Taquito

History

The taquito or little taco was referred to in the 1917 Preliminary Glossary of New Mexico Spanish, with the word noted as a "Mexicanism" used in New Mexico. The modern definition of a taquito as a rolled-tortilla dish was given in 1929 in a book of stories of Mexican people in the United States aimed at a youth audience, where the dish was noted as a particularly popular offering of railroad station vendors. Taquitos were referred to, without definition, in a 1932 issue of the Los Angeles School Journal.

Two Southern Californian restaurants are often given credit for their roles in the early development of the taquito. Cielito Lindo was founded by Aurora Guerrero in 1934 and located on Olvera Street in Los Angeles. Guerrero's daughter used her taquito recipe in opening chain restaurants in Los Angeles, and soon competitors were selling similar dishes. In San Diego, what would become El Indio Mexican Restaurant began selling taquitos during World War II, when tortilla factory owner Ralph Pesqueira Sr. was asked by workers at the Consolidated Aircraft Company factory across the street for a portable lunch item. Pesqueria, who used a recipe developed by his Mexican grandmother, has claimed credit for introducing the word "taquito" for the dish.

Taquitos were among the early Mexican food items developed as a frozen food, with Van de Kamp's introducing a successful frozen taquito offering by 1976. The United States government has determined that taquitos must contain at least 15% meat.

Crispy fried taquitos that are sold in Mexico are often called tacos dorados ("golden tacos") or flautas. Typical toppings and sides include cabbage, crema (Mexican sour cream), guacamole, green chili or red chili salsa and crumbled Mexican cheese such as queso fresco. "Taquitos" in the Mexican border cities of Tijuana and Mexicali refer to small tacos sold in stands, rather than the rolled taco dish.

References

References

1. Barcia, Roque. (1883). "Primer diccionario general etimologico de la lengua espanola, Volume 5, Part 1". Establicimiento Tipográfico de Álvarez Hermanos.
2. (9 June 2020). "Wrap It Up - A Guide to Mexican Street Tacos – Part 2: Nighttime Tacos". Mexico Connect.
3. Arellano, Gustavo. (2012). "Taco USA: How Mexican Food Conquered America". Simon and Schuster.
4. Robert Norris McLean & Mabel Little Crawford. (1929). "Jumping beans: stories and studies about Mexicans in the United States for junior boys and girls". Friendship Press.
5. (August 1, 1983). "Arroz is Arroz is Arroz".
6. Lee, Cecelia Hae-Jin. (2011). "Quick & Easy Mexican Cooking: More Than 80 Everyday Recipes".
7. Kercheville, F. M.. (September 1917). "A Preliminary Glossary of New Mexico Spanish". Bulletin of the University of New Mexico, Whole No. 88, Language Series.
8. (1932). "Title missing". Los Angeles School Journal.
9. Arellano, Gustavo. (2012). "Taco USA: How Mexican Food Conquered America". [[Charles Scribner's Sons.
10. "Diners, Drive-ins and Dives".
11. Bedford, Ed. (March 1, 2007). "Lunch with the Gods". San Diego Reader.
12. (2010). "The Unofficial Guide to California with Kids".
13. [https://books.google.com/books?id=wFPVAAAAMAAJ&q=taquito Quick Frozen Foods.] Volume 38. 1976.
14. [https://archive.org/details/uniformlawsregul1301butc Uniform laws and regulations: in the areas of legal metrology and motor fuel quality as adopted by the 80th National Conference on Weights and Measures, 1995.] Joan A. Koenig, National Conference on Weights and Measures, United States. National Bureau of Standards, National Institute of Standards and Technology, U.S. Dept. of Commerce. 1996. p.182.
15. (7 June 2020). "Wrap It Up - A Guide to Mexican Street Tacos – Part 1". Mexico Connect.
16. Ridgely, Roberta. (1975). "The Tijuana, Mexicali, Ensenada Guide". J. P. Tarcher.