Just How Healthy is Mexican Food?
Description:Did you know that if you aren't eating genuine Mexican cuisine you aren't eating any healthier than you would if you were eating at any regular American fast food chain?
Mexican food has clearly become one of the most popular cuisines to dominate the nation and you'll find Mexican restaurants popping up just abut everywhere you go in the US. Even most All-American restaurants such as IHOP and Applebee's are starting to include Mexican dishes in their menu. The question though is: are these meals even healthy? Does a taco filled with spices, meat, veggies, and cheese fare any better than the oil-littered burgers of regular fast food chains? The answers might be a bit surprising.
Is It Really Mexican?
This is the first thing you really have to cover. Are you really eating Mexican food? Did you know that the average dish you are buying off of fast food chains weren't even made south of the border? Most of these quick dishes were made in the US and were specifically created for the American appetite. Everything from tacos to burritos and quesadillas are mostly “American” Mexican food and not the traditional dishes you'd find in their home country. These dishes are super-sized, enlarged, and exaggerated meals to fill up the “bigger is better” tradition of America – and to simply put it, they aren't healthy at all. Consider this:
· Nachos Bell Grande from Taco Bell carries over 760 calories and roughly 39 grams of fat.
· A steak quesadilla from Baja Fresh has over 1,450 calories and 86 grams of fat.
· A beef burrito from Chipotle has 1,026 calories and a good 46 grams of fat.
See the pattern going here with these “American” Mexican restaurants and their dishes? But is this the same story when you cross the southern borders?
Looking at the Real Deal
Real Mexican food is not often offered in Americanized Mexican restaurants and mostly for good reason – they take time to make. Traditional Mexican food, whether pre-colonial or post-colonial dishes, are some of the most colorful and some of the most well-prepared meals you'll ever come across. They are richly made with fresh vegetables, beans that are just oozing with protein, spices such as chili, garlic, cinnamon, and cloves. All of these combine to make not only a spicy dish but a healthy dish that is warm to the stomach and relaxing to the mind.
Real Mexican food offered by traditional Mexican restaurants often reflect a lot of Spanish influence. This includes a bit of Moro influence as well since Spain was a Moro country before it was later empowered as a Christian nation.
Look Where You Stand
You can have a good, healthy time eating real Mexican food. There are a few traditional Mexican restaurants in the US that offer the same quality of home-cooked dishes but don't go around expecting the same thing from Taco Bell or IHOP. As a matter of fact even most tacos sold at the nearest convenience store is several times less healthy then the real thing – and they contain much more preservatives that a real corn-based Mexican taco. So if you want to stay healthy then take the time to research and find a traditional Mexican restaurant before you drive through town looking for the nearest fast food chain that offers “Mexican” food.