As with many other cultures, Latino culture is commonly centered on their cuisine. Mexican cuisine in Los Angeles is one of the most prominent parts of Latino culture. It has been a long time since Mexican cuisine first entered the United States. The food has always included some main dishes, such as, soup, chili, Spanish beans, Spanish rice and enchiladas. Mexican-American people of California are very devoted to their spicy Mexican dishes. Professor of Political Science, Rodolfo Torres argues that, "the majority of Spanish people in California are as devoted to peppery dishes as the Mexicans themselves, and as the Mexicans speak Spanish, the foods are commonly called Spanish dishes" (23). However, these hot dishes lead to both the positive and negative connotations of the "spicy" Latino culture.
As good as it tastes, there are also many negative connotations surrounding Mexican Cuisine. For example, Latino women are degraded, even through their food.
Los Angeles Times Reporter Victor Valle and Torres addressed this issue in their volume,
Latino Metropolis. In their writing, they address a cooking television show aired in 1997 entitled,
Too Hot Tamales. This was a Mexican cooking show, which starred two Latino females. This show was the beginning of Latino female stereotyping. The show alludes to a Latino woman as a “hot tamale” with a hot temper, dramatic personality, and loud opinion.
Latino people in Los Angeles are an essential part of the food industry. According to Torres and Valle, Latino immigrants make up about 70% of the food service work force. Without the hard work of these Latinos, Los Angeles would not be the same metropolis that it is today. Mexican cuisine is completely integrated in United States culture, both the good and bad parts of it.
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Becoming Mexican American: Ethnicity, Culture, and Identity in Chicano Los Angeles, 1900-1945. New York: Oxford UP, 1993. 108-28. 17 Feb. 2016.
Too Hot Tamales. Digital image.
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Valle, Victor M., and Rodolfo D. Torres.
Latino Metropolis. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota, 2000. 67-100.
