Yes, there is extensive evidence that members of Mexican drug cartels engage in horrific acts of violence, including using methods that can be described as “cooking” or 

incinerating human bodies to dispose of victims or as a form of torture. 

Specific methods documented in reports include:

• Dissolving bodies in acid and sodium hydroxide: A cartel member known as “The Stewmaker” confessed to dissolving hundreds of cadavers in a tub filled with chemicals and stirring them for hours until only teeth and nails remained.
• Incineration in ovens or barrels: The Los Zetas cartel took over a ranch where an outdoor brick oven, typically used for traditional corn dishes, was instead used to incinerate victims, a practice that led to the term “to zacahuil” (to cook humans) in that region. Another common method was placing victims inside 55-gallon barrels and burning them alive, referred to as making “guiso” or “stew”.
• Cannibalism as an initiation ritual: Testimonies from an offshoot of the La Familia Michoacana cartel indicated that eating the hearts of victims was part of a macabre initiation rite used to test loyalty and root out moles. Other reports mention “cannibal schools” where recruits were forced to eat human flesh. 

These acts are part of the extreme brutality used by cartels to instill fear, intimidate enemies, and maintain control.