The beverages at a Mexican restaurant can be just as tasty and refreshing as the food. Margaritas, made with tequila, triple sec, and lime or lemon juice, are a popular choice. Many restaurants also offer imported beers as well as non-alcoholic choices.
The word “fajita” means “little belt” in Spanish, referring to a cut of skirt steak underneath the heart and lungs. The food originates from cattle drives along the Rio Grande Valley and was popularized by Mama Ninfa Laurenzo in the 1970s.
Aside from all of the delicious Mexican food dishes we all love to eat, did you know that we have Mexico to thank for chocolate as well as peanuts, vanilla, beans, coconuts and tomatoes?
Were nachos, tortilla chips topped with cheese and other tasty ingredients, first developed in Mexico or in the U.S. Southwest? If you guessed this delicious appetizer was first crafted in Mexico, you're right.
Try to avoid tortillas packed with preservatives if you can. They are a key ingredient to many of our favorite Mexican dishes and do not have that metallic taste that preservatives give off. You should try to use fresh tortillas made from the original and delicious recipe standards.
Do you know what has had the most influence on modern Mexican cuisine? Spanish foods, which were introduced when Spain invaded Mexico in the sixteenth century. Not only did they introduce new livestock, such as pigs, but dairy products and garlic as well.
A chef by the name of Ignacio Anaya from Piedras Negras is credited for inventing nachos. The snack was originally made for military housewives who went shopping on the holidays and was made popular by a concessionaire in San Antonio, Texas.
Tacos can be difficult to eat without spilling the precious filling. A good technique is to pinch the top between your thumb, index finger and middle finger. The ring finger can be added for extra support on large tacos.
Have you ever had a dish that was so spicy it hurt, yet you couldn't stop yourself from eating it? Capsaicin is a chemical in peppers that signals the brain to release endorphins to numb the pain from the spice.
Mexican cuisine is just as complex as other ancient cuisines such as those of China and Japan. The techniques and skills to create the cuisines developed over thousands of years of history.
Tomatoes are a key ingredient to Mexican cooking. In judging a tomato's acidity, look at its color. Lighter varieties (white and pale yellow) tend to be less acidic than darker (deep red, purple, and black) tomatoes.
A churrera is the syringe-like tool that features a star-shaped nozzle. This tool is used to create churros. This nozzle gives churros their signature elongated-star shape. Traditionally, street vendors in the town square sold churros during breakfast hours.
