Food – Mexican

Mexican Food

“My grandmother had a restaurant in Mexico called “Fonda”. This kind of restaurant is for the people in the trailers who pass by on the road. My Grandma make pozole, tamales, breakfast, and they have a bakery also. I learned to cook from her, when I was little I would look at hr do it. Now I cook pozole and tamales every Christmas. I have 6 years old and I look, I watching, I watching sometimes I help her, ¿Comó se dice maise? Corn? I help her do that, and the leaves too.”

Traditional Mexican food is often times passed down from generation to generation. Since there are many first generation Mexicans in Los Angeles, it is not uncommon to find lots of accounts of recipes rooted in Mexico.

pozole is a soup comprised of meat (usually chicken or pork), hominy (dried corn kernels), chilies, onions, and other spices. It is traditionally served on Christmas, such noted in Martha’s account.

Tamales are a popular Mexican treat that are mainly comprised of corn meal and a stuffing, then wrapped in a corn husk and steamed. Three popular flavors are chiles verdes con queso (green chilies with cheese), dulce (sweet tamales) or carnitas (pork tamales). Like pozole, tamales are traditionally served on Christmas. Tamales take a long time to make the process is often times a collaborative effort by family members and friends. This gives them special time on holidays for cooking together. This is one of the reasons that food is such an important part of a culture. It is not only the product itself, but also the effort and collaboration that goes into making special dishes for all to enjoy. This joy is shared in a whole array of cultures and religions.