I like to think I have a pretty diverse palate. There is very little I absolutely won’t eat, but there are plenty of cuisines that just don’t tickle my taste buds.
Folks get all excited about the Cajun and Creole cuisine New Orleans way, but it just does zip for me. That’s why I didn’t go out of my way to find any when I was in Louisiana. The spices don’t do anything for me, I can’t digest green peppers, and okra makes me gag. I also have a hard time with deep fried foods and anything cooked with a lot of grease. Once in a while is fine, but I’d rather have sushi. 🙂 I know I give off the impression that I have a poor diet and eat lots of junk food, but the fact is that I balance the not so good stuff I eat out by eating very well at home.
Anyway, so now I’m in Texas. And in Texas they eat what I know as ‘Tex-Mex’ food but which they call ‘Mexican.’ I don’t think I could ever get enough of Tex-Mex. I could probably eat fajitas every day at a different location and not get sick of them. When I was in Scotland, I ate a veggie burger almost every day because they were ubiquitous and I never had two the same. I should do a similar exercise with fajitas while I’m here!
The fajitas I had today actually weren’t quite as good as those at the Lone Star Texas Grill in Ottawa, which I’m sure is blasphemy. But they were otherwise the best I have eaten anywhere else. Fresh tortillas, lightly seasoned chicken, toothsome shrimps, loads of grilled onion (my favourite part), and great mix ins that included beans, rice, pico de gallo and guacamole. I didn’t think I’d be hungry enough to touch my leftovers tonight, but I found room for a small one for dinner and have enough left for a nice lunch tomorrow!
Today, I was taught how to eat jalapeños, which is about time! Oh, I have consumed them before, in salsa and nachos and such, but it was always with trepidation because I don’t like hot stuff. A bit of heat is fine, but searing off my taste buds seems pointless to me. Anyway, I learned that if I remove the seeds from the peppers, they are very tasty! I have been advised to try poblanos as well. I know I’ve had those before, but I can’t remember in what context. I suspect I will be less afraid of hot peppers by the time I leave Texas if I end up eating out a lot here.
And the same goes for avocados. I’ve never had any use for them (I’ll eat them, no problem, I just don’t see what the fuss is all about), but I think it’s just because I’ve never had a truly fresh one made up into real good guacamole. Quick, I need a distraction so I don’t go raid the fridge!
You may want to try the chain restaurant Taco Cabana while you are here. I love their Sour Cream Chicken Enchilada meal.
OMG, that sounds good. I could eat sour cream on anything.
****I could eat sour cream on anything.****
I knew I liked you!!
ROTFL
I could eat a tub of the stuff with a spoon, yoghurt-style. 🙂
Glad you are enjoying your fajitas! I agree with the sour cream, and I definitely can’t stand okra either!
Mom, maybe we should add sour cream to the top of your dumplings next year! 😉
A lot of the food in New Orleans is different from what you will find more to the West like around Lafayette and Lake Charles. They use a lot more tomatoes and okra around New Orleans. I don’t like the food in New Orleans. More things are cooked in a roux gravy here. All the fried things are probably about the same. I don’t like food that is too spicy either. Some “Cajun” restaurants seem to think that cajun equals hot.
Most of my RV trips are to Texas and I like to look for the Mexican restaurants in some of the small towns. If you are going through one of the small towns around lunch look for one with a crowd. The food is usually good and not expensive.
Now you have me hungry for Mexican food and I don’t have a trip planned until April. lol
Martha, I do like the tomatoes and rice bases of New Orleans cuisine, but that’s it. Okra, *shudders* And I really don’t see the point of burning off someone’s tastebuds.
La Antigua had a bunch of Mexicans eating there, which was probably a good sign!
Sorry about those cravings, I know how bad they can be. 😉
Jalapeno have twice the vitamin C, by weight, that an orange has. I eat one almost every day in my breakfast scramble. I also eat half of an avocado almost everyday in a salad; they provide a lot of fiber. Both are foods for good heath.
I get most of my vitamin C and fiber from kale. I eat a small bunch of it a day. Much tastier than jalapenos and avocado in my book. 🙂 But variety is good and I am going to try to introduce these veggies to my diet.