The 560 thick, glossy pages of “Mercados: Recipes from the Markets of Mexico” are such a riot of color and photography, the first time I picked up the book, I didn’t pause to read a word of it.

It took a second pass through David Sterling’s gorgeous travelogue to absorb that it is equally rich in information — not so much a cookbook as a treatise on the food and culture of Mexico, told through its vibrant markets.

Sterling, an Oklahoma City native and New York City graphic designer, now lives in the Yucatan, where he ran a cooking school praised by the likes of Diana Kennedy, an authority on Mexican cooking. With Kennedy’s encouragement, he wrote his first book: an exhaustive and beautiful culinary history of his new home, “Yucatan: Recipes from a Culinary Expedition.” It won the James Beard Foundation’s cookbook of the year award in 2015 and the prestigious Art of Eating Prize.

Sterling was working on the final draft of “Mercados” when he died in 2016. The book was finished by his sous-chef, Mario Canul, who had accompanied Sterling on his travels and took many of the evocative photos.

Chapter by chapter, “Mercados” works its way through every region of Mexico, each market a microcosm of a specific culture and its flavors.

There are endless discoveries. In the chapter on the Southern Highlands, the terrain ranges from “tropical coastlines to soaring peaks dotted with high valley towns blanketed in mist.” Here, in the states of Oaxaca and Chiapas, the land is so remarkably fertile, it has been recognized as one of the most biodiverse places on the planet.

Sterling and Canul bring the small markets to life by exploring the local varieties of beans (more than 25, most of them wild), chocolate, coffee and much more.

And then there are the recipes, more than 100 meticulous, authoritative and frustrating recipes, because, although Sterling gives substitutions for ingredients impossible to find outside of a tiny area, knowing as much as you now know only makes you crave the real thing.

As casual as the food may be, the preparations are almost always complex. Weekend projects, not weeknight dinners. Still, there are a few exceptions, recipes that reflect their regions that will take just a little time to make, while you dream of your next trip to Mexico.

VERACRUZ CAMARONES AL AJILLO (SHRIMP WITH GARLIC AND CHILIES)

From “Mercados: Recipes from the Markets of Mexico,” by David Sterling and Mario Canul

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 10 medium cloves garlic
• 5 guajillo chilies, stems, seeds and veins removed and cut into thin rounds (substitute ancho chilies)
• 1-1/2 pounds large or jumbo whole shrimp
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• >> For serving:
• White rice, lime wedges, warm corn tortillas, salad of lettuce, sliced tomato, onion and avocado

In large skillet, heat oil until shimmering. Add garlic and chilies and cook, stirring frequently, until garlic is translucent. Add shrimp and stir to coat with olive oil. Cook 3 to 5 minutes, until shrimp are pink and opaque.

Remove shrimp to a platter, sprinkle with salt, and spoon some garlic- chili oil over top. Serve with rice, salad, lime wedges and tortillas. Serves 6.

JALISCO CARNE AL TEQUILA (SAUTEED BEEF WITH TEQUILA)

From “Mercados: Recipes from the Markets of Mexico,” by David Sterling and Mario Canul

• 1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for sauteeing
• 4 medium cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
• 1-1/2 pounds beef tenderloin (or skirt steak or flank steak)
• 1/4 cup tequila
• >> Marinade:
• 1/4 cup achiote paste (see note)
• 2 tablespoons Maggi Seasoning
• 3/4 cup lime juice
• >> For serving:
• Shredded cabbage, julienned radishes, chopped red onion, cilantro, white rice, refried beans, guacamole, bottled chili sauce, warm tortillas, lime wedges

Place 1/4 cup olive oil and garlic in blender and process until garlic is liquefied.

Slice beef across grain into 6 rounds. Place each steak between pieces of waxed paper and pound with mallet or rolling pin to a thickness of about 1/2 inch. Place steaks in large baking dish and brush both sides with olive oil mixture.

Combine marinade ingredients in blender and process until liquefied. Pour over steaks, making sure each piece is well covered. Refrigerate 1 to 2 hours, no more.

Bring beef to room temperature. Warm tequila.

Heat about 3 tablespoons more oil in a large skillet until shimmering. Remove meat from marinade; shake off excess. Saute meat over medium- high, turning once, 2 to 3 minutes per side, until medium-rare. Immediately pour tequila into pan and carefully ignite it. Wait 5 seconds, then shake skillet gently until flames die.

Transfer meat to platter and pour any liquid in pan over it.

Garnish with cabbage, radishes, onion and cilantro, tossed with squeeze of lime juice. Serve with rice if you wish. Diners should cut slices of beef to fill warm tortillas, adding refried beans, chili sauce and lime to taste. Serves 6.

>> NOTE: Achiote paste is available at Mercado de le Raza, 1315 S. Beretania St.; 593-2226.

Nutritional information unavailable.