Sani's Research Paper

“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

Planet Taco: A Global History of Mexican Food by Jeffery M. Pilcher, a Professor of History at the University of Minnesota, provides rather than a history of Mexican cuisine instead a changing of people’s culinary choices by investigating how people’s minds change over the course of decades in the presence of marketing strategies both domestic and international and changing consumer outlooks and tastes regarding foreign cuisine. Pilcher does this by using a seemingly

Jeffrey M. Pilcher is a food writer, professor of History at the University of Minnesota, and author of several award-winning works. In his book !Que vivan los tamales! Food and the Making of Mexican Identity (1998), Pilcher explains that every society creates for themselves a cuisine, a set of foods that the people

Although their tastes differ when it comes to types of chiles, the grandmother and the speaker share a love for the traditional Mexican-American garnish. They also respect each other, simply based on their actions. Here we have two individuals, from different generations, that bond over the age-old tradition of food and love.

When most people hear the word “Mexican”, a person instantly thinks of food. This is because Mexicans have been known through out America as a culture to have a variety of some of the best dishes. Hispanics males take pride in working, just as the females take pride in cooking. The women don’t do it just for the heck of it, they make a form of art and also competition. Every Mexican family has a person who competes with another, to see who can make the best dish. Mexicans have different dishes from soups to rice. The one soup you will here in the Mexican generation is pozole. This is a soup that consists of pork, hominy, and spicy herbs. This recipe has been in my family for a more then a decade, and now I share it with you. In

My focus is on the agriculture and maize domestication of both areas. Maize was first domesticated in Mesoamerica, southern Mexico about 9000 years ago and dispersed into the southwestern United States during the late middle archaic period.

When someone becomes tied or emerged in another culture one of the first things one discovers is their different food. When I became part of my husband’s family, I begin to explore a world full of deliciously rich and sometimes spicy authentic Mexican food. I could never forget the day I had my first taste of Pozole Rojo (red) at my sister in law’s house. The first bite blew my senses away, and it immediately became one of my favorite dishes out of everything I have ever tasted before. With it’s rich, bold and slightly spicy favors it has, the family always begging for more. Pozole is a delicious introduction to a different culture, a passport to favor that connects me with my family and friends. A taste of Mexico can be found in a bowl of homemade pozole rojo.

Keeping up with the Mexican culture was their menu. All the recipes are from the family passed down over many years. The original El Banditos was opened in 1969 in Des Moines, IA showing off their unique recipes and style. Everything is handmade and many ingredients are from local vendors around here. Their menu consisted of classic Mexican dishes such as chips and salsa or guacamole, tacos, enchiladas, burritos, fajitas, soups, and much more. They also served Mexican style breakfast food which I have not seen before which I found very interesting. In addition to a colorful menu of food, they

dishes. In just about every culture you look at, you can find a touch of Mexico in it.

However, three known dishes establish the heart of Mexican dishes. Corn, beans, and hot peppers are three known dishes that form the heart of Mexicans ( ). Their culinary norms are based widely on social class and the level of income ( ). Those who are considered middle and upper-class income bases their diets closely to that of American and Europeans. In Mexico, tequila is well known, and sodas are popular drinks. Sweet rolls, milk, and coffee are served mainly for dinner between the hours of eight and ten. Their main meal eaten between two and four in the afternoon is considered the most important meal of the

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.

Additionally, Cortes admired the new technological advances that the Aztecs invented. Since Tenochtitlan was built overtop of a lake, people of the civilization had to adapt to having a lack of farmland. They created an innovative way to create farmland, called chinampas. “The Aztecs made giant reed mats and placed them on top of the water. They made a fence around the mat and placed mud, fertilizer, and rotten vegetables on it. Then trees were planted on all sides of the chinampa. The trees grew very quickly and their roots held the soil to keep it from flowing away. The Aztecs planted corn, tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, and squash. The plants' roots would grow to the bottom of the lake so they would have an endless supply of water (Tenochtitlan).” Doing this gave Tenochtitlan a great amount of food, without having to sacrifice their supply of water or land.

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.

Hispanic Americans have a strong tie to their culture and display it in their cuisine. Rice and beans are staples to la familia, together they provide a complete protein, and are inexpensive. Spicy peppers and hot sauce provide antibacterial and digestive health qualities that were imperative to provide healthy meals in Mexico because the water supply isn’t guaranteed to be safe for drinking. Historically, many tomato products were introduced to the United States by Mexico, including burritos, tacos, other Mexican cuisine and even ketchup (Sowell, 1981).

To introduce this product to Mexico, the intention will be to craft meals that are traditional Mexican cuisine and reasonably low in cost. It will be important to use ingredients from local farmers to develop relationships within the country and to provide the service and product at the best price to build a customer base. This product seemed logical for the Mexican market when observing family eating tendencies in the culture. As a collectivist culture, Mexican families are likely to have meals together and cook at home. This product caters to this aspect and allows families to enjoy each other while making the task of cooking and planning simpler. (The Hofstede Centre, n.d.)