Store-bought corn tortillas: threat or menace?
David Sewell
OK, I need a verdict here. Is there such a thing as a decent
store-bought corn tortilla?
Everyone knows the horrors of the unfresh supermarket corn
tortilla--the ones where, when you open the bag, you're hit
with an ammonia smell that puts you in mind of a room with
about 100 babies crawling around in dire need of changing.
You can air them out and heat them and undo some of the damage,
but all in all it's a vile stuff to put in your mouth.
Most of the commercial corn tortillas I've bought fit into this
category.
There's at least one bakery in Tucson that does manage to distribute
edible corn tortillas to the supermarkets, Alejandro's (a Yoeme
enterprise)--they're not only fresh when bought, but they last well
for several days in the refrigerator. Besides the standard corn,
water, and lime, they have monocalcium phosphate and potassium
sorbate as preservatives. Is that the secret, or is some other
magic at work here?
--
David Sewell * ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu | "Where the earth is dry, the
Dep't of Geosciences, Univ. of Arizona | soul is wisest and best."
WWW: http://packrat.aml.arizona.edu/~dsew/ | --Heraclitus
Heidi Bostr|m
David Sewell (ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu) wrote:
: OK, I need a verdict here. Is there such a thing as a decent
: store-bought corn tortilla?
Here in Finland it is the prices that are not decent, so I make the
tortillas myself (very easy, relatively quick thing to do). My
tortillas are quaranteed fresh every time! :)
: There's at least one bakery in Tucson that does manage to distribute
: edible corn tortillas to the supermarkets, Alejandro's (a Yoeme
: enterprise)--they're not only fresh when bought, but they last well
: for several days in the refrigerator. Besides the standard corn,
: water, and lime, they have monocalcium phosphate and potassium
: sorbate as preservatives. Is that the secret, or is some other
: magic at work here?
I wouldn't put those chemicals/preservatives into my mouth
voluntarily.
I've seen one brand that has the tortillas in a "vacuum". The plastic
bag contains another little bag that has iron (powder? I've never
opened one of those) inside it. The iron is supposed to catch any
oxygen that there might be left in the bag so that the tortillas stay
fresh longer.
Heidi
************************************************************************
One of the earliest things Magrat had learned was that anyone Finding
Themselves would be unwise to tell Granny Weatherwax, who thought that
female emancipation was a women's complaint that shouldn't be
discussed in front of men.
************************************************************************
Todd Brown
In article <56921m$l...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu> ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu (David Sewell) writes:
>OK, I need a verdict here. Is there such a thing as a decent
>store-bought corn tortilla?
Yes! When they are bought directly at the Tortillaria, still warm.
Most cities/town here in New Mexico have at least one.
>Besides the standard corn,
>water, and lime, they have monocalcium phosphate and potassium
>sorbate as preservatives. Is that the secret, or is some other
>magic at work here?
I wouldn't buy any with the added chemicals.
Find a tortillaria, there must be one there you can buy directly
from.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Todd Brown-Observing Tech/Staff Photographer
National Solar Observatory/Sacramento Peak
Sunspot NM 88349; PH: 505-434-7013
br...@sunspot.noao.edu
David Sewell
In article <56995r$k...@cc.tut.fi>, Heidi Bostr|m <trh...@kielo.uta.fi> wrote:
>David Sewell (ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu) wrote:
>: OK, I need a verdict here. Is there such a thing as a decent
>: store-bought corn tortilla?
>
>Here in Finland it is the prices that are not decent, so I make the
>tortillas myself (very easy, relatively quick thing to do). My
>tortillas are quaranteed fresh every time! :)
Can you get genuine masa harina in Finland? I'm impressed if so!
I make my own when I have time, but I'm rarely able to make them as thin
and even as the tortillerias do. They tend to come out more like corn
pancakes--they taste great, but they don't wrap around things as well
as they should.
--I had a Finnish friend doing graduate work in San Diego in the
early '80s who told us about his somewhat embarrassing first experience
in a Mexican restaurant. He sat down, and the waiter brought him
chips and salsa. He assumed that the latter was soup, and proceeded
to try to consume it by the spoonful. When the waiter returned
he said something about the soup being too hot for his taste and got
a laugh and an explanation of how to dip the chips.
(Does anyone remember the details of the time Gerald Ford, while
running for President, tried to eat a tamale at a campaign stop
somewhere in the S'west and didn't realize you're supposed to remove
the corn husk first?)
M'Daid
>water, and lime, they have monocalcium phosphate and potassium sorbate as
>preservatives. Is that the secret, or is some other magic at work here?
Water, lime and corn meal are the traditional ingredients. There is no
such thing as monocalcium phosphate, maybe this is calcium acid phosphate
(CaHPO4). In any case, it is completely harmless (I'm not sure why it's
there, it's a baking powder) and actually improve the nutrition in terms
of calcium. Potassium sorbate IS a preservative, but here in New Mexico,
every supermarket has a tortiller｛ and one can even get tortillas hot off
the press. The tortillas go so fast that preservatives aren't used or
needed.
In Europe, you'll have to make your own. The only tortillas I've seen are
canned El Paso soft corn tortilla and taco shells.
Heidi Bostr|m
David Sewell (ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu) wrote:
: Can you get genuine masa harina in Finland? I'm impressed if so!
Whazzat? (Too lazy to fetch my New Mexican cookbook ;)
You can get ANYTHING here, it just costs more!
: I make my own when I have time, but I'm rarely able to make them as thin
: and even as the tortillerias do. They tend to come out more like corn
: pancakes--they taste great, but they don't wrap around things as well
: as they should.
You should have special Finnish rolling pin (? I wonder if that's the
word I was looking for). It looks sort of like a very thin dinosaur:
both ends are thin and the middle is slightly thicker.
In Finland we have a traditional dish called "Karelian pies" that
require very thin crusts made out of rye dough that are filled with rice
pudding or mashed potatoes. Making the tortillas is almost the same,
only the incredients are different (and you bake them differently, of course).
: --I had a Finnish friend doing graduate work in San Diego in the
: early '80s who told us about his somewhat embarrassing first experience
: in a Mexican restaurant. He sat down, and the waiter brought him
: chips and salsa. He assumed that the latter was soup, and proceeded
: to try to consume it by the spoonful. When the waiter returned
: he said something about the soup being too hot for his taste and got
: a laugh and an explanation of how to dip the chips.
:) We have a story about the Spanish son-in-law in our family that is
almost the same. Well, it has given everybody a good laugh for about
twenty years now ;)
I was in New Mexico last year and made some "Karelian pies" (small,
rather decorative things that you are supposed to eat like bread with
butter or maybe crushed boiled eggs and butter on them) for my friends
there. Nobody seemed to have a clue what they were supposed to do with
those, even after I had explained it to them a couple of
times. Finally someone put salsa on them and decided they were "pretty
good". Talk about sacrilege!
Heidi
************************************************************************
Neil
On 13 Nov 1996, Heidi Bostr|m wrote:
> You should have special Finnish rolling pin (? I wonder if that's the
> word I was looking for). It looks sort of like a very thin dinosaur:
> both ends are thin and the middle is slightly thicker.
Hmmm, it sounds very similar to what's known as the special Indian rolling
pin. :)
Neil (who grew up in a Canadian town with a huge Finnish community, and
where most of his best friends were Finnish)
Arizona State University
Tempe, Arizona, U.S.A.
Tom Vaughan
David Sewell wrote:
>
> In article <56995r$k...@cc.tut.fi>, Heidi Bostr|m <trh...@kielo.uta.fi> wrote:
> >David Sewell (ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu) wrote:
> >: OK, I need a verdict here. Is there such a thing as a decent
> >: store-bought corn tortilla?
> >
> >Here in Finland it is the prices that are not decent, so I make the
> >tortillas myself (very easy, relatively quick thing to do). My
> >tortillas are quaranteed fresh every time! :)
>
Good question! A related one is...can you buy posole in Germany?
We just hosted two young ladies from Munich and I served posole one
of the nights they were here. They loved it, and one of them took down
the recipe, but we figured they'd have to substitute beans and do chalupas
because there wasn't a prayer that they'd find posole in Munich. If anybody
has guidance on a source, please post and I'll forward it to them.
TV
--
Tom Vaughan "The Waggin' Tongue"
<w...@fone.net> (970) 533-1215
11795 Road 39.2, Mancos, CO 81328 USA
Cultural Resource Management, Interpretation, Planning, & Training
Patrick D. Lukens
Todd Brown wrote:
>
> In article <56921m$l...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu> ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu (David Sewell) writes:
> >store-bought corn tortilla?
> Most cities/town here in New Mexico have at least one.
Well, as a native New Mexican, transplanted to AZ, I can tell you that I
was *very* disappointed in the Mexican food out here. I had assumed that
it would have been better in Tucson. Am I mistaken? The only really
good places to get good Mexican food around here are neighborhoods I'd
rather avoid.
> Find a tortillaria, there must be one there you can buy directly
> from.
>
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~> Todd Brown-Observing Tech/Staff Photographer
> National Solar Observatory/Sacramento Peak
> Sunspot NM 88349; PH: 505-434-7013
> br...@sunspot.noao.edu
Hey Todd,
Have you ever eaten at the HomePlate Diner on Indian Wells in
Alamo? Do they still have that Green Chile Stew? I'm getting
homesick....
--
--Patrick
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Patrick D. Lukens
Ph.D. Candidate, History | Format Advisor, Graduate College
Modern Mexico, Public History | Arizona State University
Modern Latin America | Tempe, Arizona 85287-1003
Daddy to Victoria, Age 5 | (602) 965-3521
plu...@imap1.asu.edu | AS...@ASUVM.INRE.ASU.EDU
http://www.public.asu.edu/~plukens
---------------------------------------------------------------------
Marcos J Montes
On 1995 Feb 10 ago there was an article in Science Magazine (in an issue
with special articles about Latin American Sceince) that
there is a research group (was in Saltillo, but I velieve it has moved)
that is trying to make the process faster, and use less water and
energy in the preparation of the masa and cooking of tortillas.
In short, the goal was to build a machine that you dump (dried) corn
into on one end, and within about 10-15 minutes out comes a corn
tortillas. Of course, you need electricity, water, and
lime (calcium hydroxide) inputs, too.
The output is the tortilla. The ideal amounts of water and lime are used
so there is no extra water or lime dumped, as opposed to the traditional
tortilla making where the whole kernels are first boiled then soaked
for hours in lime, before being washed repeatedly with water. The
traditional method uses about 10000 liters of water for each ton
of tortillas.
The article states: "Mexico consumes more than 10million tons of
tortillas each year....800 million tortillas a day".
The cooking proceess was made more energy efficient by heating at an
OH infrared resonance, instead of huge ovens heating the air, too.
The machine would be sold mostly to tortillerias, probably be in the
$10000-$20000 range, but should be much more efficient, and quicker.
The reference is Science, Vol. 267, page 824 , 1995 Feb 10.
Marcos
--
Treat the earth well; it was not given to us by |Dr. Marcos Montes
our parents: it was loaned to us by our children.
|mon...@neptune.nrl.navy.mil
-Kenyan Proverb
|mar...@mensch.stanford.edu
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~|URL: http://cssa.stanford.edu/~marcos
|~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Nicholas Lopez
Patrick D. Lukens (P.Lu...@ASU.edu) wrote:
> Well, as a native New Mexican, transplanted to AZ, I can tell you that I
> was *very* disappointed in the Mexican food out here. I had assumed that
> it would have been better in Tucson. Am I mistaken? The only really
> good places to get good Mexican food around here are neighborhoods I'd
> rather avoid.
One thing you have to just learn to accept is that you'll never find New
Mexican food of any quality anywhere else. Not that Mexican food or TexMex or
Mexicali or whatever isn't good, but it's just not the same.
nick
--
Lack of warmth, then, is not a problem resulting from too much technology,
but too little. -- Stephin Merritt
Nicholas Lopez
Reposting article removed by rogue canceller. See news.admin.net-abuse.announce
for further information.
Patrick D. Lukens
Reposting article removed by rogue canceller. See news.admin.net-abuse.announce
for further information.
Todd Brown wrote:
>
> In article <56921m$l...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu> ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu (David Sewell) writes:
> >OK, I need a verdict here. Is there such a thing as a decent
> >store-bought corn tortilla?
> Yes! When they are bought directly at the Tortillaria, still warm.
> Most cities/town here in New Mexico have at least one.
Well, as a native New Mexican, transplanted to AZ, I can tell you that I
was *very* disappointed in the Mexican food out here. I had assumed that
it would have been better in Tucson. Am I mistaken? The only really
good places to get good Mexican food around here are neighborhoods I'd
rather avoid.
> Find a tortillaria, there must be one there you can buy directly
Heidi Bostr|m
Reposting article removed by rogue canceller. See news.admin.net-abuse.announce
for further information.
David Sewell (ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu) wrote:
: Can you get genuine masa harina in Finland? I'm impressed if so!
Whazzat? (Too lazy to fetch my New Mexican cookbook ;)
You can get ANYTHING here, it just costs more!
: I make my own when I have time, but I'm rarely able to make them as thin
: and even as the tortillerias do. They tend to come out more like corn
: pancakes--they taste great, but they don't wrap around things as well
: as they should.
You should have special Finnish rolling pin (? I wonder if that's the
word I was looking for). It looks sort of like a very thin dinosaur:
both ends are thin and the middle is slightly thicker.
In Finland we have a traditional dish called "Karelian pies" that
Marcos J Montes
Reposting article removed by rogue canceller. See news.admin.net-abuse.announce
for further information.
On 1995 Feb 10 ago there was an article in Science Magazine (in an issue
Tom Vaughan
Reposting article removed by rogue canceller. See news.admin.net-abuse.announce
for further information.
David Sewell wrote:
>
> In article <56995r$k...@cc.tut.fi>, Heidi Bostr|m <trh...@kielo.uta.fi> wrote:
> >David Sewell (ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu) wrote:
> >: OK, I need a verdict here. Is there such a thing as a decent
> >: store-bought corn tortilla?
> >
> >Here in Finland it is the prices that are not decent, so I make the
> >tortillas myself (very easy, relatively quick thing to do). My
> >tortillas are quaranteed fresh every time! :)
>
> Can you get genuine masa harina in Finland? I'm impressed if so!
Good question! A related one is...can you buy posole in Germany?
Neil
Reposting article removed by rogue canceller. See news.admin.net-abuse.announce
for further information.
On 13 Nov 1996, Heidi Bostr|m wrote:
> You should have special Finnish rolling pin (? I wonder if that's the
> word I was looking for). It looks sort of like a very thin dinosaur:
> both ends are thin and the middle is slightly thicker.
Hmmm, it sounds very similar to what's known as the special Indian rolling
_Ron Green
In article <328A1E...@ASU.edu>, "Patrick D. Lukens" <P.Lu...@ASU.edu> writes:
|> Well, as a native New Mexican, transplanted to AZ, I can tell you that I
|> was *very* disappointed in the Mexican food out here. I had assumed that
|> it would have been better in Tucson. Am I mistaken? The only really
|> good places to get good Mexican food around here are neighborhoods I'd
|> rather avoid.
|> < ... snip snip snip ... >
Nope, to my knowledge you won't find the genuine article around
'Zona. However, as you may know, Rosita's up there in Tem-Pee
ain't too bad. Down here in Tucson I've found Mi Nidito to be
palatable. Also in Tucson, there's a hole-in-the wall place
on the southwest corner of Pantano and Speedway, Los Betos, that's
run by a family. Prices are *low*, quantity large, and
quite tasty - not very spicey, however.
Thankfully, green chile freezes well and Hatch/Las Cruces isn't
that far of a drive.
ron
--
Ron W. Green
Markov Chain Statistical Testing
IBM Corp., Storage Systems Division Tucson
Tucson, Arizona
Internet: rwg...@vnet.ibm.com
Patrick D. Lukens
_Ron Green wrote:
>
> In article <328A1E...@ASU.edu>, "Patrick D. Lukens" <P.Lu...@ASU.edu> writes:
> Nope, to my knowledge you won't find the genuine article around
> 'Zona. However, as you may know, Rosita's up there in Tem-Pee
> ain't too bad. Down here in Tucson I've found Mi Nidito to be
> palatable. Also in Tucson, there's a hole-in-the wall place
> on the southwest corner of Pantano and Speedway, Los Betos, that's
> run by a family. Prices are *low*, quantity large, and
> quite tasty - not very spicey, however.
>
> Thankfully, green chile freezes well and Hatch/Las Cruces isn't
> that far of a drive.
>
> ron
That reminds me... My folks are coming to visit from LC in a few weeks.
I think I'll ask 'em to pack some chiles and a bunch of Roberto's (TM)
flour tortillas.... My wife and I used to be regulars at Rosita's. The
food is very good, but there seems to be very little variety - each dish
tastes like the others...
By the way... to answer the original topic of this thread, the AZ Rep.
recently did a story on Valley supermarkets which cater to the Latino
population (Southwest Supermarkets and "Food City?" I think) The second
of the two has a tortillarilla in store. My wife decided to check it
out... They're pretty good - But not as good as Roberto's....
Neil
On 14 Nov 1996, _Ron Green wrote:
> Nope, to my knowledge you won't find the genuine article around
> 'Zona.
Ewww look! Someone who uses the term "Zona"! He must be an immigrant from
California or something. ;)
> However, as you may know, Rosita's up there in Tem-Pee
> ain't too bad. Down here in Tucson I've found Mi Nidito to be
> palatable. Also in Tucson, there's a hole-in-the wall place
> on the southwest corner of Pantano and Speedway, Los Betos, that's
> run by a family. Prices are *low*, quantity large, and
> quite tasty - not very spicey, however.
In Phoenix, Los Dos (it's 3 words, I forget the 3rd) is excellent Mexican
food. You're right about Miniditos... but is that the same thing as some
place called Cross Roads? I forget. Anyway, if it isn't, then Cross Roads
is another place in Tucson's southside I'd recommend. As for Los Beto's,
if you're talking about those small shacks (like Filiberto's), they have
them up here too, and I also know of one in Tucson on 1st and Grant, and I
found their food to be pretty bad.
There are many other places I've eaten at (small, cheap places on the
southside of Tucson) that I can't even remember, but you New Mexicans are
getting away with bashing Arizona Mexican food without anyone defending
it. I think we're getting a bad rap, and you guys haven't tried everything
out there yet. :)
Neil
David Sewell
In article <32895D...@www.fone.net>, Tom Vaughan <w...@fone.net> wrote:
>Good question! A related one is...can you buy posole in Germany?
Native Seeds/SEARCH sells three different kinds of dried posole corn
(white, red, blue) and they ship anywhere. They also have tepary
beans, chicos (dried sweet corn), all sorts of chiles, and other good
stuff. Contact info (they're working on a WWW site but I don't think
it's up yet):
Native Seeds/SEARCH
2509 N. Campbell Ave. #325
Tucson, AZ 85719
(520)327-9123
Todd Brown
In article <328A1E...@ASU.edu> "Patrick D. Lukens" <P.Lu...@ASU.edu> writes:
>Hey Todd,
> Have you ever eaten at the HomePlate Diner on Indian Wells in
>Alamo? Do they still have that Green Chile Stew? I'm getting
>homesick....
To tell the truth I've never eaten there, I guess it's still open, I
don't get off the mountain very often. When I do I usually eat at
Maria's, not to be confused with Margo's, ugh, or Si Senior. Not the
best but not bad, for Alamogordo the resturant desert of the world.
For really great Chile Verde, I travel to Cantillo near El Paso, to
the Little Dinner Tortilla Factory, for some of the best in the
world:-)
I'll have to give The HomePlate atry, thanks for the tip.
David Sewell
In article <56c0pt$l...@cc.tut.fi>, Heidi Bostr|m <trh...@kielo.uta.fi> wrote:
>David Sewell (ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu) wrote:
>Whazzat? (Too lazy to fetch my New Mexican cookbook ;)
Masa harina de maiz = corn tamale/tortilla flour
>You should have special Finnish rolling pin (? I wonder if that's the
>word I was looking for).
I used to hang out with some Society for Creative Anachronism types
who claimed there was an ancient Scandinavian weapon called
the "Röllynpynn" that was wielded to deadly effect by Viking wives...
Pete Watters
Neil writes:
> On 14 Nov 1996, _Ron Green wrote:
>
> > Nope, to my knowledge you won't find the genuine article around
> > 'Zona.
>
> Ewww look! Someone who uses the term "Zona"! He must be an immigrant from
> California or something. ;)
>
> > However, as you may know, Rosita's up there in Tem-Pee
> > ain't too bad. Down here in Tucson I've found Mi Nidito to be
> > palatable. Also in Tucson, there's a hole-in-the wall place
> > on the southwest corner of Pantano and Speedway, Los Betos, that's
> > run by a family. Prices are *low*, quantity large, and
> > quite tasty - not very spicey, however.
>
> In Phoenix, Los Dos (it's 3 words, I forget the 3rd) is excellent Mexican
> food.
Los Dos Molinos. It's the best in the Valley (two locations that I know of).
Have you tried Guedo's Tacos in Chandler yet?
> You're right about Miniditos... but is that the same thing as some
> place called Cross Roads? I forget. Anyway, if it isn't, then Cross Roads
> is another place in Tucson's southside I'd recommend. As for Los Beto's,
> if you're talking about those small shacks (like Filiberto's), they have
> them up here too, and I also know of one in Tucson on 1st and Grant, and I
> found their food to be pretty bad.
>
> There are many other places I've eaten at (small, cheap places on the
> southside of Tucson) that I can't even remember, but you New Mexicans are
> getting away with bashing Arizona Mexican food without anyone defending
> it. I think we're getting a bad rap, and you guys haven't tried everything
> out there yet. :)
That might be, Neil. I've lived in Las Cruces, Tucson and Phoenix, and
I'll take a South Tucson restaurant anyday. I do, however, have a bag of
roasted Hatch chiles in my freezer.
Pete
--
http://www.primenet.com/~watters
Home of the El Dupree short-story contest.
Jef Bateman
>
> There are many other places I've eaten at (small, cheap places on the
> southside of Tucson) that I can't even remember, but you New Mexicans are
> getting away with bashing Arizona Mexican food without anyone defending
> it. I think we're getting a bad rap, and you guys haven't tried everything
> out there yet. :)
>
> Arizona State University
> Tempe, Arizona, U.S.A.
>
>
but have lived quite a while in Arizona. Arizona-style Mexican food does
take some getting used to, though. Also, I miss the heat. I just wish
the food in Phoenix came anywhere near the food in Tucson. Anyway, I
wish it could be as *good* and as *cheap* as it is in Tucson. Any
suggestions?
Jef
Neil
On Thu, 14 Nov 1996, Jef Bateman wrote:
> Well, I guess I have to agree with your last statement. I am from NM,
> but have lived quite a while in Arizona. Arizona-style Mexican food does
> take some getting used to, though. Also, I miss the heat. I just wish
> the food in Phoenix came anywhere near the food in Tucson. Anyway, I
> wish it could be as *good* and as *cheap* as it is in Tucson. Any
> suggestions?
As a transplant in Phoenix from Tucson, I'm with ya Jef. I haven't found
anything that's cheap and good, here in Phoenix. Los Dos is one of my
faves, but each time I go there I blow about 10 bucks (assuming around 5
bucks is what you're considering to be cheap, of course). :) Of course,
I've only lived here for a few months, so I know I have a lot of things to
discover yet.
Neil
Oh, and to switch the topic even MORE: NOTHING compares to Z's Pizza.
N O T H I N G !
Jef Bateman
>
> Los Dos Molinos. It's the best in the Valley (two locations that I know of).
> Have you tried Guedo's Tacos in Chandler yet?
>
consistent. I get the plain bean burrito and pile loads of stuff on
it--cilantro and cabbage. I have not found a plain burrito place as
good as Sanchez Jr. on 22nd in Tucson. We used to live two blocks from
it. It was better when they served beer there, but you take what you can
get, eh?
Also, "Sanchez to go" on Broadway (?) is good, although I have
only been there once.
--Jef
Neil
Reposting article removed by rogue canceller. See news.admin.net-abuse.announce
for further information.
On 14 Nov 1996, _Ron Green wrote:
> Nope, to my knowledge you won't find the genuine article around
> 'Zona.
Ewww look! Someone who uses the term "Zona"! He must be an immigrant from
California or something. ;)
> However, as you may know, Rosita's up there in Tem-Pee
> ain't too bad. Down here in Tucson I've found Mi Nidito to be
> palatable. Also in Tucson, there's a hole-in-the wall place
> on the southwest corner of Pantano and Speedway, Los Betos, that's
> run by a family. Prices are *low*, quantity large, and
> quite tasty - not very spicey, however.
In Phoenix, Los Dos (it's 3 words, I forget the 3rd) is excellent Mexican
food. You're right about Miniditos... but is that the same thing as some
place called Cross Roads? I forget. Anyway, if it isn't, then Cross Roads
is another place in Tucson's southside I'd recommend. As for Los Beto's,
if you're talking about those small shacks (like Filiberto's), they have
them up here too, and I also know of one in Tucson on 1st and Grant, and I
found their food to be pretty bad.
There are many other places I've eaten at (small, cheap places on the
southside of Tucson) that I can't even remember, but you New Mexicans are
getting away with bashing Arizona Mexican food without anyone defending
it. I think we're getting a bad rap, and you guys haven't tried everything
out there yet. :)
Neil
jupiterbowl
In article <56fc4a$1c...@ausnews.austin.ibm.com>,
_Ron Green <rwg...@rush.tucson.ibm.com> wrote:
>In article <328A1E...@ASU.edu>, "Patrick D. Lukens" <P.Lu...@ASU.edu> writes:
>
>|> Well, as a native New Mexican, transplanted to AZ, I can tell you that I
>|> was *very* disappointed in the Mexican food out here. I had assumed that
>|> it would have been better in Tucson. Am I mistaken? The only really
>|> good places to get good Mexican food around here are neighborhoods I'd
>|> rather avoid.
>|> < ... snip snip snip ... >
>
>ain't too bad. Down here in Tucson I've found Mi Nidito to be
[...]
And don't forget Restaurant Mexico in Tempe...go Thursday for Chicken Mole
night! I go there every time I visit: the enchiladas with tomatillo
sauce are to die for!
Scot
--
\----/ \----/ \----/
|||| Scot McNary |||| sc...@wam.umd.edu ||||
|||| Graduate Student, UMCP |||| (bethany too) ||||
/----\ /----\ /----\
Nicholas Lopez
Neil (ne...@imap1.asu.edu) wrote:
> There are many other places I've eaten at (small, cheap places on the
> southside of Tucson) that I can't even remember, but you New Mexicans are
> getting away with bashing Arizona Mexican food without anyone defending
> it. I think we're getting a bad rap, and you guys haven't tried everything
> out there yet. :)
I for one am not bashing Arizona food, since as you say, I've never tried it.
I'd be very surprised, though, if anything resembling New MExican food was
to be found anywhere else. Not bad, just different. Out here in Boston,
there are Mexican restaurants which range from northern mexican to southern
coastal Mexican to Cajun/Tex-mex, all of which are very good, but none of
which are New Mexican. It's almsot impossible to find tamales or posole out
here. And sopapillas? Forget it. There's no place like Eloy's where you can
head out for a good, cheap New MExican lunch. Oh well.
nick
Kevin Mcentire
Personally, I used to get very good tortillas in San Marcos, Tx, from a
local company there. By the way, it's like pulling teeth trying to just
FIND yellow corn tortillas in Washington, DC (where I'm at now). Just
these tasteless white corn or flour things.
David Laro
Kevin Mcentire (JPS...@prodigy.com) wrote:
: Personally, I used to get very good tortillas in San Marcos, Tx, from a
: FIND yellow corn tortillas in Washington, DC (where I'm at now). Just
: these tasteless white corn or flour things.
Poor Kevin; lost in DC! O well, that is the price of saying "yes" when
someone offered you that fatcat job! There are a couple of places I am
familiar with here in San Antoni where one can go and watch the tortillas
fall off the conveyor belt, have them bag a dozen or two (still very hot)
and go somewhere with ones little tub of butter, a salt shaker, and
a bottle of beer and REALLY have a good lunch!
I can almost imagine the fragrance of those fresh corn tortillas right
now!
Boy!
Bye!
David, gone to the kitchen
Neil
On 15 Nov 1996, Kevin Mcentire wrote:
> Personally, I used to get very good tortillas in San Marcos, Tx, from a
> local company there. By the way, it's like pulling teeth trying to just
> FIND yellow corn tortillas in Washington, DC (where I'm at now). Just
> these tasteless white corn or flour things.
Are you sure that's not Congressional dandruff?
[cringe]
Todd Brown
>That might be, Neil. I've lived in Las Cruces, Tucson and Phoenix, and
>I'll take a South Tucson restaurant anyday. I do, however, have a bag of
>roasted Hatch chiles in my freezer.
Never been to El Paso, eh? Nothing to match it anywhere and there are
so many places to choose from.
Just one bag of Hatch chiles, that won't last long or it would around
my house. I 've at least a dozen, and if those run out they are a
standard item in store here:-)
Pete Watters
Todd Brown (br...@sunspot.noao.edu) writes:
> In article <watters-1411...@ip-21-105.phx.primenet.com>
wat...@primenet.com (Pete Watters) writes:
>
>
> >That might be, Neil. I've lived in Las Cruces, Tucson and Phoenix, and
> >I'll take a South Tucson restaurant anyday. I do, however, have a bag of
> >roasted Hatch chiles in my freezer.
>
> Never been to El Paso, eh? Nothing to match it anywhere and there are
> so many places to choose from.
No, I've been to El Paso. I even lived in Odessa for a couple of years
before I realized the error of my ways, turned around and came back to
Arizona. If I hadn't been careful, I might have ended up on the wrong side
of the Mississippi.
> Just one bag of Hatch chiles, that won't last long or it would around
> my house. I 've at least a dozen, and if those run out they are a
> standard item in store here:-)
Depends on how big the bag is. ;)
Pete (Ice cubes? Hell, we don't need room in the freezer for those. We can
buy them at the store.)
Robert O. Dahl
Public Radio had a segment this morning on a pilot project distributing
enriched tortilla flour to alleviate malnutrition among some of the Indian
tribes of Mexico.
Robert
--
Robert O. Dahl
ot...@azstarnet.com
rd...@bio2.edu (work)
http://www.azstarnet.com/~ottar
Princess Leia
I know what you mean. I live in Massachusetts too, and NONE of the
Mexican food comes close to good old New Mexican food. Speaking of
something no one knows how to make--how about green chile stew? I miss
it SOOO much!
Leia
Neil
Another place in Tucson that we all neglected to mention: El Charro,
downtown, which was voted by several national media organizations as the
"Best Mexican Restaurant in the USA".
Christopher B. Stone
In article <56lf1c$b...@news1.mtholyoke.edu>,
Princess Leia <legi...@mtholyoke.edu> wrote:
Now, *this* brings up a good story. Last summer I was studying Arabic in
Egypt. Naturally, most Egyptians have no clue what "New Mexico" is, and I
got tired of explaining the that it was "near Texas." (Talk about
sacrilege!) Well, I decided that I was going to cook some green chile
stew for a bunch of Egyptians and my fellow Arabic students. They did
sell spicy green peppers at a local veggie store -- not as big as Hatch
chiles, but quite adequate. Good Arab bread had to substitute for real
tortillas.
Turns out that most of the Egyptians I invited found the green chile
stewway too spicy. (The only spicy dish that Egyptians eat is called
"koshari," which is quite good.) However, there was some group of people
from Upper (southern) Egypt staying in the same building as I was. Upper
Egyptians are very primitive, and residents of Cairo and Alexandria are
constantly belittling them and "apologizing" to foreigners for the Upper
Egyptians behavior. (The tell jokes about Upper Egyptians like New
Mexicans might about folks from Espanola.) The Upper Egyptians were very
reticent and unwilling to talk to us at first, especially to the American
men. They must have been positively shocked to see a man cook, for
instance.
Well, they decided to sample the green chile stew...and they *loved* it.
In fact, they came back for seconds, and they were very eager to socialize
after that. The Egyptians from Alexandria were absolutely stunned.
--
Chris Stone * cbs...@princeton.edu * http://www.princeton.edu/~cbstone
"In the long history of the world, only a few generations have been
granted the role of defending freedom in its hour of maximum danger.
I do not shrink from this responsibility. I welcome it." -JFK
Neil
On 18 Nov 1996, Christopher B. Stone wrote:
> Now, *this* brings up a good story. Last summer I was studying Arabic in
> Egypt. Naturally, most Egyptians have no clue what "New Mexico" is, and I
> got tired of explaining the that it was "near Texas." (Talk about
> sacrilege!)
Heh, well, it's not as though Americans are much better. Prior to the
Atlanta Olympics, some poor soul from Santa Fe called the Atlanta Olympic
Games' ticket office in order some tickets for various events. He spent
about 10 minutes arguing with the Olympic representative, who insisted,
"Sir, you have to call the Olympic representatives in your own country in
order to get tickets." He finally gave up, and had his brother in Tucson
call and buy the tickets for him.
And while we're on the subject of Southwestern culture on the other side
of the planet...
Being from Tucson, a fellow Tucsonan and I were more than a little shocked
to be wandering around the marketplace in Jaipur, Rajasthan, India, and
seeing a very poor little boy (no shoes, dirty hair, etc., you know how it
goes, Christopher) wearing a beautiful denim jacket. It wasn't the jacket
that caught our attention, though. It was the patch on the shoulder, from
the Tucson Police Department!
David Sewell
In article <56on8v$a...@cnn.Princeton.EDU>,
Christopher B. Stone <cbs...@tucson.princeton.edu> wrote:
>Turns out that most of the Egyptians I invited found the green chile
>stewway too spicy. (The only spicy dish that Egyptians eat is called
>"koshari," which is quite good.) However, there was some group of people
>from Upper (southern) Egypt staying in the same building as I was. Upper
>Egyptians are very primitive, and residents of Cairo and Alexandria are
>constantly belittling them and "apologizing" to foreigners for the Upper
>Egyptians behavior. [...]
>
>Well, they decided to sample the green chile stew...and they *loved* it.
>In fact, they came back for seconds, and they were very eager to socialize
>after that. The Egyptians from Alexandria were absolutely stunned.
I think you should repost all of this to sci.archaeology. We've
definitely got evidence for a diffusionist theory here. Quite possibly
all of Egyptian civilization was started by Mesoamerican emigres who
brought with them the plant with which no true civilization can
be said to exist. The Alexandrians have evidently degenerated from
the culture of their ancestors.
Robert O. Dahl
Dave,
I might be mistaken, but as I recall, there is a very sound theory that
chiles were originally introduced to Egypt by ancient pre-vikings, who
sailed into the far reaches of the Gulf of Mexico about 5,000 BP. Runes
found on a mysterious stone in New Mexico may have been left by an inland
expedition of these hardy plunderers and seem to strengthen the threads of
credulity and my being Norwegian has absolutely nothing to do with it.
Cheers,
RO
In article <5728dm$1...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu>,
ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu (David Sewell) wrote:
--
claude d stephenson
David Sewell (ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu) wrote:
: In article <56on8v$a...@cnn.Princeton.EDU>,
: Christopher B. Stone <cbs...@tucson.princeton.edu> wrote:
: >Turns out that most of the Egyptians I invited found the green chile
: >stewway too spicy. (The only spicy dish that Egyptians eat is called
: >"koshari," which is quite good.) <SNIP>
Koshari??? Did you say koshari??? Do the Pueblo Indians know about
this? I've heard of some *spicy* koshari, but I've never heard of them
being eaten in Pueblo culture. They are pretty spiritual beings & I
never quite understood *exactly* where they went when they left the
ceremonies & dances, but all the way to Egypt to be eaten? My stars!!
: I think you should repost all of this to sci.archaeology. We've
: definitely got evidence for a diffusionist theory here. Quite possibly
: all of Egyptian civilization was started by Mesoamerican emigres who
: brought with them the plant with which no true civilization can
: be said to exist. The Alexandrians have evidently degenerated from
: the culture of their ancestors.
: --
: David Sewell * ds...@packrat.aml.arizona.edu | "Where the earth is dry, the
: Dep't of Geosciences, Univ. of Arizona | soul is wisest and best."
: WWW: http://packrat.aml.arizona.edu/~dsew/ | --Heraclitus
Quite right, David! With the koshari connection the conduit is known for
sure. What other connections can we A.C.U.S'ers come up with. Pyramids
in Mexico? Christopher, tell us, in your travels to Egypt, did you hear
anything about sand trout (salmo dessicata)?
Hmmmmmm........................seems like something may be fishy here.
Just wondering.
Claude Stephenson
Ross Hanston
Ahh... green chilies. Although I live in Canada I go camping regularly in
the Southwest. Last fall, in Toas, we went to that little micro-brewery
hidden in the middle of town, and I had one of my best meals, green chili
beer with green chili chili.
Jehanne R.
A lifetime is not enough to listen to the songs of desolate places. E.B.
Perkins.
Christopher B. Stone <cbs...@tucson.princeton.edu> wrote in article
<56on8v$a...@cnn.Princeton.EDU>...
> In article <56lf1c$b...@news1.mtholyoke.edu>,
> Princess Leia <legi...@mtholyoke.edu> wrote:
>
> >I know what you mean. I live in Massachusetts too, and NONE of the
> >Mexican food comes close to good old New Mexican food. Speaking of
> >something no one knows how to make--how about green chile stew? I miss
> >it SOOO much!
>
> Now, *this* brings up a good story. Last summer I was studying Arabic in
> Egypt. Naturally, most Egyptians have no clue what "New Mexico" is, and
I
> got tired of explaining the that it was "near Texas." (Talk about
> sacrilege!) Well, I decided that I was going to cook some green chile
> stew for a bunch of Egyptians and my fellow Arabic students. They did
> sell spicy green peppers at a local veggie store -- not as big as Hatch
> chiles, but quite adequate. Good Arab bread had to substitute for real
> tortillas.
>
> Turns out that most of the Egyptians I invited found the green chile
> stewway too spicy. (The only spicy dish that Egyptians eat is called
> "koshari," which is quite good.) However, there was some group of people
> from Upper (southern) Egypt staying in the same building as I was. Upper
> Egyptians are very primitive, and residents of Cairo and Alexandria are
> constantly belittling them and "apologizing" to foreigners for the Upper
> Egyptians behavior. (The tell jokes about Upper Egyptians like New
> Mexicans might about folks from Espanola.) The Upper Egyptians were very
> reticent and unwilling to talk to us at first, especially to the American
> men. They must have been positively shocked to see a man cook, for
> instance.
>
> Well, they decided to sample the green chile stew...and they *loved* it.
> In fact, they came back for seconds, and they were very eager to
socialize
> after that. The Egyptians from Alexandria were absolutely stunned.