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• by:
• Miller, Erin

When it comes to Mexican food, there's no shortage in Houston, Texas. Nearly half of the population of America's fourth-largest city can claim Hispanic or Latin heritage. So, it's no surprise that Houston's nearly three thousand Mexican eateries make up 30 percent of the total restaurants in the city.

This cookbook features more than sixty recipes from some of the most beloved establishments among them. Award-winning chefs such as Hugo Ortega, Arturo Boada, Robert Del Grande and Irma Galvan have opened their kitchens and helped to transform their most treasured menu items into manageable recipes for the home cook.

A culinary tour of Houston's best Mexican eateries, the book also offers a gastronomic adventure through the glorious and colorful Mexican states. From the Original Ninfa's menu, Chef Alex Padilla's succulent and spicy Cochinita Pibil--achiote-and-citrus-marinated pork roasted in banana leaves--offers a taste of the Yucatan. The flavors of Veracruz come to life in Las Ventanas' Huachinango Veracruzana, and Mexican Independence Day in Puebla can be celebrated again and again with Tila's sweet and savory Chile en Nogada, an irresistible offering of poblano peppers stuffed with meat, fruit, and nuts. Mexican cuisine is deeply rooted in Aztec, Mayan and Spanish culture with French and Jamaican influences.

True Mexican cuisine is complex, intensely flavorful and surprisingly healthful. Mexican-food lovers will thrill at this collection of classics as will home cooks looking to expand their culinary horizons. Filled with diverse and exotic ingredients, tightly guarded recipes, traditional techniques and tips from the most celebrated chefs in the Space City, Houston Classic Mexican Recipes is a flavorful celebration to revisit repeatedly.