Mexican cuisine is built around what was available to the indigenous people of what is the current day Mexico. The traditional Mexican diet was based around maize, sweet potatoes, beans, squash, and the mexican vegetables chayote and jicama. The meat most commonly consumed was deer, rabbits, raccoons, armadillos, and birds such as turkeys. After the Spanish conquest of Mexico, their diet changed dramatically. The Spanish introduced new animals and vegetables that could be consumed. The Spanish brought rice, olives, new spices from around the world, and also meat like beef. Some Mexican foods that are very popular in modern society are tortillas, enchiladas, fajitas, empanadas, chile, and tamales. Fajitas are a popular dish that consist of a mixture of grilled meat, vegetables, and spices fried in a pan. The fajitas are commonly served in a tortilla. Below is a link for a video about how to make Fajitas. 

Mexican cuisine is made from the influences of the Aztecs and Mayans, as well as the imported foods from the conquistadors. The indigenous used many vegetables such as the chili pepper which made Mexican food identified by its many colors. Along with the normal Mexican dishes like quesadillas came many exotic dishes. Some of them consisted of iguana, rattlesnake, deer, spider, monkeys, and ant eggs. A lot of the Mexican dishes offer modern flare to a lot of our foods or beverages we see today in the U.S.

Twentieth century Mexican authors often considered their cuisine as a national identity. The modern evolution of this cuisine is called mestizo which is hybrid blend of Spanish cuisine and native Mexican cuisine. Perhaps the first mestizo food to evolve was the first taco that consisted of a corn tortilla (Mexican) and pork sausage (Spanish). When the Spanish came to colonize Mexico, the colonial cooks created a new cuisine in which old world spice were blended with new world chiles. Mexican authors of the 1920’s attributed this new cuisine not to the “New Spain” but rather attributed this cuisine to the “nationalistic ideology of modern Mexico.” Food has always been an indicator of status in world history. For example, in our modern culture, a petit filet of beef typically indicates a higher social status of the consumer then a piece of fried chicken. The same was the true in Mexico. The wealthy Europeans ate wheat while the Native Americans ate maize. The wealthier colonists traditionally had intricate European based dishes, whereas the common people subsisted on corn. These common people worked to make their corn look intricate, what resulted was the tamale. The first cookbook of “Mexican cuisine” was published in 1831 and was simply entitled El Cocinero Mexicano. The anonymous author wrote using nationalistic vocabulary and attributed the spicer dishes as being truly Mexican. Eventually this Mexican cuisine spread itself around to other countries. By 1898 New York’s finest restaurants were serving Mexican dishes. During the 1910 revolution, the revolutionaries grasped the fact that the world was getting accustomed to the Mexican cuisine and used it as a national identity. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1WU0Qlvrs0

Sources:

http://www.mexconnect.com/MEX/austion/09996food.html

www.youtube.com

  One of the most well known aspects of Cuban culture is their fabulous cuisine. It may not be anything too exotic, but they make the basics taste good. Their staples consist of rice, black beans, plantanos fritos, yucca, various meats, and distinct spices. Rice and beans are frequently cooked slowly in a mixture of spices that typically contains garlic, cumin, bay leaves, and oregano. Unless it is in a stew, meat is usually marinated in a mixture of lemon juice and other fruit juices, garlic, and cumin called mojo. One of the most famous Cuban dishes is called ropa vieja.While the direct English translation, old clothes, may not be too appetizing the dish is delicious. Ropa vieja is a stew of shredded beef and spices. It is usually served over rice and with a side of black beans. Some other popular Cuban dishes include croquetas, cafe con leche, cafe cubano, and flan. Give Cuban food a try if you are ever in the mood for something new!

Throughout its history, Cuba has been a country of diversity. Ever since Christopher Columbus discovered Cuba, the society and culture of the island nation has been evolving. After the Spanish started a settlement in Hispaniola, they started importing slaves from Africa. Since Hispaniola was the first European settlement the “New World” it quickly became a port where ships would resupply after their long voyage across the Atlantic. The sailors on these ships were mostly from Europe, but there were also sailors from the Middle East and from Asia. The diversity of the people coming to Cuba all influenced what today is considered “Cuban food.” The indigenous people of Cuba were the Taino Indians; the Taino were the ones who cooked using a technique called barbacoa, this original technique consisted of slow cooking meat over open fire (Spengler 2). This is where the modern American barbeque originated from. What is now considered “traditional Cuban cooking” was considered the food of the common people not too long ago (Rosario 1). This cuisine has many different influences ranging from Arabic, Chinese, French, Portuguese, and primarily African and Spanish (Rosario 1). For example, the traditional jerked beef, rice and beens originated from the Spanish colonial period when rice and jerked beef were imported for the sugar cane plantations (Sanabria 258). A “new Cuban” cuisine developed in the United States when many Cuban exiles immigrated to the United States during the communist coup during the 1950’s and 1960’s (Rosario 1). This “new Cuban” cuisine developed due to the fact that not all of the traditional ingredients were readily accessible (Rosario 1). The Cuban cuisine is quite complex.

Sources: http://www.education.miami.edu/ep/littlehavana/Cuban_Food

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