Tex Mex- Defined

The term Tex Mex was first used in the 1940s, and refered to mexican recipies adapted by texan cooks. Ex: enchiladas, tacos, refried beans, chimichangas, and nachos. Tex Mex resturants were first seem in the southwestern part of the U.S. in cities with large mexican populations. Diana Kennedy is credited with elevating Tex Mex to trendy status, in 1972. As with all trendy foreign foods, what most americans call mexican food is actually americianized "mexican" food. Our version of tacos is different from the real mexican tacos, and burritos are a mexican-american dish, which was created in America. Despite popular belif not all mexican food is spicy. This proves that it is difficult to define what exactly mexican food is. The only definiton I have found that seems at all satisfactory is "food that originates in mexico, and is authentic," and some say that you will never find "authentic" mexican food in a resturant because they take too many shortcuts. So what is it that makes a dish Tex Mex instead of Mexican? The main difference between the two is ingredients, and the amount of time put into making the dish. A common example of this is chili. Texan chili relies mainly on beef, while Mexican chili relies heavily on beans. Tex Mex combines the two together. When one thinks of Tex Mex they should think of Taco Bell, Paco's Taco, and Serranos. These resturants all serve Tex Mex dishes. As is expected, however, the idea of what Tex Mex should be varies slightly from region to region as it changes to suit the taste of the people of the region.