Chicano Eats: Recipes from My Mexican-American Kitchen

by Esteban Castillo

The creator of the popular Chicano Eats blog and winner of the Saveur Best New Voice People’s Choice Award takes us on a delicious tour through the diverse flavors and foods of Chicano cuisine—Mexican food with an immigrant sensibility that weaves seamlessly between Mexican and American genres and cultures.

Esteban Castillo grew up in Santa Ana, California, where more than three-quarters of the population is Latino. Because Mexican food was the foundation of his childhood, he was surprised to see recipes for dishes on popular food blogs that were anything but the traditional meals he grew up eating. He was inspired to create the blog, Chicano Eats, to showcase his love for design, cooking, and culture and provide a space for authentic Latino voices, recipes, and stories to be heard.

Building on his blog, Chicano Eats is a bicultural and bilingual cookbook that includes 85 traditional and fusion Mexican recipes as gorgeous to look at as they are sublime to eat. Chicano cuisine is Mexican food made by Chicanos (Mexican Americans) that has been shaped by the communities in the U.S. where they grew up. It is Mexican food that bisects borders and uses a group of traditional ingredients—chiles, beans, tortillas, corn, and tomatillos—and techniques while boldly incorporating many exciting new twists, local ingredients, and influences from other cultures and regions in the United States. Chicano Eats is packed with easy, flavorful recipes such as:

Poutine de Carnitas
Mac and Queso Fundido
Fried Nopal (Cactus) Fritters
Pistachio Horchata
Chorizo-Spiced Zucchini Tacos
Masa Chicken and Dumplings
Chocoflan Cake



Accompanied by more than 100 bright, modern photographs, Chicano Eats is a melting pot of delicious and nostalgic recipes, a literal blending of cultures through food that offer a taste of home for Latinos and introduces familiar flavors and ingredients in a completely different and original way for Americans of all ethnic heritages.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction, Food and Drink

208 pages, Hardcover

Published June 30, 2020

About the author

Hola!

I’m Esteban and I currently live in Southern California. I received a Bachelors Degree in Public Relations with a Minor in Graphic Design from Humboldt State University, and I currently work in PR/Digital Marketing during the day.

I decided to start Chicano Eats because I’m proud of my roots, and I’d like to invite you to experience un pedacito de mi cultura and traditions through food.

As a Chicano (or Mexican-American) I have the privilege of being part of two completely different cultures, and I hope you get to enjoy recetas I grew up with and stories from my experience as a queer Chicano.

Reviews

[Carrie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun layout and picture spread. It looks likea few interesting takes on some classic dishes. The churros and salsas look promising.

[Carissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful stories, fantastic recipes, and a view of a different part of Mexico. Not all Mexican food is the same, and this cookbook brings us a view of food from Colima. Certainly worth both a read and to cook through if you like exploring the different foods that make up Mexico.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love West Coast food and this books brings all the feels and tastes of Southern California. I would recommend this book to anyone to learn Mexican American food.

[Stephanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A small collection of Mexican-American recipes that are not Tex-Mex. The recipes mainly include variations on tacos, sauces, guacamole, pozole, a few entrees, a limited number of sides, desserts and drinks. If you don’t have access to local restaurants that offer similar fare, then by all means use this cookbook.

[Migdalia Jimenez · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bright and inviting, this book is full of family recipes and childhood recollections of Mexico. Castillo's love of cooking really shone through.

[Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've used a few recipes and they all improved how I was making things before. Escabeche (pickled veggies), pozole, birria (I made with pork and used as filling for tamales). Plan on trying more soon.

[Connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Mexican food so much that I married someone with an Abuela. (for you gringos, that means Grandma) I love learning more recipes so my kids get a taste of their culture. This cookbook does not disappoint! I found so many recipes that I can't wait to try and I NEED to order some beans from Rancho Gordo.

[virginia]

Don’t want to rate without having cooked any of the recipes, but I loved reading the book! The conversational tone was a nice balance of teaching and reminiscing, and I am desperate to visit Castillo’s Colima now! Plus, the images were gorgeous, especially of the desserts. Looking forward to trying some dishes!

[Kristin Graham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent cookbook that feels accessible to someone who doesn’t cook Mexican food besides the odd quesadilla or burrito. My mouth watered reading the fresh recipes and cannot wait to try a few. There is something for everyone in this book and I love that he added some vegetarian recipes. I will be giving some of these a try.

[Erendira · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ah, it was OK. I liked some of the recipes that I will consider trying. I don't care much for the Chicano label anymore, as I did in my radical years in college, but I did appreciate the photographs here that revealed the ingredients of some of the recipes. I think the descriptions were sufficient.

[Nicole Humphrey · Rating 4 out of 5]

So far I've made the rices (multiple times...), the champurrado cake (delicious!!!!), the Hibiscus BBQ Sauce (great) and the Tequila Chicken Skewers (great too). Everything has been good so far. And the book is beautiful.

[Pat]

Such a fun and beautifully illustrated read of all of Esteban's delicious meals and treats. It was nice to read the stories of his family and the connections to the food. Looking forward to trying many of his dishes.

[Pilar Hernández · Rating 5 out of 5]

With all the building blocks for Mexican-American cuisine, this book is a fantastic addition to my kitchen.
Special mention to the photography and styling of the dishes: playful, modern, and respectful. Very attractive to look at it.
I really like the section about cheeses and how to use them.

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't yet made anything, so I'm wary of rating it, but there are pictures of pretty much everything and plenty of recipes to try--most of which I will try, and the stories are cute if not a little repetitive. Will update when I've made at least 3 recipes.

[QQJJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful photographs and lovely stories about SoCal Mexican food culture. I've tried a couple of recipes that were good, but it hasn't jumped into the go-to-cookbook echelon. Will continue to try out more recipes.

[Dray · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book more than his book on desserts. Both are good but Chicano eats is just a much wider palate of flavors. He has personalized great standard dishes but is still not the bland Mexican restaurant Americanized meals. Good stuff, recommended.

[Leu · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very approachable with thoughtful explanations of ingredients and recipes that makes things very doable, along with a touch of nostalgia through the shared stories. Very excited to try out making some of my favorites for myself.

[Leticia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Esteban... standing ovation for your photography alone. You have captured my kitchen in this book. Absolutely beautiful and I hope to buy a copy of my own very soon.

[Cara Dobrev · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fun read with many recipes I have tagged to try. I have only tried two so far, but both were excellent and the directions perfectly sufficient to create the dish well.

[Brianna Sowinski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of recipes using guajillo peppers. I wanted to try out a lot of the recipes but tacos feel more like a summer grilling food for me. I need to check this one out again!

[Jennifer K · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful, fun, vibrant cookbook with delicious recipes!

[Lucy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I may need my own copy of this. Definitely need to try the chicken and dumpling soup and the horchata.

[Pam G · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read with some good ideas.

[Bianca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Y’all know I love anything with hibiscus and the recipes that include that here sound amazing

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Solid recipes, love the book design.

[Julie Capell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great cookbook! I have read through the whole thing and already tried several recipes, all were very tasty and easy. Definitely a cookbook I will return to frequently.

[Deanna Detchemendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well worth the purchase for the Carnitas (!!) and Birria alone, even with a no-lard veer from the recipes. Delicious, fun, accessible.

[Tiffiny · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tasty

I've been wanting to check this cookbook out for a while. I'm glad I finally had the chance. There are many recipes that I would like to try.

[Kate]

Made the pozole blanco (a lot of rendered fat?? Maybe I didn’t use the right cut of pork?) and bookmarked a few other recipes…I want to make the pozole verde when tomatillos are in season again.

[Ryan Juno · Rating 5 out of 5]

This would be such a fun book to cook through. So many dishes I would like to cook!