An Easy Recipe

Mexican culture is a unique combination of pre-Hispanic, colonial, and postcolonial Mexico. The Mexican people are rightly proud of their history, ethnicity, and culture.

The country has actually changed quite a bit in the past century and contemporary Mexican life is more like European or North American life. Eighty five percent of Mexicans live in big cities and there are more Spanish speaking people in Mexico than in any other country. The Mexican government does recognize another sixty-two indigenous languages as Mexican languages though.

After Brazil, Mexico is the second biggest catholic country in the world. Ninety five percent of Mexicans are catholic and the Spanish colonists introduced the religion.

Mexican Holidays and Celebrations

Every town, village, and city in Mexico has its own patron saint and there is a party held once a year in each place to celebrate the saint days. Independence Day in Mexico is celebrated on September 16. Parties, fireworks, dance contests, and parades are popular during celebrations and you might see cockfighting, bullfighting, or football too. The people burn candles and decorate the churches with colorful utensils and flower arrangements.

No Mexican party is complete without a hanging piata and these paper mache people, animals, or fictional characters contain candy and toys. The kids take it in turns to hit the piata, while wearing blindfolds, and when it breaks and the goodies fall out, the kids share them.

Mexican Food and Drink

Mexican food is an exotic mixture of European, Aztec, Mayan, Spanish, French and Caribbean food and more. It is tasty and well balanced, both in flavor and in nutritional content. Well known Mexican favorites include tacos, tamales, mole sauce, pozole and enchiladas. There are plenty of Mexican fast food restaurants but the offerings from these establishments bear little resemblance to traditional Mexican food recipes. You can use Mexican recipes to make your own Mexican food at home if there are no good Mexican eateries in your area.

Beef, beans, chicken, maize, peanuts, tomatoes, avocados, potatoes, and guavas feature in many Mexican recipes. Fruit juice, Mexican beer, cinnamon flavored hot chocolate, and mescal are all favored by Mexicans too. There are also several Mexican wineries, which have won awards for their great quality wine, which is enjoyed in Mexico and exported as well.

Corn is used in many traditional Mexican recipes, as is corn flour. Chili is also widely used in Mexican cuisine. There are Mexican soups, stews and salads as well as the better-known Mexican foods. Mexican desserts are very popular and they combine hot and sweet elements to give interesting flavor and texture sensations in the mouth.

Chili is often used to flavor Mexican candy and corn flavor candy is well liked. Calaveras de Azucar are the sugar skulls made for the Day of the Dead fiesta.

Mexican food is all about using clever combinations of herbs and spices as well as the best fresh produce. It is easy to make your own traditional Mexican recipes and find out why Mexican food is so popular all over the globe.