WHY MEXICAN FOOD FEELS SO CLOSE TO INDIAN FOOD

                 
                                           

                                             

 

                                             

                               

Why Mexican Food Feels So Close to Indian Food

I have always liked Mexican food once I am away from India. It makes me feel comfortable. Although some Turkish vegetarian dishes like Baba Ganoush made with roasted aubergine remains my preference, Mexican food is the one that feels like home when home is far.

If you have ever sat down for tacos after growing up on rotis you will know the strange comfort that comes with Mexican food. For many Indians living  across the United States,  Mexican food is the first foreign cuisine that does not feel foreign. The reason is not a coincidence. The two culinary traditions share history, ingredients, technique and philosophy.

A Shared History of Spice

Both India and Mexico sit at the crossroads of ancient trade. Long before Europe understood chilli, Mexico was cultivating it. When the Spanish and Portuguese explorers reached the Americas in the sixteenth century,  they carried Mexican chillies, tomatoes, and corn to the rest of the world, including India. In return they brought back spices that had reached Europe from India such as black pepper, cinnamon, cloves and coriander. The Columbian Exchange essentially married the two pantries. That is why the spice shelf in a Mexican kitchen looks remarkably similar to that in an Indian kitchen. Cumin which we call Jeera, coriander or Dhania, cinnamon, cloves and dried red chillies form the base of both cuisines. Mexican mole and Indian curry are both complex sauces built by toasting and grinding many spices together.

The Logic of Heat and Balance

In both cultures spice is not meant to simply burn. It is meant to create layers of flavour. Indian cooking tempers spices in hot oil in a process called Tadka. Mexican cooking does something very similar by frying chillies, garlic and onion in oil to create a sofrito. Both then build depth with tomatoes and onions. Both understand that heat needs balance. In India , we use yoghurt, Raita or Chutney to cool the palate. In Mexico,  they use crema, guacamole, lime and fresh coriander which they call cilantro. The pairing of a hot main with a cool and acidic side is identical. Whenever I miss Indian heat, a plate of enchiladas with a spoon of cool crema gives me that same sense of balance that I find in a bowl of curd rice with pickle.

Corn and Its Place

Corn deserves special attention because it explains much of the kinship. In Mexico corn is sacred. In India corn or makka is a staple across Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat and the Himalayan regions. The uses are strikingly similar. Here is how corn appears in both worlds.

1. Flatbreads. Makki ki roti in Punjab is conceptually identical to a corn tortilla in Mexico. Both are unleavened breads made from corn dough, cooked on a hot griddle called a Tawa in India and a Comal in Mexico.

2. Roasted street corn. In India we call it Bhutta, roasted over coal and rubbed with lime, salt and chilli. In Mexico it is Elote, roasted and dressed with lime, salt, chilli, cheese and mayonnaise.

3. Corn with cheese. Makki with grated paneer or cheese in the hills mirrors Mexican esquites where corn kernels are sauteed with cheese and spices.

4. Corn dough snacks. Indian corn Pakoras and Mexican Tamales both use corn flour batter mixed with spices, herbs or fillings and then steamed or fried.

5. Corn as animal feed and ritual. In both agrarian cultures corn stalks are used for cattle and corn is offered in harvest festivals, such as Makar Sankranti in India and Dia de la Cosecha traditions in rural Mexico.

This shared reliance on corn gives both cuisines a similar texture and earthiness that wheat based European cuisines do not have.

The Pulse and Grain Combination

Nutritionists have long praised the combination of a grain plus a pulse. India perfected it with Roti and Daal, rice and Sambar, or Chawal and Rajma. Mexico perfected it with tortilla and refried beans, rice and black beans. Both pairings provide complete protein. Both are born from farming communities that needed affordable and sustaining food. Both are served with pickled onions, whether it is Sirka Pyaz in India or Encurtidos in Mexico.

Vegetarian Traditions and Family Style Eating

Both countries have deep vegetarian roots. While Mexico is known for meat, its pre colonial diet was largely vegetarian, based on corn, beans, squash and chillies. Indian vegetarianism is well known. Even when meat is used both cuisines use it as a flavouring rather than the centrepiece, cutting it small and stewing it slowly so that a little goes a long way. The Thaali and the Mexican Comida Corrida are both served as a spread of many small bowls meant for sharing. Eating is a family activity where tortillas or Rotis are used to scoop rather than forks and knives.

Slow Cooking and Earth Ovens

Technique also unites them. Both cultures use slow braising. Dum cooking in India where a pot is sealed with dough and cooked on low heat is much like barbacoa where meat is wrapped in agave leaves and cooked slowly in an underground pit. The Tandoor and the Mexican Horno are both clay ovens heated with wood. Both produce smoky breads and meats with charred edges.

The Freshness Factor

Finally both Mexican and Indian cuisines worship freshness. Coriander leaves, green chillies, lime, raw onion and tomato are added at the end in both. A curry is not finished without chopped coriander and a squeeze of lime. A Taco is not finished without cilantro, chopped white onion and lime. That bright lift at the end is the same instinct.

In essence Mexican and Indian food are like distant cousins who grew up on different continents but learned the same values from their grandparents. They respect spice, they honour the grain and the pulse, they celebrate corn, they balance heat with coolness and they cook for community. That is why an Indian who has just landed in  the US , can walk into a Taqueria  and instantly feel at home.

( Avtar Mota )

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