‘Fusion’ cuisine doesn’t always receive the warmest of welcomes in the food world – unless, of course, the products of the merge include liquid cheese, nachos and chimichangas (deep-fried burritos, for the uninitiated).
Tex-Mex, short for Texan-Mexican cuisine, has transcended the loaded fusion label, and might just be the most widely known and sought-after meeting of two different cuisines in the world. Liquid cheese is just the beginning.
“It’s party food,” says Thomas Pash, Rockpool Dining Group CEO, and former Austin, Texas local. “The kind of food that’s shareable, high quality and always at the right price point.” It’s also the kind of food that goes really well with margaritas (either frozen or chilled), the obvious choice for any Tex-Mex fiesta.
Pash has overseen the recent launch of fast-casual Tex-Mex restaurant El Camino Cantina in Manly, complete with all the trappings: soft-shell tacos, burritos heavy with fillings, hot buffalo wings, chargrilled fajitas, frozen margaritas and over 100 different tequilas and mezcals.
But beyond El Camino Cantina and fast-food options like Mad Mex and Guzman y Gomez, Sydney’s Tex-Mex scene is relatively limited – compared to Austin, that is.
“In Austin, you’ll find great Tex-Mex restaurants on every corner,” he says. “It’s mandatory to get your weekly Tex-Mex-and-margarita fix. In Sydney, though, it took a while for people to really get it, because it’s not 'true' Mexican. It took a whille to take off, but now pubs are doing good margaritas, and we’re seeing more variations on the Tex-Mex theme. As a category in Sydney, it’s really coming up.”
Pash isn’t wrong: Tex-Mex has long-suffered a bit of an image problem. Since the term Tex-Mex was coined and popularised in 1972, by Mexican food authority Diana Kennedy, purists have been mildly suspicious of anything north of the border – in her acclaimed book Cuisines of Mexico, Kennedy posits Texas’ sour-cream-and-cheddar-cheese-laden answers to Mexican food are actually nothing of the sort. Robb Walsh, a Texan food writer, goes so far as to call Tex-Mex an American regional cuisine.
Nacho bowls are one of many riffs on Tex-Mex cuisine. Source: Donna Hay
But the definitive line in the sand drawn by Kennedy and her contemporaries has actually, in the long run, served to legitimise the cuisine in its own right, as distinct from both the meat-heavy, Texas rancher barbecue culture and the diverse array of regional specialties of Mexico. Plus, it can hardly be denied – certain Tex-Mex dishes (ahem, nachos) have reached peak ubiquity all around the world. Slights and denigrations aside, Tex-Mex has proven itself to be staggeringly influential, in no small part due to the prevalence of breakfast tacos.
In Austin, you’ll find great Tex-Mex restaurants on every corner,” he says. “It’s mandatory to get your weekly Tex-Mex-and-margarita fix. In Sydney, though, it took a while for people to really get it, because it’s not 'true' Mexican.
The origins of Tex-Mex cuisine are rooted in the storied history of Texas as a state, which is inextricably linked to that of Mexico. Prior to Texas seceding from Mexico in 1836, the two were both colonised by the Spanish and treated as a unified state until the Mexican War of Independence in 1821. The resulting culinary culture was something of a home-cooking melting pot: Native Americans, Spanish and Native Mexican (collectively known as Tejanos) all played a role, as did ingredients endemic to the area and brought over by the Spanish. The food was rustic, putting local chillies, pecans, beans, and stews at the forefront.
For Texan home cooks, joining the United States meant new and readily available ingredients at their fingertips, some of which remain points of distinction between Tex-Mex and Mexican cuisine today. Beef, cheddar cheese and wheat flour feature heavily in Tex-Mex dishes, but step over the border and they’re far less prevalent.
Ask for chilli con carne, Tex-Mex’s signature spicy stew made with tomatoes, beans and minced beef, in Mexico City, and the question might be met with raised eyebrows – despite your best attempt at Spanish. Dairy in Mexico was, for a long time, practically non-existent.
Similarly, if your taco shells are hard and not soft, it’s likely you're chowing down on Tex-Mex and not true Mexican. Nevertheless, these dishes are iconic and staggeringly influential. And, according to Pash, there’s a reason why they’re gaining traction in cities like Sydney.
In Mexico, "chilli con carne" just refers to chillies with rice, rather than a specific dish. (Alan Benson) Source: Alan Benson
“Tex-Mex is really garnering a cult following in this city,” he says. “Australian food culture is barbecue and protein-centric, so every grill-friendly Tex-Mex dish resonates well here. I think people are looking to bring spicier, more flavourful foods into their palates, so it makes sense that things like pico de gallo and Mexican salsas are finding a home.”
There’s hope for spying a Tex-Mex outlet on every corner in Sydney yet.
