Hecho en Encinal has received a grant from the Texas Council for the Humanities to collect, preserve, and demonstrate the food ways of Encinal in "The Cuisine of Encinal" project.
On April 12, two local cooks, Linda Mancha and Queta Valles, will demonstrate Lenten cooking for the general public at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Church Hall in Encinal at 7 p.m. Food expert Dr. Wesley Dean of Texas A&M University in College Station will then lead a discussion on the concept of forbidden and allowed foods, such as those eaten and avoided during Lent.
"In all, there will be four cooking demonstrations held throughout 2003," said project co-director Dr. Karen Henderson. "Our first will feature dishes traditionally associated with Lent in South Texas: nopalitos, capirotada, and salmon patties."
Each presentation will coincide with the seasonal readiness of the ingredients and the seasonal celebrations where they are usually consumed. In June, St. John's Day barbeque and aguas techniques will be presented and South Texas summer traditions discussed. In September it will be cactus pear jelly making and a discussion on nutritional indigenous foods. In November there will be a tamal-making workshop and discussion of South Texas Christmas foods.
"We are pleased with the community support for this project," said Henderson, pointing out that La India Packing Company, Ruiz Custom Meats, and Variety Meats are providing supplies for each demonstration.
Henderson said that they are particularly interested in talking with the cooks in Encinal and collecting their oral histories. "So many of the recipes for traditional dishes are not written down and the younger generation is not learning how to cook them. We feel that it is really important to document these traditions before they die out," she said.
"When we titled our project 'The Cuisine of Encinal,' people laughed because it sounded so high-brow, but the truth is that the food ways of most any community in South Texas represent an important contribution to the national cuisine and pay tribute to the culture of a vast number of Americans," said project co-director Dr. Jaclyn Jeffrey.
Along with each demonstration, Henderson and Jeffrey will conduct field research on how traditional foods are obtained, prepared, served, eaten, and stored. The end result will be a cookbook of recipes, photographs, stories, and traditions gleaned from the field research on local dishes.
For more information contact Henderson at 729-8583, Jeffrey at 326-2630, or Hecho en Encinal at 948-7228.