Email Author Silvana Salcido Esparza

2002 Stories by Silvana Salcido Esparza

• Movie Buffet

  published December 26, 2002

  Growing up, I couldn't help forming a deep connection between delicious Mexican food and the movies. That's because every Sunday, the Salcido... More >>

• T-t-t-t-tamales!

  published December 19, 2002

  In my younger, more militant days, I remember being scandalized by a vintage Warner Bros. cartoon, "The Timid Toreador," which featured Porky Pig... More >>

• Rancho Cooks Among Us

  published December 12, 2002

  While I was traveling through Mexico on a bus, I spent countless hours looking out the window as we drove through villages, townships and cities.... More >>

• Door-to-Door

  published December 5, 2002

  I slipped on the steep cobblestone street as I tried to catch up with her. With the speed of a jack rabbit, her barefoot steps moved with short... More >>

• Día de las Gracias

  published November 28, 2002

  Yes, it's true. Once, a very, very long time ago, I got married to a good ol' boy from Kentucky. His mama spoke with a thick accent and his daddy... More >>

• Peter Piper Picks a Pepper

  published November 21, 2002

  I was watching television the other day. The usual commercials were playing, one after another. Then one hit me hard. A man was telling me about... More >>

• Pocho Villa

  published November 14, 2002

  After traveling through the villages, towns and cities of Mexico and eating everything in sight for almost a year, the first thing I wanted to eat... More >>

• Cheese Wiz

  published November 7, 2002

  Too cold and sleepy to care, I would watch as my grandmother gently pulled on the teats. Steam rose as the warm, creamy-colored milk hit the cold... More >>

• Soul Celebration

  published October 31, 2002

  On a night so cold I could feel my bones rattle, I followed the smell of burning wood to a distant hue of gold. The only sounds were my every... More >>

• Oaxacan Wonders

  published October 24, 2002

  More than 3,000 miles away, deep in southern Mexico, Elena asked me, "Do you know Juan?" I just smiled and shook my head. But she was right to... More >>

• Martha Does Mexico

  published October 17, 2002

  One minute you are on top of the world; the next you are not. Resigning from the New York Stock Exchange is not the answer (or maybe it is), but... More >>

• Worlds Apart

  published October 10, 2002

  Recently, a seemingly innocent question about Southwestern cuisine has made me think more closely about the differences between Southwestern and... More >>

• Discovering Honduras

  published October 3, 2002

  If I judged most of the Mexican and Latino eating establishments in the Phoenix area based on their outer appearance, I would hardly ever eat... More >>

• Mercado Magic

  published September 26, 2002

  I decide to go grocery shopping on a Sunday. And for a minute, I forget I am in Arizona. In the largest open-air marketplace in North America,... More >>

• Success Story

  published September 19, 2002

  As you enter the backdoor entrance of Durant's restaurant in Phoenix, you cannot help but notice the hardworking cooks trying to hide their sweat... More >>

• September Salute

  published September 12, 2002

  For chain Mexican restaurants, it's bigger than New Year's in terms of revenues. Their budgeting depends on it. Special events and promotions are... More >>

• Western Flair

  published September 5, 2002

  Infamous Van Buren Street is notorious for prostitutes, dilapidated hotels and a quick drug deal. Or at least I hear it is. But next Sunday,... More >>

• Black Market Bonanza

  published August 29, 2002

  The sky is partly cloudy, the sun teasing me with its warmth on this chilly Sunday afternoon. There is a melodic murmur of vendors selling their... More >>

• This Dog Won't Bite

  published August 22, 2002

  It was one of those beautiful Arizona nights. The sunset was doing its magical and colorful dance upon the Phoenix skyline, and the weather was... More >>

• Tamale Tale

  published August 15, 2002

  I'd been trying to write a cookbook. One day, just as I was on a roll, my fingers dancing on the keyboard, thoughts pouring from my head, I heard... More >>

• Tempe Treasure

  published August 8, 2002

  You think you know Mexican food? Think again. As diverse as its land and people, Mexico's food is an endless tapestry of variety. You could... More >>

• Simple Pleasures

  published August 1, 2002

  The challenge was on. Aged by wear and the daily illumination of the hot Oaxacan sun, the poor 2-by-6 board sat precariously over two upside-down... More >>

• Bohemian Rhapsody

  published January 24, 2002

  Hoping to make enough money to keep working on a book project, I reluctantly accepted a job in the redwood forests of California last summer,... More >>