Mexican, Really?

Author: Real Authentic Mexican Food

Mexican, really?

I’m a Mexican expatriate living in the US for the past 7+ years. Born and raised in northern Mexico, food was an integral part of my upbringing. Recipes are passed from generation to generation and 100-year-old recipes are still part of everyday cooking in Mexico.

Through my teenager and early adult years I developed a passion for cooking. I used to devour cookbooks and religiously watched American cooking shows on satellite. So coming to the US in 2001, I had a solid foundation in Mexican food and a decent understanding of American food….Well, at least I thought I had.

Besides the first Thanksgiving night I spent in the US when I went out at 6pm to “grab a bite to eat” (and of course ended up having a nice junk food meal at home), the biggest shock for me was finding “Mexican” food all over the place…Awesome!!! Restaurants carry a variety of “Mexican” dishes; Grocery stores have a “Mexican” aisle…This is not that bad, I thought. So I decided to give one of these “Mexican” places a try, hoping to cure a bit of my home-sickness. So I got there, and although the decoration of the place made me feel at Dora the Explorer’s home, I stayed on track and decided to order.

So I thought, I’d pick something truly authentic that would take me back home. So I picked the Enchiladas. There’s nothing more satisfying to me like a plate of oil-dipped, cheese-filled corn tortillas topped with even more cheese. Long story short, the plate I got DID in fact take me back home….screaming for my mommy!!! When I got my plate I honestly thought I’d gotten the wrong order. All I could see was some kind of melted yellow cheese on top of a sea of a suspicious red sauce. I asked my server if these were the enchiladas and unfortunately, he confirmed it.

So here I am, in front of a mass of lettuce, melted cheese mixed with red sauce, sour cream and who knows what else under it. And unfortunately it tasted exactly as it looked. Not bad at all, just a lot of different flavors going on and not a drop of Mexican flavor to it. Now that I’m a little more Americanized, I can describe to you what the dish tasted like: Flour tortillas filled with chili, drenched in ketchup and topped with Velveeta. Again, it was not bad, just not what I expected.

So from that day on, I’ve been on my little mission of trying to educate “gringos” about the true essence of Authentic Mexican Food. I can guarantee you’ll be surprised to know most of your Mexican favorite dishes are not that authentic. Would you believe Margaritas are not popular at all amongst Mexican people? Other than American teenagers getting loaded during Spring Break in Cancun and the regular American tourist, Mexicans do not drink that stuff. A similar thing happens with the so-called “Cinco de Mayo” celebration. Did you know most Mexican companies do not even observe this holiday? Government agencies and schools do, but it’s not an official National Holiday. And really, there’s not a whole lot of celebrating going on either. This holiday is in fact much bigger here in the US that it is in Mexico….Go figure.

So, this is the kind of thing that makes me go mental. I know, it’s only food, but it’s the food I grew up with; the food of my ancestors, and the fact that there are self-proclaimed Mexican Food authorities and places out there making a living on it, just makes me cringe.

I’ll be touching on this same topic at upcoming articles. Feel free to contact me for any questions, comments or requests to cover a specific topic. You can also visit my Webpage at www.real-authentic-mexican-food.com where you can find much more about Authentic Mexican Food.

Salud!