On Food & Culture
Chile is Mexican, scientific name capsicum. Pepper is Indian (India), scientific name piper. When our European ancestors, searching for India, landed instead in the Americas and found chiles, they used the “spicy” default name with which they were familiar, “pepper.” They also called the South …
Gazpacho is a must in this Texas heat. It’s Spanish, not Mexican, although it uses Mexican ingredients like bell pepper (chile dulce) and tomatoes. I bought tomatoes from the Atkinson Family Farm, a 4th generation family farm. Hurray! Jeni, wife of grandson, Bob, sold them …
Mole Poblano may not be commonplace in Texas nor just south of the Rio Grande but from time to time you get to taste the rich, complex sauce when perhaps newly arrived friends from Puebla, Mexico make it. Aromatic spices, roasted nuts, seeds, Chiles! Or …
Bruscheta is a crisp and refreshing appetizer for these hot summers. This morning I pinched off some beautiful plump Basil leaves for some Tomato and Basil Bruscheta I’m serving at lunch. I find that in Houston the basil plant has to be in the shade …
Horchata is a classic “agua fresca” and also a prime example of how people and food constantly evolve as they define their identity. A delicious Mexican iced drink of almonds and rice essence, horchata was brought to our region and our people by the Spanish …
Poetry– my margarita with a salt “Aire” served at Oyamel restaurant in DC of Chef José Andres who yesterday was named Best Chef by the James Beard Foundation. The “aire” is the “molecular cooking” technique that creates highly flavored foams using the chemical, lecithin. A …
In our Centro/SouthTexas and Northern Mexico region pinto beans are the staple in all native Mexican-American homes. No exceptions, not ever. It is only restaurants and caterers that pass them over and use black beans in their recipes. It’s not that we don’t think black …
This San Antonio tamale recipe was taught to me by my sister, Esther M. Martinez, who learned it from our mom, Dominga M. Medrano, who learned it from her mom, María Victoria Vargas, and so forth. Esther also learned aspects and nuances of tamales from …
Cooking delicious Mexican food is at the heart of justice and mercy. “El Tren de las Moscas” is a 14-minute video that truly grips. One of those gems of art that keeps hope alive that art is well and growing. I always ask: “Can there …
Today I’m just thinking out loud about how we give names to food. When I first started making “coquilles St. Jacques à La Provençal” I followed Julia Child’s recipe religiously, just as I read it in her “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” and as …