A Question of Delicious Identity

Returning from Galveston Island "Gringo's" caught my eye.  The sign is dazzling.  It also exquisitely describes the aspect of TexMex food about which I've been doing a lot of thinking. We cook TexMex because we seek identity, discovery of who we are.
Gringossml.jpg
There's much to say about this but I'd like to just briefly note two forces that are at play.
First, there is a written documentation of TexMex cuisine, mainly books that attempt to say what TexMex is. These are written by cooks who've been able to access education and publishing centers.  This is an emerging phenomenon, one which hopefully will become more diverse.

Second, there is an oral tradition which is carried on in private homes mainly by cooks who've not been able to access education nor publishing venues. This oral tradition is ancient.

Each of these forces links cooking to identity.   Our region's history (Texas/Northern Mexico), saw the near extinction of Indians and the increase of Europeans. Over time both Indians and Europeans have come to eat variations of the same cuisine. Both want to sit at the table and taste delicious food that is linked specifically to the land and to our families. Regardless of how we label it, we continue to cook TexMex, Gringo's, Mexicano, Tejano because what is at play in the kitchens is who we are and how we will choose to live and eat together. 





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This page contains a single entry by Adan Medrano published on July 26, 2011 9:26 AM.

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