The history of Mexican food

Mexican food is one of the world’s favorite cuisines with the popular Mexican tacos, nachos or even enchiladas – Mexican gastronomic delights have excited the taste buds of foodies all over the world. Popular Mexican dishes are now available in multi-cuisine restaurants around the world. On the other hand, the Mexican recipe is much more than the well-known hot sauce as well as the refreshing guacamole. Here is an attempt to understand the different culinary influences that have led to the rise of rich and colorful food.

History of Mexican Food: Culinary Influences on Mexican Cuisines

Mexican food includes a wide range of influences towards colonization from the earlier period and then towards commercial functions between people from various countries and colonies. Mexican dishes are therefore the result of several diverse culinary influences, and are therefore really a mix of various cooking styles and materials across a variety of cultures.

Mayan effect around Mexican cuisine: Pre-Hispanic Food

One of the earliest influences on Mexican food was the culinary impact of the Mayan Indians who traditionally became nomadic hunter-gatherers. The Maya Indians lived within the Yucatan area of ​​southeastern Mexico. Because the Maya Indians were hunters, their food basically consisted of wild animals such as raccoons, deer, rabbits, armadillos, rattlesnakes, iguanas, spider monkeys, doves, turtles, frogs, turkeys, and various insects. Other integrated accompaniments of tropical fruits, beans and corn. While some of the influences are still preserved, these foods within Mexican food are now recognized as pre-Hispanic recipes or pre-Hispanic food, which can be considered as quite an exotic food in Mexico.

Mexican Recipes from the Pre-Columbian Era

These are the verses taken from a well-known popular song from Mexico. These lines describe with incredible precision the Mexican food of the pre-Columbian period. Before the arrival of Europe, the Mexican diet was very simple and limited to locally grown produce, specifically corn, chili peppers, and beans. Corn was the best known and most applied ingredient in Mexican recipes in this pre-Columbian period. A series of popular cooking techniques for the consumption of corn and corn tortillas and tamales, which incorporated the inclusion of corn in various flour preparations. In addition to this, these corn products were often supplemented with ingredients such as tomatoes and chili peppers. Early Mexican dishes also incorporated a wide variety of herbs and mushrooms at the same time.

Spanish impact for Mexican food

With the Spanish invasion in 1521, there was a major Spanish impact on Mexican food, either in terms of the ingredients used or even the cooking techniques. When Spanish soldiers arrived in the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlan, they discovered that the people’s diet consisted mainly of corn-based dishes with chili peppers and herbs that were usually accompanied by beans and tomatoes. The soldiers eventually combined their imported diet of rice, beef, pork, chicken, wine, garlic, and onions with the native foods of pre-Columbian Mexico that included tomatoes, beans, chocolate, corn, vanilla, avocado, papaya, pineapple, chili peppers, squash, sweet potato, peanuts, fish, and turkey. Spanish influences lead to the appearance of dishes such as lomo en adobo (pork loin in a spicy sauce), chiles rellenos (large, mild-flavored chiles stuffed with cheese, beef, or pork), quesadillas, or even the famous guacamole that has been part of standard Mexican food ever since.

French Effect on Mexican Cuisine: La Comida Afrancescada

When the French occupied Mexico, they introduced a wide selection of baked goods into Mexican recipes. Mexican sweet breads and the bolillo are some of the examples of French influences for Mexican food. It is believed that the French cooking methods together with the Mexican elements made an excellent gastronomical combination. Native Mexican ingredients like squash blossoms and avocados were best for mousses, crepes, and French-type soups. The empire of Maximiliano plus the presidency of Porfirio Díaz had been influential in promoting the type of French cuisine within Mexican food. An interesting find on the French influence on Mexican recipes is a menu dated March 29, 1865, which is written in French. Includes a 5-course meal including two soups, 5 fish and seafood dishes, 5 meat dishes and side dishes, desserts, champagne, and French, Hungarian, and Rhenish wines.

Other minor influences around Mexican dishes

Over time, Mexican dishes underwent a wide range of culinary experiences from the Caribbean, South American, West African, and Portuguese, leading to the rise of an extremely diverse type of cuisine that also varied from area to area. Mexican dishes also include a minor Filipino impact due to the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade from 1565 to 1815.

Popularity of Mexican dishes in the United States: Tex-Mex

The popularity of Mexican dishes has led to the emergence of many variations of these recipes in other countries. Tex-Mex food evolved for Texas-Mexico in the American Southwest and is a twist on classic Mexican food with an unusual American twist. One of the best examples of Tex-Mex food is ‘refried beans’ which is a term that has been coined in Texas and is the translation of the Mexican term Frijoles refritos. Tex-Mex cuisine is still quite different from the original Mexican recipes, while it may consist of the same ingredients to some extent. Similarly, there is also a ‘New Mexico Cuisine’, which can be sort of regional recipes originating from the US state of New Mexico and southern Colorado and is often a subset of Mexican-American dishes.

Mexican Food Today

Mexican recipes can be a mix of all the aforementioned influences, on the other hand, however, there is diversity within the recipes based on regional differences in Mexico. Mexican food varies by region and is influenced by the local climate, geography, and ethnic differences among the inhabitants. Northern Mexico is popular for its production of beef and meat dishes, while southeastern Mexico is known for its spicy chicken and vegetable-based preparations. On the other hand, seafood is commonly prepared in the states of Mexico, which border the Pacific Ocean or even the Gulf of Mexico.