On Food & Culture
Cornbread is among my formative childhood memories. Amá made it especially for family celebrations, and to make cornbread dressing with pecans and raisins. Corn arrived in Texas around 700 AD, and it was the Caddo civilization in East Texas that cultivated and developed the grain […]
This fresh corn skillet, Guisado De Maíz, is all about simplicity and the importance of basic cooking techniques. “Do the basics brilliantly” was the constant mantra of one of my chef instructors at the Culinary Institute of America, Chef Hinnerk Von Bargen. It was also […]
Texas Mexican Food Event In San Antonio, Texas Texas Mexican food gained fame In 1800s when Texas Mexican business women ran outdoor diners, and their delicious cooking made San Antonio a culinary destination, tourists arriving via railroad. These entrepreneurial women began to be called “chili […]
In Chicago I presented a slide show about how cooking is memory, relationship and ethics. I also conducted a cooking workshop to demonstrate how to make gorditas, working with dried chiles, cactus, corn masa, and pinto beans. No lard, thank you. It was a 4-hour […]
“Nacho’s” is an original Texas Mexican (not Tex-Mex) dish that was created by culinarian, Ignacio Anaya (nickname Nacho) in Piedras Negras, Coahuila, across the river from Eagle Pass, Texas. It is a thoughtful, beautifully balanced combination of just three ingredients, corn chips, longhorn cheese and […]
Cazuelitas or Sopes are a part of the Texas Mexican cuisine that exists in the region outlined in yellow (Map of the 1984 Republic of Mexico). Not to be confused with Tex-Mex, Texas Mexican is one of at least 12 related regional cuisines in the […]
Bean tamales are traditional all the way from Texas to Puebla to Oaxaca and other regions of Mexican cuisine. I love them because historically they pre-date the arrival of European immigrants who after 1528 started importing pigs and thus lard. All tamales are the occasion […]
Dishes have provenance and memory. The most mouth-watering and delicious ones evoke family, context and relationships. The recipe was initially told to me by my sister, María, when both of us were in our twenties. It was a delight to have entered the grown-up world […]
Enchiladas are delicious and delicate. This red enchilada is perfect for romance and to say I love you. I’ve blogged before that to understand an enchilada is to understand our history and community. The tortilla is not a wrap for filling. It is the thing itself: […]
Migas is a traditional Texas Mexican breakfast. I’d like to see more kitchens preparing it because it’s 1. zesty and delicious, 2. high in easily digestible protein1, 3. low-fat, and 4. rich in vitamins and minerals. The word means crumbs and it refers to the […]