It's supposedly "National Nachos Day", so I got 2-for-1 nachos for lunch.
I really don't know why I thought that was a good idea. Right now I'm looking forward to NOT eating anything else for the foreseeable future.
Seems as if we have a "national" day for everything the imagine can figure a way to make more money pursuing.
I suppose the odd seeming notion that they might have a "nacho day" half a globe away from where that particular culinary curiosity was first popular should be assessed in the light of how to make money.
Hey, MOSW, have you ever heard of enchiladas? I can fix you up!!
Seems like November 6 is national nachos day all over. I still feel bloated after all those nachos yesterday.
Tex Mex is fairly popular here, but it goes in cycles. We have a local Tex Mex chain that has been going gangbusters over the past few years. I love enchiladas but if it's got wheat flour then I'm gonna regret it over the next couple of days, but not as much as my wife and kids will regret it. My mother used to love bean enchiladas.
I probably ate Tex Mex most often when I was in Jakarta and Manila, at Chili's. Chili's is like McDonalds, it's pretty much the same all over the world. I remember the guys at the office in Manila telling me that Chili's wasn't very good and that I should try a "local" Tex Mex restaurant with them. I ordered nachos and a chicken dish that sounded very Mexican based on the menu description. So the nachos was literally half a bag of cheap, cold corn chips with a few sliced olives out of a can, a few tiny chunks of dried out chicken meat, and some cold cheese out of a spray can. You could literally see that they hadn't even tried to hide that the cheese was out of a spray can, it was still in the shape that it came out of the nozzle in. And the chicken dish was two small chicken drumsticks, massively overcooked as is the usual way of cooking meat in the Philippines, on top of a huge mound of plain rice. That was it. I was like "how is this even pretending to be Mexican?".
Tex Mex is pretty popular in Thailand, especially among expats. But I really love Thai food a lot and I think I had Tex Mex there once.
I had proper Mexican food when I was staying in Washington DC for a few months. At least it was some kind of generic South American food, at places where my ex and I were the only non-Hispanic people. I prefer Tex Mex.
I was only making an observation how "everything" is marketable these days. Kind of a joke, really.
But, Hell! They even have to put a sponsor name on the advertisements, during football, these days. "HEY!" This is the Toyota line update, made possible by Honda, in coordination with Fox Studios. Stay tuned for the latest from Fox " Then you get a Honda, an insurance company, three movie trailers and a Toyota commercial, THEN the line update.
Absurd, but this is what keeps these fabulous sporting events free to watch on regular television. So, I succumb to mass marketability.
But, you enjoying Tex Mex style? I would not have known about that without your input.
I grew up in the farthest southern tip of Texas (McAllen, yep, I'm a Bulldog) and had many "TexMex" girl friends growing up. I learned to cook from my mom, of course (all West Texas style- Hey whats for supper? I don't know, but the grease is hot, what are we frying?), but adding to that knowledge, I had many influences. I can do an awesome Tex Mex meal, with or without the outdoor grille.
I might just admit to a preference for the outdoor cooking styles that I have learned. Just not so available to me here in Indiana, due to weather. Now, understand that normally, southern Texas folk with a "Mexican heritage" usually have a covered area that they keep going with a ready fire most of the time, rain or shine.
Unfortunately, "city style" living has undone much of the culture that is so prevalent with about eighty five per cent of the population of the area. Most of the elders just want to go back to the way it used to be (count me in!).
Cut up a goat or a pig or a calf and cook the whole thing over a slow, smoky open fire all day. Lay the whole beast out on a table and allow everyone interested to cut off what they want to eat. Grab a tortilla, some salsa and life is good!
I can imagine that the hard part in recreating such cuisine for those far away from the center of it all, comes from the trouble gathering fresh ingredients.
You can grow your own fresh cilantro, garlic, onions, tomatoes, even tomatillos and cumin where you live. Limes and avocados might be tricky, but I am sure both could grow in SOME place on your continent.
It just thrills me to know that you and I love the same foods!