Re: [CH] LAND OF ENCHANTMENT

John H. Sphar (jsphar@pacbell.net)
Tue, 22 Nov 2005 07:03:56 -0800 (PST) 

I have a question.  I'm from California, and until a
few years ago I had never been to the Southwest.  Then
I went to Austin with my daughter's volleyball team
twice in two years.

I knew the food would be right up my alley from what I
had heard, so I went looking for some Tex-Mex (not
really knowing what it was).  I already had the BBQ,
which was great (Stubbs, with music after dinner in
the back - Jimmy Dale Gillmore).

Visible just off the freeway, I found a fast food
joint, like a Taco Bell, but different.  More colorful
outside lights.  The food was markedly different. It
tasted home made, with fresh NM green chile sauce on
the relleno, perfectly done.  The other stuff was
incredible too.  Then I found a place called Chuy's. 
It was a sit-down restaurant. Super. Again, I learned
what Tex-Mex food was in Austin.

Out here in California, we have Mexican food.  It's
good, but it's not Tex-Mex.  Tacos and Burritos, and
they all are pretty much the same except a couple
regional Mexican places that stand out with
hard-to-find items like chiles en nogada, pipian,
pibil and such.  The regular Mexican places, if they
have chile rellenos, use Anaheim chiles, a NM-type but
no heat.  No one has NM chiles except in cans. 
Poblanos are common in the stores (they are also
erroneously called pasillas here, too). I have to
mail-order fresh NM chiles each year (Big Jim, 6-4,
Barker and Sandia).  

Many Mexicans live here, so traditional Mexican food
like menudo, tacos de cabeza and de lengua can be
found.  I can buy nixtamal from a local place that
makes tortillas using nixtamal every Sat. and Sun.
morning.  I can press it at home for fresh tortillas.
Until I found that place, I sometimes would cook
field/dent corn with lime, then grind it, to make
nixtamal.

Anyway, although I like the Mexican food found out
here, why hasn't anyone tried opening a Tex-Mex place
in the SF Bay Area or LA or San Diego I wonder?  It's
a whole different cuisine!

John S.



--- Dave Anderson <chilehead@tough-love.com> wrote:

> Interesting! In Northern Nevada they are usually
> made with Poblano 
> Verde, mistakenly called Pasilla.
> 
> > Sorry about that - rellenos here are generally
> made with Big Jim or 
> > Parker chiles.
> 
> Dave Anderson
> TLCC
>