On Food & Culture
I dedicate this crab-stuffed Poblano dish to the Karankawa descendants in Corpus Christi and across Texas. The gulf coast was their home for millenia. As I was growing up, we’d regularly climb on the pickup and drive to “Corpos” for a day on the beach. […]
Holiday Buñuelos meant delicious excitement when I was growing up and our family celebrated new year’s eve. Amá would celebrate every new year by making buñuelos. They’re crisp and light. I serve them with no-dairy chocolate. I recall having a sense of wonder at how […]
Happy Holidays. How about a smoked guajolote, turkey for Thanksgiving. The guajolote, turkey, is native to Texas and Mexico. Over millenia, it was hunted by Native Americans for feathers, food and fashion. Some of the bones (the hollow ones) were fashioned into necklaces. It was […]
Meatballs in tomato broth were a favorite recipe of my sister Gloria Fernández. She added rice to the meatballs, as do many family cooks in south Texas and northeastern Mexico. They are part of our traditional cuisine, with the flavoring and caldo, broth, different from […]
Nopalitios agua fresca is a recipe I’ve adapted from one published in the monthly magazine, El Mesteño: A Magazine About Mexican-American Culture And Heritage In South Texas And Mexico. It was published by Homero Vera. Nopalitos are part of the Texas Mexican culinary heritage since […]
Hoja Santa is native to the southern regions of Mexico and is especially common in the states of Hidalgo, Veracruz, Oaxaca and Quintana Roo. Though it grows here in Texas, it was not a part of my family’s Texas Mexican cooking as I was growing […]
In our south Texas and northeastern Mexico culinary region, pinto beans are the staple in native Mexican-American homes. No exceptions, not ever. I was amazed when, working in Chiapas, Mexico during my sophomore year of college, I encountered black beans. They were such a radical, […]
Mexican rice is loved in every Texas Mexican American home, from Houston, to San Antonio, to McAllen, to Monterrey. Each family has its own special and cherished recipe that evokes memories of childhood, family, celebrative moments, and times that were not so good. I’d like […]
This southern fish fry menu includes a rich sauce and a salad. Fish fry is traditional in the southern US, although the actual frying technique, well, not so recent. The fish fry is born of the African American enslaved communities who spent Saturdays, once the […]
“Chorizo Country” and egg is a hearty and traditional Texas Mexican breakfast taco. Just ask anyone in central or south Texas. Add some freshly made tomato and Serrano chile salsa and you’ll be ready to save the world! The best breakfast tacos are made with […]