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Tasty Tangy Spicy Mexican Foods Mexican food as we know it today is a mélange of the finest cuisines that have descended from the ancient Aztecs, Mayans, Spanish, Caribbean, and other neighboring countries. Traditional Mexican food mostly involved cocoa, tomatoes, avocadoes, peanuts, vanilla beans, coconuts and corn, but with the Spaniards settling in Mexico, the distinct flavors of Spanish cuisine were added to it.
They introduced citrus fruits, cheese, garlic, milk, vine, wheat, and vinegar. Though many new ingredients have been introduced since, nothing has succeeded in overthrowing the quintessential Mexican fare of chillies, herbs, corn and tomatoes. This is what makes Mexican food so spicy.
Mexican cuisine is known for its diverse flavors, native spices, and colourful decorations.
It has become extremely popular across the globe, though certain ingredients are changed to suit the local palate. Most of their foodstuffs are spiced with chillies and other native plants.
Mexican food was mostly available on the streets, where one could get food prepared as they had been for centuries, which was at its primitive best and also the finest. Mexican cooking has survived in spite of varied influences through the ages.
Mexican food is diverse and differs from one region to another.
One of the reasons that Mexican food is spicy is because of the climatic conditions. Spices are very good preservatives and helps to keep food from getting spoiled. This is quite common in almost all tropical countries across the world where spices are used extensively. Spices also help in adding flavour to the meat and fish because they help break the muscle tissues and make it tender.
There are certain foods such as tacos, enchiladas, and burritos which are not spicy.
Mexicans feel that more the spices in the better it is. The taste of chilli is considered very essential as the flavour of the whole dish rests on chillies. You can add fewer chillies if you’re not used to such spicy fare.
Mexicans use a variety of chillies, either powdered, dried or as a whole.
These include chipotle, which is made from dried and smoked jalapenos, poblano, serano, guero, anaheim, mulato, and ancho chilles. Each of them has its own distinct flavor and is used in different quantities in various dishes to make them either mildly or strongly spiced. The other spices and herbs that are used are cumin, coriander, oregano, cilantro, anise, avocado leaves, cloves, garlic, paprika, and cayenne pepper, which make Mexican food truly spicy.
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