There are many people in our country who love Mexican cuisine however, there are very few who are lucky enough to taste authentic dishes. My family is part of those lucky few. My abuela has fed our family some of the best recipes and foods for as long as I can remember. The food, while time-consuming, is so very special because it involves her cultural traditions, and family history, creates a legacy, and tells a story of love for her culture. The privilege to taste the plethora of flavors and spices in the cuisine is what makes the experience unforgettable.
Abuela’s cooking is so loved that almost everyone who tastes her food wants to know how to make it for themselves. The most persistent in compiling and creating as many of her recipes as possible is Katie Lopez, my mother. When asked what Mrs. Lopez’s favorite recipe to make is, “Enfijoladas (similar to authentic enchiladas with a bean sauce) because they are so easy to make and so delicious, I love tamales but they are very time consuming, Taquitos de papas are probably my favorite thing that my mother in law makes that I have not yet learned how to make. Hopefully she teaches me that next.” My mom is one of the only people who has made the effort to learn most of her recipes and how to execute them correctly. When talking about favorite dishes that Abuela makes my uncle (her son) and my dad said, “Albondigas (like an authentic meatball stew), enchiladas, caldo, or anything chicken.” are their favorites. So far, everyone who has experienced Abuela’s cooking has absolutely fallen in love with her food.
One thing that is challenging with cooking traditional authentic Mexican food is finding the ingredients that are necessary. My mom said, “Here in Indiana it is very challenging because most of the Hispanic population is not Mexican, most of them are actually from other Spanish speaking countries. Most of the ingredients are different based on what Hugo (my stepdad) tells me they are from other countries. The cheeses are very hard to find along with other spices, in Oregon I didn’t have a problem because in Oregon the majority of the hispanic population is Mexican, so they have the same ingredients as the ones Abuela uses because it is from the same country she is from (Michoacán, Mexico) and the tortillas there are much better than here because they stay together better.” Most people think all Mexican stores or recipes all have the same ingredients, however, different countries have different ingredients used for their dishes. Abuela expressed her difficulties with finding ingredients as well. She said, “For birria there are a few things that aren’t here. For mole the ingredients here are different.” Having tasted these dishes it is surprising that she can not find all the necessary ingredients because they are so good without it makes me wonder how much of a difference it tastes with the proper ingredients.
Cooking is a necessity. For both my mom and abuela this is not the case. I asked my mom if she enjoys cooking and asked her why and she said, “Yes but not cleaning up after. It’s my way of taking care of others and bringing others joy and showing them I care. That is also Abuela’s reason for cooking.” My mom truly does work very hard to make food that our family will enjoy and does a phenomenal job at it. Abuela said, “ I don’t have a lot of time for cooking because I work a lot, but I really like to cook for my family because it is my way to show them I love them.” When she said that an instant connection was made. Anytime we visit Abuela she always asks what we would like to eat and always feeds everyone. I feel cooking is her way to share her cultures and traditions with everyone she loves. Abuela truly cooks with all her heart and soul.
