Rice is the most commonly eaten cereal crop in the world, being the mainstay of the diet in much of east and southeast Asia, the Caribbean and central and South America. Of course, rice is eaten in literally every part of the world, including North America. Rice is grown in the United States and more apropos to this article, Mexico. After corn, rice is the most important grain in Mexican cuisine and there are too many different Mexican rice recipes to list in the space we have here.
As central as rice is to Mexican cooking, it is a relatively recent arrival in the grand scheme of things, having arrived in what is now Mexico with colonists and explorers from Spain and Portugal. The peoples of the new world took to the new grain with enthusiasm and rice was soon one of the most important staples in the Mexican kitchen. Some of the dishes, which are now considered to be traditional Mexican rice recipes date from the early days after rice, began to be cultivated in the Americas.
Authentic Mexican Rice Recipes
Arroz con pollo is both a classic Mexican rice dish and a classic Mexican chicken dish. From the Spanish for "rice with chicken," this is the Mexican take on this timeless comfort food and it is an incredibly satisfying one. This is one Mexican rice recipe you may want to try making at home - it is a great change of pace from the familiar American version with canned soup.
In Mexico, this chicken recipe incorporates some new world ingredients into this Spanish recipe such as tomatoes. Mexican cooks tend to prepare this dish with Mexican oregano rather than the Greek oregano, which would be used by cooks in Spain. The addition of this similar tasting but slightly more assertively flavored herb puts a Mexican spin on the dish, making arroz con pollo translate perfectly into a wonderful Mexican rice dish.
Spanish Cuisine Becomes Mexican In The New World
Since rice was introduced to Mexico by the Spanish, a number of traditional Mexican rice recipes are adaptations of Spanish dishes using the ingredients available in Mexico. One example is paella, which is a rice recipe, which is strongly identified with Spain. However, Mexican cooks were doubtless creating rice and seafood dishes for a long time before paella as it is eaten in Europe was popularized by cooks in Valencia.
Not only is the tomato often featured in Spanish paella from the Americas, but also bell peppers, another new world crop are also often used. Here you have an example of the cuisines of Spain and Mexico having a sort of conversation with each other across the Atlantic Ocean, with European cooks finding the new vegetables and fruits from the Americas valuable additions to their own recipes and the people of Mexico making the ingredients and recipes of Europe their own.
Another popular Mexican rice recipe is the lightly seasoned rice served as a side dish with many meals, especially bean dishes. You may have noticed the similarity between this dish and Spanish rice - and the two do share some ingredients other than rice; again, tomatoes and bell peppers are part of the equation.
Rice is an incredibly important ingredient in the Mexican pantry; this oldest of old world staples has become as essential to the Mexican diet as it is in Asia, Africa and much of the rest of the globe. Like many of the ingredients introduced by Europeans and later waves of immigrants to Mexico. it has been welcomed with open arms, combined with the native ingredients of the Americas, and become something all its own - from Mexican rice recipes to soups, which include this grain, Mexican food, is a distinct cuisine unto itself and rice has been a big part of its development. - 30289
As central as rice is to Mexican cooking, it is a relatively recent arrival in the grand scheme of things, having arrived in what is now Mexico with colonists and explorers from Spain and Portugal. The peoples of the new world took to the new grain with enthusiasm and rice was soon one of the most important staples in the Mexican kitchen. Some of the dishes, which are now considered to be traditional Mexican rice recipes date from the early days after rice, began to be cultivated in the Americas.
Authentic Mexican Rice Recipes
Arroz con pollo is both a classic Mexican rice dish and a classic Mexican chicken dish. From the Spanish for "rice with chicken," this is the Mexican take on this timeless comfort food and it is an incredibly satisfying one. This is one Mexican rice recipe you may want to try making at home - it is a great change of pace from the familiar American version with canned soup.
In Mexico, this chicken recipe incorporates some new world ingredients into this Spanish recipe such as tomatoes. Mexican cooks tend to prepare this dish with Mexican oregano rather than the Greek oregano, which would be used by cooks in Spain. The addition of this similar tasting but slightly more assertively flavored herb puts a Mexican spin on the dish, making arroz con pollo translate perfectly into a wonderful Mexican rice dish.
Spanish Cuisine Becomes Mexican In The New World
Since rice was introduced to Mexico by the Spanish, a number of traditional Mexican rice recipes are adaptations of Spanish dishes using the ingredients available in Mexico. One example is paella, which is a rice recipe, which is strongly identified with Spain. However, Mexican cooks were doubtless creating rice and seafood dishes for a long time before paella as it is eaten in Europe was popularized by cooks in Valencia.
Not only is the tomato often featured in Spanish paella from the Americas, but also bell peppers, another new world crop are also often used. Here you have an example of the cuisines of Spain and Mexico having a sort of conversation with each other across the Atlantic Ocean, with European cooks finding the new vegetables and fruits from the Americas valuable additions to their own recipes and the people of Mexico making the ingredients and recipes of Europe their own.
Another popular Mexican rice recipe is the lightly seasoned rice served as a side dish with many meals, especially bean dishes. You may have noticed the similarity between this dish and Spanish rice - and the two do share some ingredients other than rice; again, tomatoes and bell peppers are part of the equation.
Rice is an incredibly important ingredient in the Mexican pantry; this oldest of old world staples has become as essential to the Mexican diet as it is in Asia, Africa and much of the rest of the globe. Like many of the ingredients introduced by Europeans and later waves of immigrants to Mexico. it has been welcomed with open arms, combined with the native ingredients of the Americas, and become something all its own - from Mexican rice recipes to soups, which include this grain, Mexican food, is a distinct cuisine unto itself and rice has been a big part of its development. - 30289
About the Author:
Although fajitas are technically a Tex Mex creation rather than traditional Mexican, they are delicious nonetheless and they are typically great, like many other Mexican recipes. If you fancy fajitas tonight, you can make them easily at home for the family and there are lots of kinds of fajitas to choose from.
