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MEXICAN CUISINE |
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Like I wrote earlier, I'm not an expert in Mexican cuisine, so all you'll get here is a layman's evaluation. To me, it seems that Mexican cuisine is in the same state as Chinese cuisine used to be prior to the 1980's: relatively homogenous and not truly representative of the vast varieties of dishes found in Mexican cooking. It's not bad--in fact, I really like what I eat at Mexican restaurants. But I'm hoping that in the future, Mexican food in the San Gabriel Valley and California will someday flourish to the point where the best Mexican chefs can be found here instead of Mexico. Incidentally, some Chinese folks think the best Chinese chefs are in the San Gabriel Valley. |
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| Suggestions |
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1. Just about every Mexican restaurant will have a decent English translation. If you forget, here are some pointers:
A. Pollo: chicken
B. Carne Asada: grilled skirt steak
C. Carnitas: roast pork
D. Salsa: spicy tomato based sauce (e.g. Pico de Gallo)
E. Chile: chile (duh!)
F. Agua: water (first reaction after eating chile)
G. Pan: bread (the best way to get rid of the hotness in your mouth after eating chile and drinking water, because water just makes it worse).
2. A chile's hotness is found in the oil in the seeds. If you want to make something really hot, sautee the seeds. That's why drinking water doesn't remove the hotness. Eating bread works because it absorbs the oil. Of course, if you swallow it, it then goes to your stomach where it irritates your bowels.
3. When in doubt, order your dishes mild. You can always add more chiles later. Mexican restaurants will never run short of chiles. |
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Return to Mexican Restaurants |
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Copyright � 2006 No portion of this page may be reproduced or transmitted in any form without the prior written consent of the author. |
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