Texas State Foods

Native Pecan STATUS Official YEAR DESIGNATED 1919 THE FOOD Pecans The pecan, Carya illinoinensis, is native to the southern U.S. It grows on tall trees in thin, smooth, medium-brown oval to oblong shells. Inside, the nuts are reddish-brown, deeply grooved, and break easily into two halves. Pecans have a sweet, nutty flavor that makes them a favorite in desserts, especially chocolates or in sweets with caramelized sugar such as pralines and pecan pie. Butter pecan ice cream is a favorite in pecan-growing country, and pecans are also common additions to cakes, pies, and cookies.   THE SIGNIFICANCE Fossil remains show that in prehistoric times, pecans probably grew in the area that is now Texas. The nut was an important food source for the nomadic Native Americans who collected pecans every year in autumn and preferred to camp in areas with many pecan trees. Today, Texas grows about $60 million worth of pecans annually, making the nut important to the local economy as well as the local table. Texas Red Grapefruit STATUS Official YEAR DESIGNATED 1993 THE FOOD Grapefruit Grapefruit is a relatively large, round citrus fruit. Red grapefruit has yellow skin, often blushed with pink, covering a layer of white pith. Inside are membrane-covered segments of fruit, which are a very bright, slightly yellowish pink. Red grapefruit are typically sweeter than white grapefruit, although they still have a strongly astringent flavor. Grapefruit is often cut in half and eaten fresh with a spoon, or juiced. Grapefruit segments are a common addition to fruit and savory salads. THE SIGNIFICANCE The Texas climate is ideal for all types of grapefruit, which was cultivated in the state starting in the late 1800s. Red grapefruit didn’t come about until about 1929, when an accidental mutation produced bright pink fruit. Named Ruby Red, it was the first patented grapefruit. Texas now grows mostly red grapefruit, including a number of patented types descended from the first. Jalapeño STATUS Official YEAR DESIGNATED 1995 THE FOOD Jalapeño Peppers Jalapeño peppers are about 3 inches (7.5 cm) long and have smooth, green skin that ripens to red. They are wider at the stem end, and taper to a blunt point. Jalapeños can be used red or green. They are widely used because they provide a modest amount of heat and flavor without overpowering a dish. Jalapeños are the standard pepper in many Mexican and Tex-Mex dishes. They can be used in sauces, soups, and stews. Pickled jalapeños top nachos, and jalapeño peppers stuffed with cheese and deep-fried are a popular appetizer. Jalapeño jelly is also popular, either as a topping for cream cheese and crackers or as a glaze for meats. THE SIGNIFICANCE Jalapeños are the Tex-Mex pepper of choice, a standard that adds flavor and heat but still produces dishes palatable to all but the most delicate palates. Texas grows more jalapeños each year than any other U.S. state. Jalapeños are also a central ingredient to some dishes named for the state, including Texas torpedoes, also known as jalapeño poppers: peppers stuffed with cheese and deep-fried; and Texas toothpicks, strips of onions and jalapeños battered and deep-fried together. Chiltepin STATUS Official YEAR DESIGNATED 1997 THE FOOD Chiltepin Peppers © University of Texas-Austin These tiny peppers grow wild, and are the only hot peppers native to the U.S. Chiltepin peppers are very small—often no bigger than a peppercorn—round, red when ripe, and grow on plants that average around 22 inches (56 cm) tall. In spite of their size, chiltepin peppers are extremely hot, among the hottest in the world, but are still a favorite for cooking. Chiltepin peppers can be served both dried and fresh and are commonly used in salsas and other sauces, stews, soups, and anywhere else a burst of heat and a hint of smoky sweetness is called for. Also called chile tepin or chiltepe, the name for this pepper comes from a Native American word meaning "flea," which may be a reference to their tiny size or to their potentially irritating heat. THE SIGNIFICANCE Chiltepin peppers grow wild in Texas. They are used in Tex-Mex cooking throughout the state, particularly in spicy sauces of all kinds. They’re a particular favorite of the Texas state bird, the mockingbird, which prefers chiltepin when they’re in season. Sweet Onion STATUS Official YEAR DESIGNATED 1997 THE FOOD Onion Sweet onions are bred to have a much lower sulfur content, as well as a higher water content, than regular onions. These factors allow the onion’s natural sugars to set the vegetable’s dominant flavors. Sweet onions are more likely than regular onions to be the main focus of a dish, though they are a favorite addition, raw and sliced, to sandwiches and burgers. They’re likely to be roasted or grilled and served as a side dish with meat. Aficionados insist that the best way to eat a sweet onion is fresh and raw, sometimes out of hand like an apple. THE SIGNIFICANCE Texas’s original crop of sweet onions grew in Cotulla, in the southern part of the state, in the late 1800s. It turned out that the soil and mild climate produced mild, sweet onions with a high sugar and water content. Production gradually increased, and today sweet onions are the state’s most important vegetable crop. Over the years, several types of sweet onion particularly suited to local growing conditions were developed in the state, most importantly the Grano 502, which is a parent of many modern sweet onion varieties. Tortilla Chips and Salsa STATUS Official YEAR DESIGNATED 2003 THE FOOD Tortilla Chips and Salsa Tortilla chips start out as corn tortillas made of masa harina, flour, and shortening kneaded together, rolled in rounds, and cooked on a hot griddle. The finished tortillas are then cut in triangles and deep-fried until crisp and golden but not brown. Salsa is usually tomato-based with onion, garlic, chili, and assorted spices, which are cooked or puréed together to make a spicy dip. Chips are dipped into the salsa and eaten with the fingers. Together, salsa and chips are a common snack and an almost required appetizer before a Mexican meal. THE SIGNIFICANCE Though the countrywide salsa and chips craze is a relatively recent phenomenon, this combination has been standard in Texas for generations and uses ingredients that have been part of the local diet for centuries. Austin, Houston, and smaller Texas cities host hot sauce festivals every year featuring locally made salsas and, of course, tortilla chips. Sopaipilla and Strudel STATUS Official YEAR DESIGNATED 2003–2005 THE FOOD Sopaipilla A sopaipilla is a crisp, puffy, deep-fried pastry, usually served dusted with powdered sugar and cinnamon or drizzled with honey. The dough is simple: just flour, baking powder, salt, shortening, and water. The ingredients are mixed until smooth, rolled, cut into squares, and deep-fried. Sopaipillas are a common dessert after a Mexican meal.  Strudel is more complicated to prepare. The soft dough is a combination of flour, oil or melted butter, eggs, a little sugar, salt, vinegar or lemon, and water. The dough has to be rolled out thin and gently stretched until it’s as thin as possible. It is then brushed with clarified butter, folded, and rolled around a filling, usually sweetened apples, before baking. The result is a sweet pastry commonly served for dessert or with coffee. THE SIGNIFICANCE The state’s two official sweets reflect two important branches of Texas heritage. Sopaipillas are simple sweets that were common across the southwest long before Texas was a state. Strudel, on the other hand, was brought to Texas from Germany. It’s an everyday favorite in the many Texas towns founded by Germans. Pan de Campo STATUS Official YEAR DESIGNATED 2005 THE FOOD Dutch Ovens Used to Make Camp Bread Pan de campo means "camp bread" in Spanish, and refers to bread baked in a Dutch oven over an open fire. Long ago, cowboys were limited in what they could carry around, and probably made breads out of just flour, salt, a little baking powder, lard, and water, combined to make a soft dough and then cooked in a covered pot over a fire. Modern campers often use oil or vegetable shortening in place of lard and substitute milk for water. More baking powder is also a typical update, making camp bread more like a modified baking powder biscuit.Pan de campo can be served with molasses or even jam for breakfast, or accompany a dinner dish of chili or stew. THE SIGNIFICANCE Texas takes its cowboy heritage seriously. Pan de campo sustained many a cowboy along the trail in the past, and today is popular with the state’s campers and hunters. It is often cooked in the state’s official cooking implement, the Dutch oven. The state hosts a few pan de campo cook-offs each year. -World Trade Press