An Acquired Taste

Have you ever looked all over to find food or condiments that taste' as good as moms’?Several  years ago, I either read or heard one of those so-called experts say, "it’s not that our mom was a great cook, we just acquired a taste for foods as she prepared them. He never tasted my mom’s cooking..


I can still remember visiting my mom in the morning and she would always insist on making breakfast for me. One thing was always constant and ready to go,tortilla dough and that ugly molcajete (grinding bowl pictured at the top) sitting on the table. As she stared the bacon,she quickly pulled out the ingredients to make fresh salsa to go with my eggs. The chili pequin,which she grew herself,was the main ingredient in her salsa. I’ve never been able to find chili pequin in the stores here locally but the other day my wife brought home a new salsa called “Chili Pepin Salsa” which almost replicates the taste of my mom’s salsa. My wife says,I can’t remember the day to put out the trash,much less remember the taste of my mom’s salsa.  But you just do.

It’s not unusual to hear the arguments for the best hamburgers; Jim Burgers or Dairy Treet or people’s favorite Mexican restaurant. If I had to pick a great breakfast taco, I would get the tortilla from Joe’s, the fixings from TNT, and the salsa from El Rodeo but that’s just me. It’s an acquired taste if mom is no longer around.

I think it's funny when I go to a IHOP or any place, for that matter, when I ask for a hot sauce, the waitress asks me if I want a picante sauce I say "yes"  and then she brings me out a Tabasco or Louisiana sauce. It serves as a good substitute, but if you live in south Texas, you should know the difference.

My wife thinks it's weird because I don't put catchup on my fries.  It's not that I don't like it but I've never had catchup in my younger days. I remember my step-dad saying that it was just tomato paste and sugar.  Now,I occasionally put Louisiana hot sauce on my fries.

A couple of weeks ago, as we were walking out of Ramsey’s when my wife noticed that Ramsey’s  had stuffed cabbage on their Tuesday afternoon menu, we looked at each other in unison and silently agreed we would come try it. We got there at 12:30 and it was almost too late because the last batch was in the oven. We decided to take a chance  and waited another 20 minutes before the waitress told us that were in luck. The rolled-up  cabbage, rice and meat meal was good but not like my moms. My mom cooked hers on top of the stove and used lemon juice instead of tomato sauce. There goes that “acquired taste” again.

My grandson and his girlfriend came in from Austin last weekend, and we all met at our place for a semi reunion. I found out that beer drinking can be complicated. Apparently, beer drinkers in Austin have to be sophisticated' enough  to know that in order to enjoy Guinness beer, it has to be poured into a 20 oz. tulip glass which allows the nitrogen bubbles  to flow from the bottom to the top and served at a temperature no higher than 45°. I bet after the third round, the serving details are not that important.