If you are new to cooking Tex-Mex, it may take a little time to learn how to make your Tex-Mex dishes just right. There is a learning curve to everything. But, fortunately, there are a few things you can do right away with your meals that will have people believing you are a Tex-Mex expert. And they don’t take a lot of time or effort.
- Focus on the chili gravy.
This is a sauce of a brownish red hue that most restaurants make with chili powder. It began, however, as a sauce made with ancho chilies in San Antonio. You will usually see the sauce covering a plate of enchiladas, but people also put it on tamales. One critic has called chili gravy “the mother sauce of Tex-Mex.”
So, if you want to be known as a great Tex-Mex cook, make sure your enchiladas are swimming in chili gravy, and make sure it is the cheese version.
- Use American cheese.
Traditional Mexican cooking uses white cheese. But not Tex-Mex. It is yellow – the American processed kind. It gives a nice smooth melted look that only American cheese can give.
- Serve the chips and salsa right away.
That is part of the Tex-Mex experience, having the chips and salsa as soon as you sit down. And the chips should preferably be hot.
- Include plenty of rice and beans.
Make sure you load up the plate with the rice and refried beans along with the entrée. And make sure it is all on the same plate because many Tex-Mex eaters love to mix it all together.
- Make sure the nachos have all the ingredients on each chip.
You don’t want to serve them like they do in many restaurants, with a mountain of ingredients piled on top of a mound of chips. The chips on top are loaded with the toppings, but the chips on the bottom are bare.
- Add pickled jalapenos to each dish.
They are a staple in the world of Tex-Mex cooking, so make sure you have plenty of them to go around. Put them with each entrée, and have some on the side.
- Make sure the tortillas are flour.
Flour tortillas, not corn, rule in Tex-Mex. If you really want to impress, make your own.
If you can’t wait a day to become a great Tex-Mex cook yourself, head on over to the Mattito’s nearest you to have some Tex-Mex meals cooked to perfection!
