DEAR MEXICAN: I read an article you linked to about how it could be hard to order a lime in Spanish-speaking South American countries. The bottom line was that, depending on where you were, un limón could mean a lemon or a lime—it was all a matter of local dialect. Curiously, limes originated in Europe, lemons in Asia. Growing up in Encinitas, there was never a question of la palabra correcta for which was which. This realization, logically, led me to ask you, the Mexican: How did the combination of onion and cilantro—both basically Mediterranean in origin and brought by the Spanish—become such intrinsic ingredients in the culinary traditions seemingly everywhere south of the border?
Devorador de Nopal
DEAR POOR LITTLE YOU: Wait, how did you go from an etymological question about lemons and limes to asking about onions and cilantro? That’s a non sequitur on par with talking about democracy, then mentioning Trump. But the Mexican will use any opportunity to plug the works of his pals, so I forwarded your question to Lesley Tellez, author of the fabulous Eat Mexico: Recipes From Mexico City’s Streets, Markets & Fondas and creator of great restaurant tours through la mera capirucha.
“Mexicans have a rich history of using aromatic herbs in their cooking,” says Tellez. “Pápaloquelite, epazote, hierbas de olor (just to name a few)—they’re used abundantly to flavor everything from quesadillas to stews. Cilantro came from Asia, but its herbal punch fits right in. As for onion, there’s evidence that a type of wild onion existed before the Spaniards arrived, so indigenous Mexicans might’ve already had a palate for it. The combo that’s popular at Mexican taquerías today—raw, diced white onion mixed with chopped cilantro—is all about texture and balance. The taco needs that necessary crunch and brightness, just as much as it needs salsa.”
Everyone: Buy Lesley’s book. And Devorador: Linear arguments, cabrón!
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DEAR MEXICAN: Why do we Mexicans refer to any type of cereal as confleis—or corn flakes, for the gabas?
Tepito Timoteo
DEAR POCHO: Same reason why gabachos use Xerox as a verb when they want to photocopy anything, call cotton swabs Q-Tips and refer to all steroidal creams as Quadriderm. The bigger question is how Mexican Spanish seemingly mangles a straightforward term such as corn flakes into confleis. The answer, como siempre, is elision, the linguistic concept of combining vowels and consonants to create new words that confound gabachos and fancy-ass Mexicans alike. Try this head scratcher: How does “Pues, está para allá, hermano” (“Well, he’s over there, brother”) turn into “Pos, ‘ta’ pa’lla, ‘mano“?
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WATCH BORDERTOWN! Folks, the FOX cartoon on which I serve as a consulting producer has been canceled, so por favor watch THIS SUNDAY at 7 p.m. PST, or stream it any time on Hulu or FOX Now. You have more of a mandate to watch this week’s episode, as it’s the season finale and your humble Mexican wrote the episode. Gracias, and don’t forget to tweet #renewbordertown!
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