Live-Fire Cooking and Street Food in Mexico!
Although I enjoy cooking a variety of things, my culinary point of view follows two major paths-barbecue and Mexican cuisine. It was the natural result of the marriage of a native Tennessean and eventual foodie (yours truly) and a native Mexican, my wife Angelica. She was born and raised in Mexico and has family and friends in Mexico City, Acapulco, La Paz (the city she calls home), Los Barriles, Todo Santos, Cabo San Lucas, San Jose Del Cabo, Guadalajara and other cities. I was born in Memphis, where I lived until my family moved out to the rural town of Selmer, TN. There, Angelica stole my heart in the 80’s (along with all the other guys’ hearts) at McNairy Central High School, where she became a foreign exchange student. We became close friends, but in ’93 I moved to northern Indiana, near Chicago, until I returned to Memphis in ’98. We met again and by the year 2001 we were making our vows in Acapulco. Anyone who knows her will tell you that Angelica is an amazing woman, but the one…just one thing she doesn’t do, is cook. When people meet us for the first time, they often assume that we eat great authentic Mexican food in our house-and they’re right. We do, but not because she cooks it. Nope, she’s borderline kitchen-phobic, if such a thing exists. Instead, she teaches Spanish where Kathy Bates (Misery) and Claire Robinson (5 Ingredient Fix) attended high school and was honored as the foreign language teacher of the year in 2013 for the Memphis tri-state area.
She may not like to cook Mexican food, but Angelica knows how to eat Mexican food. Through her, I’ve learned what classic, authentic Mexican dishes look like, taste like, typical condiments, cultural habits and how Mexicans enjoy them, at least, where she grew up. Through her, I’ve also learned first hand from meals prepared at her family and friends’ houses, taquerias, street food and the like during our trips to Mexico. Most of her relatives and friends live in tropical and coastal cities. Bummer for me right? It’s a dirty job, but someone’s gotta do it.
I’ve enjoyed this journey, but it’s not over yet. I want to take you with me on this Mexican adventure, as I endeavor to discover authentic Mexican cuisine, especially anything involving live-fire cooking. I’ll also post tips, techniques and photos of Mexican food interpreted on the grill at my place. On this page I’ll take you with me on a photo excursion through authentic and traditional Mexican cuisine from taquerias, panaderias, dulcerias, tortillerias, paleterias, mariscos, beach side food, street food, antojitos, and even family meals with Angelica’s relatives. I especially like to find Mexican food that is grilled or cooked using live fire in some way. With a growing Hispanic population in Memphis, I’ll also introduce you to some local authentic Mexican eateries. I’ll produce articles regularly to familiarize my readers with Mexican cuisine. In the meantime while I’m building this site, I’m open to questions or suggestions. Feel free to post a comment. Mexican food is just like Mexican culture, colorful, vibrant and soulful. Delicioso!
Thanks, Tim Shirley