin story. “According to legend, aguachile was invented in the hills of Los Mochis [Sinaloa],” he said. “The poor would mix tomatoes, onions and hot water with ground chiltepín. That’s why it’s called aguachile — chile water. They’d dip tortillas in it because that’s all they had. Naturally, when it reached the cities, people added protein.”

In both stories, aguachile migrated west to the coast — in particular, Mazatlán — where shrimp replaced carne seca. From there, it crossed borders and eventually took root in cities like Los Angeles, where it now thrives as both a beloved mariscos staple and a canvas for regional creativity.

Despite the comparisons, aguachile is not ceviche. The fish or shrimp in ceviche may marinate in citrus for hours. Traditional Sinaloa aguachile shrimp stay translucent, kissed but not cooked by the spicy lime juice.

The dish is popular across L.A.’s broader Mexican food scene, thanks to the city’s deeply rooted Sinaloan community. Many families hail from Mazatlán, Culiacán and Los Mochis and have been living in areas such as South Gate, Huntington Park, Paramount and East L.A. for decades. With them came a seafood-first sensibility that prioritizes freshness, balance and bold flavors in everyday cooking. That foundation helped aguachile thrive across generations and zip codes.

Chefs like Leal have expanded on the dish while staying true to its roots. At his Vernon restaurant, aguachile is more than a menu item — it’s a form of expression. Leal experiments with ingredients like passion fruit and tropical chiles but maintains an obsessive commitment to sourcing, texture and balance.

You’ll now find aguachile made with scallops at Gilberto Cetina’s Michelin-rated marisqueria Holbox or carrots at Enrique Olvera’s restaurant Damian in downtown L.A., but the rise of these variations is less about fleeting trends and more about the dish’s adaptability — its ability to hold complexity and evolve. Many chefs are drawing inspiration from seasonal California produce and veggie-forward palates, pairing traditional heat with a lighter, fresher profile.

But sometimes I crave the aguachile I grew up with.

My Sinaloan mom Elvia and my Sinaloan-American nephew Angel make the best aguachile I’ve ever had. They do it with high-quality shrimp that’s cleaned and butterflied just before serving, fresh-squeezed lime juice and chiles blended to order. Cold, sharp and so spicy it makes you sweat. Whether they make the dish as a quick snack with tortilla chips or an appetizer for a weekend asada, the goal is always to feed their family food from the heart.

As I explored L.A.’s aguachile scene, I was moved by how many places carried that same spirit. From front-yard mariscos stands to neighborhood institutions, here are 10 Sinaloan-style aguachiles to snack on all summer long.