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Taste of Texas and Southwest
What to Eat in Texas & the Southwest – Top 50 Foods
Texas and the Southwest eat big, smoky and spicy. Central Texas built a religion around post-oak-smoked brisket, the border gave the world Tex-Mex, and New Mexico and Arizona add roasted green chile, Native American fry bread and Sonoran street food. Here are the 50 dishes worth planning a trip around.
New Mexico & Arizona
Green Chile Stew – New Mexico’s comfort food – pork, potatoes and roasted Hatch green chile.
Carne Adovada – Pork braised in New Mexican red chile until meltingly tender.
Stacked Enchiladas – Flat, layered New Mexican enchiladas with red or green chile – or both, “Christmas” style – topped with a fried egg.
Posole – Hominy and pork stew with red or green chile, served at Christmas and celebrations.
Chile Rellenos – Roasted green chiles stuffed with cheese, battered and fried.
Calabacitas – Sautéed squash, corn and green chile, a classic New Mexican side.
Green Chile Cheeseburger – A burger loaded with roasted green chile – New Mexico’s roadside icon.
Navajo Tacos – Fry bread topped with beans, ground beef, lettuce, cheese and chile.
Fry Bread – Pillowy fried dough from Navajo and other Native American traditions, eaten plain, with honey or as a base.
Sonoran Hot Dog – Bacon-wrapped hot dog in a soft bolillo roll with beans, onions, tomatoes and salsa (Tucson specialty).
Chimichanga – The deep-fried burrito, claimed by both Tucson and Phoenix.
Sonoran Carne Asada Burrito – Simple, huge flour-tortilla burrito packed with grilled beef and salsa.
Texas Barbecue
Texas Brisket – Beef brisket rubbed with salt and black pepper and smoked low and slow over post oak for 12+ hours, sliced to order by the pound.
Beef Ribs – Massive dino-sized plate ribs with a peppery bark – the showstopper at Central Texas joints.
Pork Spare Ribs – Dry-rubbed and smoked until tender, served with white bread, pickles and onions.
Texas Smoked Sausage – Coarse-ground beef or beef-and-pork links, often with jalapeño and cheese, a legacy of Czech and German butchers.
Smoked Turkey – Moist, peppery smoked turkey breast – a Texas barbecue staple alongside brisket.
Barbacoa – South Texas Sunday tradition of slow-steamed beef cheek, sold by the pound with tortillas, onion and cilantro.
Cabrito – Young goat roasted over mesquite coals, a specialty of the Rio Grande Valley and Monterrey border.
Tex-Mex Classics
Queso – Warm, melted cheese dip with green chiles, eaten with tortilla chips.
Carne Guisada – Tender beef stewed in a rich, peppery gravy and wrapped in flour tortillas.
Fajitas – Grilled skirt steak or chicken with peppers and onions, served sizzling with flour tortillas.
Chili con Carne – The official state dish – chunks of beef in a deep red chile sauce, traditionally without beans.
Breakfast Tacos – Flour tortillas filled with eggs, bacon, chorizo, potatoes or barbacoa – Austin and San Antonio’s morning ritual.
Tex-Mex Enchiladas – Corn tortillas rolled around cheese or beef, smothered in chili gravy and melted cheese.
Tamales – Corn masa filled with pork, beef or beans, steamed in husks – a holiday tradition across the state.
Flautas – Tightly rolled tortillas filled with chicken or beef and fried crisp.
Migas – Scrambled eggs with crispy tortilla strips, onion, chile and cheese – a Texas breakfast favorite.
Huevos Rancheros – Fried eggs on corn tortillas with ranchero sauce and refried beans.
Puffy Tacos – San Antonio’s signature taco – masa fried until it puffs up crisp and airy, then stuffed with picadillo.
Pork Carnitas – Pork shoulder slow-cooked in its own fat until it pulls apart, then crisped at the edges.
Menudo – Spicy red-chile tripe and hominy soup, the classic weekend cure.
Texas Comfort Food
Chicken-Fried Steak – Tenderized beef steak, breaded and fried, smothered in cream gravy – Texas’s unofficial state dish.
King Ranch Chicken – Layered casserole of chicken, corn tortillas, peppers and cheese in a creamy chile sauce – a South Texas potluck staple.
Kolaches – Soft, sweet Czech pastries filled with fruit or cream cheese – and their savory cousin, the sausage klobasnek.
Sides & Starters
Chips and Salsa – The free basket that starts every Tex-Mex meal.
Guacamole – Freshly mashed avocado with lime, onion, cilantro and chile.
Pico de Gallo – Fresh chopped tomato, onion, jalapeño and cilantro salsa.
Elote – Grilled corn on the cob slathered with mayo, cheese, chile and lime.
Refried Beans and Mexican Rice – The essential plate partners – creamy pinto beans and tomato-seasoned rice.
Desserts & Sweets
Pecan Pie – Rich, gooey pie made with Texas’s state nut.
Gelatina de Mosaico – Mosaic gelatin of colorful jello cubes set in creamy milk gelatin, a fixture at Mexican-American birthday parties and bakeries.
Sopapillas with Honey – Puffy fried dough pillows drizzled with honey – served with every New Mexican meal.
Tres Leches Cake – Sponge cake soaked in three kinds of milk and topped with whipped cream.
Churros – Ridged fried dough rolled in cinnamon sugar.
Flan – Silky caramel custard.
Buñuelos – Thin, crispy fried dough rounds dusted with cinnamon sugar, a Christmas treat.
Pralines – Creamy brown-sugar pecan candies sold in Tex-Mex restaurants and San Antonio shops.
Biscochitos – Anise-and-cinnamon shortbread cookies – New Mexico’s official state cookie.
Champurrado – Thick, warm Mexican hot chocolate made with masa, piloncillo and cinnamon, sipped with tamales and pan dulce at Christmas.
Tips: In Central Texas, go early – the best barbecue joints sell out by early afternoon. Order brisket by the pound, “fatty” or “lean.” In New Mexico, answer “red or green?” with “Christmas” to try both chiles. In Tucson, look for a Sonoran hot dog cart after dark.
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