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The Unorthodox Epicure (Recipe): Mexican Adobo Sauce
Ever wonder why there are so many different adobos out there — Mexican, Spanish, Filipino and so on? It’s because the word adobo means marinade. Literally. In truth, the Spanish Conquistadors deserve...
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Food Snob Chronicles (Recipe): Elote
A single serving of elote — as far as I’m concerned. We English speakers know it as corn on the cob. And our version here in the US — slathered with butter, salt and black pepper — is good enough to...
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The Unorthodox Epicure: My Mexican Favorites for Cinco de Mayo
Just so you know, we don’t celebrate Cinco de Mayo here at the Casa de Holland. Neither does 95 percent of the population of Mexico. The official Cinco de Mayo is only celebrated in the Mexican state...
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The Unorthodox Epicure (Recipe): Tacos al Carbon
Fajitas (grilled skirt steak) were introduced in 1973 at Ninfa’s in Houston as tacos al carbon (charbroiled tacos). The history of the name is not exactly clear, but make no mistake — fajitas are about...
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The Unorthodox Epicure (Recipe): Mexican Shrimp Cocktail
Mexican Shrimp Cocktail is one of those dishes with neither a clear history, nor a defined classic recipe. I’ve heard people say that it must include chopped celery to be authentic. There are others...
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Confession No. 129 – Getting there is not what it used to be
I got the key to the highway; Billed out and bound to go. I’m gonna leave here running; Walking is most too slow. — Eric Clapton There was a time when I was content to travel. It was a time of Hot...
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The Unorthodox Epicure (Recipe): — Enfrijoladas
Enfrijoladas (bean-smothered, filled tortillas) are among Mexico’s most popular ways to re-purpose leftovers. And with good reason. Many Mexican cooks keep the beans simmering almost every day, and...
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Food Snob Chronicles – Up to your ears: More summertime soup
First things first — today’s recipe for Mexican-style Cream of Corn Soup has no culinary historical significance in Mexico. But its main ingredients do. As far as corn goes, well … I often joke that...
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Food Snob Chronicles — Hola? McFly! Anbody at the casa?
It’s probably a generational thing, but every time I realize that I’ve missed out on a simple-yet-brilliant idea, I flash back to the scene in 1985′s Back to the Future in which the bully character,...
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The Unorthodox Epicure — (Recipe): Tex-Mex Breakfast Tacos
I remember my first breakfast taco like it was yesterday. The year was 1982 … maybe? (Hey, the year doesn’t matter. I was young!) My church youth group was on a spring break trip in Corpus Christi and...
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Food Snob Chronicles — Texas Chili 101
First things first. Chile is the country and the fruit. Chili is the concoction. Who makes the best chili? Well, that all depends on where you live. If you are an Ohio native, you prefer your chili...
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The Unorthodox Epicure — (Recipe): Sopa de Fideos (Vermicelli Soup)
Fideo is the Sam Spade of Mexican and Tex-Mex food — its background is a cloudy mystery. We know fideo as the pasta used in sopa de fideos, or vermicelli soup. But where did it come from? And how did...
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Food Snob Chronicles — (Recipe): Charro Beans
Beans. There’s nothing sexy about them. In fact, we recited a vulgar poem about them in elementary school. But, they are among the most widely (and longest) cultivated crops, and these days are...
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The Unorthodox Epicure — (Recipe): Pork Carnitas
Imagine a prepared meat that is so good — so succulent — that it’s difficult to avoid filling up on it before you add it to a dish. In it’s most popular authentic state, this meat really isn’t even...
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Food Snob Chronicles — Recipe: Fresh Chicken Chorizo
It’s been more than 30 years since I had my first taste of Mexican chorizo — tucked in a fresh flour tortilla with eggs, potatoes and cheese — and I’ve loved it ever since. Use it anywhere you’d use...
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The Unorthodox Epicure — Crispy Flautas w/ Crema Avocado
If you’re from California or are an oft-eater of Mexican food from your grocer’s freezer, you probably know these little rolled gems as taquitos. But in my Tex-Mex world they are called flautas, which...
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The Unorthodox Epicure — Tacos de Camarónes Frescos (Fresh Shrimp Tacos)
Fresh. Zesty. Light. Nope, these aren’t the tacos we grew up on. For one, there’s nothing guilty about this pleasure — no frying; no amber-colored grease dripping down your forearm; and no need to...
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The Unorthodox Epicure — Sweet Heat Shrimp en Brochette
It’s a Southern/Tex-Mex fused appetizer with a French name and — with only four ingredients — it’s quite a dandy. I’ve made Shrimp en Brochette (translation: shrimp ‘cooked on skewers’) with as many...
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Food Snob Chronicles — The Ultimate Tex-Mex Cheeseburger (El Gran Supremo)
In my best Don LaFontaine voice: In a time when the cheeseburger was set in stone … There was a burger that aspired to be more. Provocative … Inviting … Out of this world. Yes. Seriously. The El Gran...
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The Unorthodox Epicure — Esquites stuffed Zucchini
I still remember my first taste of zucchini. Sort of. We were probably seven or eight when a childhood friend’s mom presented us with warm muffins and challenged us to guess the main ingredient. But...
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