Traditional Mexican Holiday Food

By Jennifer Anima & Mariela Celin

“Temporada Navidena” is the Christmas holiday season for many Hispanics. Food, all around, is a big part of the Hispanic culture, but is mostly seen throughout the holiday season. Here are six of the most common foods in the Mexican culture that you may ‘taste’ this season:

Tamales are one of the most popular foods in Mexican culture with which you may already be familiar. Tamales are made of corn dough, spicy or sweet fillings, and corn husks. The dough is prepared, then spread over the corn husks. After being spread, they are filled with fillings like Rajas, Chile Rojo, or even raisins. They are, then, folded tightly and put into a big cooking pot for an hour and a half depending on how many until they are thoroughly cooked.

You may have seen Conchas at a Mexican bakery. They are colorful, round, and sweet loaves of bread. These Conchas are supposed to be made to look like shells with their cookie dough toppings in a variety of colors. Conchas come with different flavored toppings like vanilla or chocolate to go great with a cup of milk around the Christmas season or all year round!

Rosca de Reyes is a traditional bread dessert that is made in honor of the wise men who brought gifts to Jesus when he was born. This dessert is in the shape of a ring and has sweet flavors to decorate it on top like fruits, jellies, and candies. Inside, there is a plastic baby, Jesus, hidden, and whoever finds him in their slice will then have to make food on February 2nd in celebration of the “Presentation of the Lord.”

Champurrado is a drink similar to hot chocolate and is most commonly made in the winter, but can also be made year round. The drink consists of milk, chocolate, cinnamon, and Masa to thicken it out. This drink goes perfect with a Concha!

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Elote en Vaso is, literally, corn in a cup. It is a mixture of corn, mayonnaise, sour cream, grated cheese, and toppings of your choice like Tajin, lemon, nuts, and even Hot Cheetos. A very simple, but tasty food!

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Churros have been welcomed greatly by Americans and are another traditional food you may see this Christmas season. Churros are deep-fried flour that is piped out in a star-shaped tube. They, then, are coated in sugar and cinnamon. There are also options on having a Cajeta filling which is a mixture of caramel and milk.