Advice, please?

[Constance]

My husband and I go out for lunch, and we have a popular mom and pop Mexican restaurant in our town. My husband wants to go, and I think that's great, but I do not like Mexican food, except for Margaritas and guacamole.
I do like re-fried beans, the cheeses, etc...I just hate getting a plate with little piles of mush that all look alike.

So, here's my question...what could I order that I might possibly like?

[UnConundrum]

Well, what puts you off with Mexican?

[PanchoHambre]

Wow I totally cannot help because I LOVE Mexican

Whats wrong with Margaritas and Gauc for lunch? Sounds good to me.

seriously.. if it's the Tacos and Burritos you don't like maybe a Chicken Mole? or Fajitas.. which if its a good place you assemble yourself so you could put only the stuff you like on it... you start with steak so...

[QSis]

How about chile rellenos, Connie? I LOVE them!

They are whole roasted poblanos (mildly warm green peppers) stuffed with lots of melty cheese, breaded and fried.

They are a pain to make, so I always order them when I'm out for Mexican food.

Lee

[Fisher's Mom]

I love cheese enchiladas but I always ask for ranchero sauce, which is a red sauce, rather than the chile sauce (it's a meat sauce) that is normally on top. I also love mexican rice and re-fried beans.

[UnConundrum]

Are you a vegetarian? What about fish? Our local Mexican has a couple fish dishes on the menu. I have to be extra careful because I have 0 tolerance for capsaicin, and usually stick the the fajitas. Love the taste and the textures, just can't take the heat.

[JoeV]

Im not a big fan of Mexican food either, so I order Chinese and send DW to the Mex place with her girlfriends. Works great for us.:thumb: You could just have beers and table snacks till you're not feeling any pain, then let DH drive you home. If that's not an option, then just speak up and exercise your wifey thingy that makes us hubbies back down every time, and go to the Italian joint. After all, we all know that Mama is the Boss!:thumb:

[buzzard767]

So, here's my question...what could I order that I might possibly like?

A Corona with a slice of lime. :tongue:

[Constance]

A Corona with a slice of lime. :tongue:

That's not a bad idea, buzzard!

My problem with Mexican food is that, to me, it all looks alike and tastes alike. I can't help it...I'm German/Scots Irish.

So, what, besides quacamole would I like?

[PanchoHambre]

oh are you a Vegetarian? then my advise sucked... sorry..

[BamsBBQ]

My husband and I go out for lunch, and we have a popular mom and pop Mexican restaurant in our town. My husband wants to go, and I think that's great, but I do not like Mexican food, except for Margaritas and guacamole.
I do like re-fried beans, the cheeses, etc...I just hate getting a plate with little piles of mush that all look alike.

So, here's my question...what could I order that I might possibly like?

if u like pork --- if they have it on the menu - tacos al pastor - adobe-seasoned pork - cooked ...served on a tortilla, w/cilantro and onions...spritz of lime... my favorite taco

alot of places of fried tilapia... comes to you whole... splash of lime juice while you are eating

if u are going to go basic, just get yourself a chicken. cheese or chorizo quesadilla

i can go on and on..lol

[The Tourist]

The problem with ethnic restaurants is that they are run by foreigners. No understanding of American tastes and customs.

Waltz into the place, and simply annouce, "Bring me a 12 ounce steak and a margarita in a clean glass or INS (or Homeland Security) will be here in ten minutes.

If I'm feeling really generous, I add, "Por favor."

Four or five servers usually leave anyway, but you get to sit in a Mexican restaurant with your spouse, eating food you like, and it takes the Homeland people at least thirty minutes to actually show up.

As you can guess, I'm sick of "pressing 'one' for English."

[Adillo303]

Hi Constance - You can try Carne Asada, This is basically a steak. Chile releno is also good, but it has already been mentioned. Fajtas sea strips of steak marinated and grilled with onions maybe peppers or tomatoes. From there, you get warm tortillas sour cream maybe guacamole or order it and cheese. These are on the side you build your own wrap with what you want.

I do not recall if you are a vegetarian, if so, some places make fajitas witn portabello mushrooms.

Hope this helps

AC

[simplicity]

How about a salad? Then you can tell them what to add or what to leave out...or ask them to put a couple of slices of chicken or beef and cheese on top to make it heartier.

[AllenOK]

I would agree with Simplicity. Nothing beats a really good Taco Salad, in a huge "bowl" made from a deep-fried flour tortilla.

"Everything tastes the same" is one of the problems I have when I want to make something Mexican-ish at home. I'm always looking for a flavor that is definitely "different". One ingredient that I'm still looking for is huitlacoche. I seriously doubt I'll find it fresh in this country. I'll probably have to break down and order some canned over the internet. I've even looked at several of the Mexican groceries, and they don't have any, fresh or canned.

Have you tried making a good Salsa Verde? I can't really "taste" a difference between tomatoes and tomatillos, but the color is definitely different.

Fish tacos are good.

[QSis]

Connie, I'm watching Guy Fieri make these right now, and I've copied and saved the recipe to make myself. Thought you MIGHT want to, too! http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/guy-fieri/poblano-stuffed-with-chorizo-shrimp-and-rice-recipe/index.html

If you don't like it too spicy, omit the chorizo, or substitute a mild sausage.

Can you tell that I love stuffed poblanos? :smile: Still, when I go out for Mexican, I do order the rellenos since they are such a pain to make.

Lee

[Fisher's Mom]

One ingredient that I'm still looking for is huitlacoche. Just say "NO", Allen. Read more here:
http://www.thesneeze.com/mt-archives/000344.php

[joec]

That is hysterical and I had never heard of the stuff but have probably eaten it in the past.

[BamsBBQ]

Just say "NO", Allen. Read more here:
http://www.thesneeze.com/mt-archives/000344.php

i seen this being eaten when it was fresh on the tv show with Andrew Zimmerman

[Maverick2272]

I would suggest a simple Carne Assada, medium rare. It is a Mexican steak and it is pretty darn good in my opinion. Plus it doesn't look like mush, just looks like a steak, LOL.

[Deadly Sushi]

I love mexican too! Especially Eva Longoria and Jessica Alba. :shifty::wub:

[Maverick2272]

I love mexican too! Especially Eva Longoria and Jessica Alba. :shifty::wub:

I would give ya Karma for that one, but I can't yet! So instead:
:applause::clap:

[RobsanX]

I knew a girl who didn't like Mexican food for the same reason. She didn't like that everything was kind of mushed up. On the other hand she did like Fajitas because there was some texture to them.

[MexicoKaren]

Just say "NO", Allen.

Oops. I've eaten it as filling in crepes and also in quesadillas. It's usually served as a garnish or an ingredient with other things. I thought it was very good - tasted a bit like truffles. Or mushrooms....

Constance, I totally understand why you think all Mexican food tastes alike - most of the offerings I've had at US restaurants fall in that category, probably because they think they are catering to US tastes. The reality of Mexican cooking is SO different. I could go on and on, but the layers of subtle flavor in the many wonderful sauces here are just amazing....I guess you'd better just come and visit, and I'll show you!

[waybomb]

Have you ever been to a real Mexican restaurant; one that native Mexicans frequent?

The food is superb, and nothing at all like the Americanized chains or copycats of Americanized chains.

[VeraBlue]

Get a quesadilla...it's basically a grilled cheese sandwich, only with a tortilla instead of bread. Then, dip it in the quacamole, shoot the lime, lick the salt, etc etc etc...

[jpmcgrew]

Get a quesadilla...it's basically a grilled cheese sandwich, only with a tortilla instead of bread. Then, dip it in the quacamole, shoot the lime, lick the salt, etc etc etc...
:smile: You can also put shrimp, beef, pork, chicken etc in quesadillas. Come here to NM and I will show show you the differences. We have red and green chili and many ways to eat them.:thumb:

[TexasGirl]

How about chile rellenos, Connie? I LOVE them!

They are whole roasted poblanos (mildly warm green peppers) stuffed with lots of melty cheese, breaded and fried.

They are a pain to make, so I always order them when I'm out for Mexican food.

Lee

i was going to say the same thing!!:thumb:

[jim_slagle]

a fajita chicken quesadilla is pretty good. Little hot sauce, sour cream, guacamole, . . . .

ok there's a red underline under quesadilla I expected that but one of the recommended replacements is "Cadillac" I'm not sure but probably not quite the same thing :bonk:

[PieSusan]

As an aside, I trust the Goya name; I find it to be an excellent brand.

[jpmcgrew]

:) If you live in the south west you will get more authentic mexican but you need to know that Mexico is different from Arizona, California, Texas, Utah and New Mexico and northern NM is totally different from southern NM it is very regional out here and very different in each region.

[BamsBBQ]

:) If you live in the south west you will get more authentic mexican but you need to know that Mexico is different from Arizona, California, Texas, Utah and New Mexico and northern NM is totally different from southern NM it is very regional out here and very different in each region.


true true but they all have alot in common as well...


if the place says cantina or taqueria(sp)on it or you cant read it because there is no english on it..thats the place you want to eat real mexican food...

not at Pablo's Fine Mexican Style Restaurant and Sushi Bar, thats not the place..lol


Ruchi's Taqueria in Houston,TX... the one by Reliant Center - my favorite all time place to eat mexican food...

on a side note.... i just moved from michigan.... last year i found a cantina in michigan that was half grocery, half restaurant.... it was authentic and awesome

[buckytom]

i love the seafood and steak dishes at our local mexican joints.

connie, see if the have ceviche to start. it's a delicious dish of citric acid cooked fish.

next up, i'd go with mav's and adillo's recommendation of carne asada, or maybe carne tampiquena.

or if they have it, whole fried fish. huachinango is red snapper that is delicious fried.

or served veracruz style in a tomatoey sauce.

or huachinango al mojo de ajo. red snapper in garlic cream sauce, yum!!!!

[BamsBBQ]

or they do a tilapia.... they fry it in oil sort of, whole.... peel skin back, spritz with lime..eat...enjoy

[simplicity]

:) If you live in the south west you will get more authentic mexican but you need to know that Mexico is different from Arizona, California, Texas, Utah and New Mexico and northern NM is totally different from southern NM it is very regional out here and very different in each region.

You are so right. Tex-Mex is just that, as opposed to Mexican which also has regional influences. I've eaten some fine food in Santa Fe, familiar, yet different. I've also had some great dinners in Mexico, but that's another story. In my opinion it's all good.

[AllenOK]

Just say "NO", Allen. Read more here:
http://www.thesneeze.com/mt-archives/000344.php

OMG! That was a riot!

Yes, I'm fully aware of what huitlacoche is. I did a lot of research into it back in 2006 when I first learned of.

That said, I'm still curious.

[AllenOK]

Constance, I forgot to mention this in my first post to this thread. If you want to truly experience good Mexican cooking in your home, without the hassle of translating recipes from Spanish into English, and without searching high and low for obscure ingredients, get yourself a copy of Rick Bayless's Mexican Kitchen. I've got one, and it's gots LOADS of great recipes.

[jim_slagle]

Rick Bayless's Mexican Kitchen.

That one looks GREAT! I just ordered it from Amazon (http://www.amazon.com/Rick-Baylesss-Mexican-Kitchen-World-Class/dp/0684800063/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1234191960&sr=8-1)

Thanks,

Jim

[AllenOK]

Jim, I've only made a couple things out of that book. Essential Roasted Tomatillo Serrano Sauce (a great salsa verde), and the Red Chile Vegetables for Tacos. There's a lot of other things in there that I want to make, but haven't gotten around to it.

[buckytom]

here ya go, allen:

http://www.ituit.com/images/wn-tuitb.jpg

[PanchoHambre]

Constance, I forgot to mention this in my first post to this thread. If you want to truly experience good Mexican cooking in your home, without the hassle of translating recipes from Spanish into English, and without searching high and low for obscure ingredients, get yourself a copy of Rick Bayless's Mexican Kitchen. I've got one, and it's gots LOADS of great recipes.

great book received it as a gift one of the few cookbooks I own but a good one.

[AllenOK]

here ya go, allen:

http://www.ituit.com/images/wn-tuitb.jpg

ROFL! I was thinking about designing a graphic for that!

[Calicolady]

I'm not fond of mexican either but do like the beef fajitas from a local deli/bakery/cantina type place.
I'd rather have cuban, which isn't as spicy. And they have an open pit roasted pig to die for.