Jeffrey Pilcher Mexican Culture Summary

In the chapter titled “Inventing the Mexican American Taco” from the book Planet Taco, author Jeffrey M. Pilcher discusses the history of this quintessentially Mexican American dish. Pilcher divides this chapter into distinct sections that are separated by subheadings, such as “Cooking in the ‘Mexican American Generation’” and “Selling the Fast-Food Taco”. In this chapter, Pilcher analyzes the various factors that influenced the spread of Mexican American cuisine in the 1950s United States, which he eventually attributes to the competition between Mexican restaurant owners and outsiders who attempted to revolutionize Mexican cuisine with branding for an American audience. Pilcher opens this chapter by discussing Glen Bell, the founder of Taco Bell. Inspired by the recent success of McDonalds,

“Taco USA: How Mexican Food Became More American Than Apple Pie” was written in 2012 by Gustavo Arellano, a prolific food author for the Orange County newspaper OC Weekly. This article originally appeared as an online publication in Reason Magazine. Arellano has written books about Mexican food and its role in the American experience. His writings explain how this genre of cuisine has evolved and transformed as it has spread geographically throughout the United States. Growing up in Orange County California with two Hispanic parents, Arellano experienced firsthand the transformation of traditional Mexican dishes into the tex-mex that most American families are familiar with today. The online news site, Reason Magazine, originally published this article to accommodate to an audience of readers who want to be informed but also entertained by the news. These readers care about what is happening in society but are not considered scholars on the topics presented. Although the readers of Reason Magazine might not have any formal knowledge about food and its role in culture, all of them have experienced the importance of a meal in their everyday lives. The author uses the experience and background of his audience to show them the importance and prevalence of Mexican food in the American culture. In “Taco USA” Arellano uses personal stories, ethnic language, and historical information to show his

Within the first few paragraphs of this section Arellano not only describes the setting of his work he also jumps right into the main topic that he will be discussing, Mexican food. Arellano coming from Hispanic heritage himself grew up eating and loving Mexican food. So when he traveled to South Dakota in the middle of the United States, he was greatly surprised to find out that google maps found four Mexican restaurants in one city. But he was even more surprised to find how many locals enjoyed these restaurants and how Americanized the food was. He described his astonishment when he tried his first Potato Oles from fast food giant Taco Johns. They were “Stuffed into a breakfast burrito, nacho cheese sauce slowing oozing out from the bottom of the flour tortilla. There is nothing remotely Mexican about Potato Oles-not even the quasi-Spanish name.” And it's with this creative and insightful description that we learn that the author really knows his stuff when it comes to true Mexican cuisine.

Tradition has been said to mirror a way of life. Observation has concluded that participants in tradition “actively construct as well as reflect culture and community” (Sacks 275). For most people in the 21st century, tradition only reveals itself during special times or certain seasons. For others it is simply a way of life. The foodways of Mexicans and Native Americans are of particular interest in this study because of the food that grew from necessity and is maintained as sacred or reserved for only special occasions. The tamale is one such food. Significantly changed and altered throughout history it has remained a

In Marie Sarita Gaytan’s “From Sombreros to Sincronizadas,” she argues that the authenticity of Mexican restaurants has become a social construct. Different types of Mexican restaurants are considered more authentic because of a stereotype we created in the early 1970’s. After its creation, people refused to accept anything but the “ideal” Mexican restaurant and would raise their noses to anything different from their ideas of authentic Mexican food. She states that to have any type of real Mexican food, you must have true Mexican spirit, which cannot be copied. All in all, Gaytan’s argument is that the idea of authentic Mexican food is our own and not everyone else’s. Real Mexican food comes from years and years of cultural development and

“Food is a central activity of mankind and one of the single most significant trademarks of a culture”. (Kurlansky, 2002) This quote perfectly sums up the importance of food when it comes to culture. I have had the privilege of being born into a Hispanic background. The Hispanic culture is rich with traditions, language, music, literature, but most importantly, cuisine.

This paper looks to define and explore three books which are a crux to various food histories which in the last decade has become a scholarly journey as food history is becoming increasingly studied as a scholarly endeavor by historians where previously it was not seen in such a scholarly light. The three texts which are going to be examined are: Planet Taco: A Global History of Mexican Food by Jeffery M. Pilcher, The Invention of the Restaurant: Paris and Modern Gastronomic Culture by Rebecca L. Spang, and lastly To Live and Dine in Dixie: The Evolution of Urban Food Culture in the Jim Crow South by Angela Jill Cooley. Each of these books seek to redefine how people see their perspective topics whether it be Mexican identity rooted in cuisine, the evolution of southern food in a racially divided south, or even the concept of the restaurant emerging from a revolutionary culture. These texts bring awareness to various topics which have both social, cultural, and economic stigmas associated with them.

Another great sense of food is the warm soft tortillas that carry delicious pieces of juicy beef fajita. At restaurants, the sight of the steam leaving the food, creates a mouth to water as well as a pleasant feeling of home. However, not every place is going to capture the appetizing taste of food. Say for example, school. I remember one time in elementary they were serving tamales. I was so excited to see a Hispanic dish, I know I had the biggest smile on my face. I continued to my class table and sat down. All of a sudden my friend sitting across from me, a friend that happens to be Asian, questioned, “You like that?” Bluntly, I responded “Yeah, why?” In which he responded, “Oh, I didn’t like it.” Tamales, might I add is special occasion meal, that is prepared in a dried corn husk. Masa de Maize or the dough would be spread against the dried corn husk. Then it would be filled with chicken, pork, or cheese. Then the components would be wrapped by the corn husk to be

Here in California, there are several Mexican supermarkets that offer almost all of the basic and essential products in making or preparing the dishes common for this culture. This is an advantage for Mexicans that reside here in California. The interviewees also mentioned that in other states, Mexican food products are scarce making it difficult for some of them to prepare the meals that they are used to eating.

Mexican culture dates far back as the 13th century. This is when the Aztecs were prevalent in northern mexico. Aztecs were a people who were all about war and honor. They made many enemies going to war with smaller tribes and brutally killed their enemies. In the 16th century the Aztecs Empire crumbled due to the invasion led by Hernan Cortez. Disease, superior weapons, and aid of the Aztec’s enemies were all contributing factors to the Aztecs downfall. Fast forward September 16th 1810 when Mexico gained its independence from Spain Mexico's identity started to develop. Mexican culture is defined by many things, its food, its language, its clothing, its art. However, There is one aspect that defines Mexican culture and that is family life. Mexicans have a very rich family life that defines the culture. The way that family is organized and the way each member acts can be traced back to the very beginning. It's a mixture of the indigenous peoples culture as well as the Spaniards culture. The indigenous peoples pass on their ideas of honor and machismo and the Spaniards pass on their ideas of catholicism, and family value and structure. I fit into this because I grew up on these ideas and my family still practices some of these ideas today.

Neither life nor culture can be sustained without food. On a very basic level, food is fundamentally essential for life, not simply to exist, but also to thrive. A means by which carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, nutrients, and calories are introduced into the body, food is a mechanism of survival. However, on a more abstract level, food is also fundamentally essential for culture by establishing its perimeters and dimensions and in shaping its authenticity and character. Food becomes the

Cooking and Coping Among the Cacti is an ethnography from 1998 that recounts Roberta D. Baer’s nutritional anthropological study on malnutrition in four groups of Mexican people. Nutritional anthropology is a subset of anthropology that studies the socio-cultural aspects of food consumption and nutritional status. Baer conducted the study in order to determine key aspects of the people’s lives that affect their daily diets and to analyze diet compositions. Through data analysis that combines both qualitative and quantitative methods, she asserts that social factors influence available income and available income further influences. To me, Baer’s proposition and proposition are easy to understand, innovative, and convincing. However, it also

In our society today, culture is not what it used to be hundreds of years ago. There is no more “pure” culture. Our culture today is enriched with many different traditions and customs that are being shared and adopted. Due to emigration and immigration, a variety of diverse customs, beliefs, and knowledge moved with every exiting and entering human being. Thus, changing and shaping the culture of many. Throughout the world, the beliefs and religious views of culture are dissimilar around the world. By taking the time to read, listen and learn about certain people’s culture, there will be knowledge and understanding that will be gained.

Lastly, Mexican cuisine in America was not well known to many chefs because they did not know real authentic Mexican cuisine. In fact, “Few, if any, famous chefs had worked in Mexico” thus, “even fewer had studied there” (McEvoy). In this situation, to be respected as a chef one must witness first-hand real Mexican cuisine and to do that it requires visiting Mexico and getting the real experience of Mexican cuisine. Indeed, witnessing the real thing can help bring out the best in a chef because they will know the ingredients and taste needed to satisfy customers seeking authentic Mexican cuisine. Moreover, chefs today are exploring the option of expanding Mexican cuisine in other areas of well know American food. For instance, chefs have rolled

One of the first and most famous groups that influenced our cuisine is the Native American Indians. The earliest settlers in Jamestown, Virginia and Plymouth, Massachusetts relied on the American Indians with their way of preparing and cooking food. The three main crops that the American Indians used were corn, beans, and squash. The Native American Indians generously shared and taught their way of life and how they made their food to the settlers. Throughout the forming of the colonies there were many different cultures and eating habits. There were hunters, farmers, and both. Things started to change once the 13 colonies were beginning to be formed.