TRECHAS Chile Powder

TRECHAS is a company that produces a delicious chile powder that can be used on many types of food. The company was initially founded “thirty years ago, when TRECHAS began with the commercialization of fresh fruits like papayas and bananas. One of the owners was taking charge of gathering the fruit in the fields of Chiapas, Mexico, while the other was selling it at super markets in the United States.” The company then began to make a chile powder that could be eaten with these fruit as a supplemental flavor. The company proudly claims that “TRECHAS is a 100% Mexican food, since all our products are selected by the ingredients of the highest quality that only Mexico can offer. Every presentation gives you a Mexican flavor, offering products that undoubtedly give an incomparable touch to your meals, with a ripeness especially for you (trechas.com).” It is obvious to me that the Mexican community takes tremendous pride in producing and consuming TRECHAS chile powder.

Many people are involved in the production of TRECHAS chile powder. TRECHAS is a Mexican company that produces several varieties of seasonings and salsas. There most popular product is a tangy, spicy fruit seasoning powder consisting of chile peppers, salt and lime juice. The ingredients for this powder are grown and cultivated in Mexico.  The company takes pride in the “dedication that we give for having cultivated the fruits and chilis that we use.” They also show a great deal of “care in giving ingredients in our plants (trechas.com).” The chile powder must then be transported to supermarkets across Mexico and the United States.  TRECHAS chile powder is available in most supermarkets and is commonly used as a condiment on the tables of many Mexican restaurants (Wikipedia.org).

The TRECHAS chile powder gave me a sense of belonging to the guys I work with. I have always fought for acceptance into their way of life and culture, but had been unsuccessful. They are all great guys, but it was extremely difficult for me to relate to them because they do not share the same work schedule or outlook on life as me. This TRECHAS chile powder provided me a way to relate to their culture and community. TRECHAS chile powder has a great deal of meaning to other people as well, especially people of Spanish heritage living in Mexico and the United States. “In the current times, the name TRECHAS is associated with everything from toppings for fruit, marinades, and even margaritas. TRECHAS keeps on expanding with new recipes and products to touch the palate (trechas.com).”

*It should be noted that the TRECHAS website is written in Spanish, so I was unable to read it as my Spanish is relatively bad. However, the information from the website was translated into English with the help of an online translation website because this information provided great insight. Some of my translation may still be slightly off.

References:

http://www.trechas.com/

http://translation2.paralink.com/Spanish-English-Translation/

http://www.wikipedia.org/

Sense of Belonging

While working at H-E-B, I have encountered numerous people with different backgrounds and culture.  I have noticed that each person has different tastes in foods and it is typically related to their upbringing. I have come to associate their culture with the types of food they eat. The food choices that we make on a daily basis are used as a means of belonging to a particular society, culture, or community.

I had the opportunity to experience this sense of belonging while working at H-E-B. A typical day at work for me includes stocking shelves and working through the stuff that the overnight guys were unable to put on the shelf the previous night. So, as time passed, I began to form a relationship with the guys that consistently worked overnight. I also noticed that a majority of them were of Mexican decent and were not exactly accustomed to the lifestyle that people on the north side of San Antonio are used to living. I was also not accustomed to the lifestyle in which they lived either. When they would come to work, they brought their heritage and choices in food along with them. When on the job, I tend to try to eat cheap, as I do not like to spend an excessive amount of money on food. One common food choice of mine is the fruit that the produce guys mark down. They will reduce the price on containers of fruit that are going to expire the next day in order to sell through the old stuff and make room for the new. So, I can generally get a $4.99 container of fruit for 99¢. This is a savings of 80% and I am all about saving money. One evening, I found some pineapple that our produce department had already marked down. I was getting hungry and was about to take a break, so I decided to purchase a container of pineapple. However, these containers are relatively large and I knew it was going to be too much for me to eat. So, I convinced my friend, who has worked overnight for about 4 years, to sit down and share some pineapple with me. He reluctantly agreed and I went to purchase the container of pineapple. Meanwhile, he went and picked out some chile powder that is used on many citrus fruits and vegetables as a complementary flavor. H-E-B carries a brand of chile powder for fruits and vegetables called Trechas. We smothered our pineapple in this chile powder and devoured the whole container in less than 15 minutes. I found this new “topping” to be absolutely delicious and I have continued to use is on my fruits ever since.

The Trechas chile powder gave me a sense of belonging to the “overnight” community. I have always fought for acceptance into their way of life and culture, but had been unsuccessful. They are all great guys, but it was extremely difficult for me to relate to them because they do not share the same work schedule or outlook on life as me. This Trechas chile powder provided me a way to relate to their culture and community.

Food Aversion

One dish that really disgusts me is liver. My opinion on liver may be slightly skewed from my childhood memories. I vividly remember my dad telling me stories about his grandmother and how she used to make him eat liver every time he would visit. She would serve liver and give him the ultimatum; if you do not eat your dinner then you will just have to go to bed hungry. She pretty much required him to eat his liver dinner. My dad, however, could not stand eating it though, so he would excuse himself from the table and go spit it out in the toilet. Eventually, the toilet got clogged up and his grandfather would have to unclog it. He would tell me dad’s grandmother to stop feeding him liver because he cannot stand it. My dad’s stories affected my opinion of liver.

I can honestly say that I have never actually tasted liver and do not plan on trying it anytime soon. I can only imagine what it would taste like. However, I do not think that it would actually taste that bad. It seems to me that it would be similar to many other cuts of meat. Plus, I love to eat sausage and the casing used to form the shape of the sausage link in typically made from either pig or sheep intestines, so I do have an appreciation for food that may be labeled as disgusting; just not liver!

The smell of liver while it is being cooked is absolutely horrendous though. The smell is simply indescribable and cannot be related to anything you have ever smelled before. We typically butcher our own cows for beef as it cheaper than buying it at the grocery store. When the butcher shop returns the meat to you, they normally ask about stuff that people do not typically want, like the brain, tongue, and liver. My mom is not a very wasteful person so she generally accepts these cuts of meat. Then in the winter, when it gets really cold, she will barbeque this meat and give it to my dogs so they have a warm meal to eat. My dogs will generally eat anything and are always grateful for the meal, but I cannot stand the smell.

Liver just looks like any other piece of raw meat and does not initially produce a horrific odor. Once you begin cooking it though, you realize that it is no ordinary cut of meat. Liver seems to dry out really quick as it is cooked. I am not exactly sure why liver dries out quicker the other cuts of meat like steaks. Perhaps it is the thickness of the meat because liver does tend to be significantly thinner. Some other senses that could have been incorporated with my disgust for liver are sound and touch. I have never associated any sounds with the cooking of liver, nor have I ever touched as piece of liver because I do find it disgusting.

“Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies”

Diamond claims that countries with wealth and power have historically dominated other inferior countries over the course of time. Diamond points out European countries and their ability to thrive agriculturally, technologically, and financially has allowed them to accumulate great riches. Europeans were also able to domesticate crops and animals at an early stage in their countries development, essentially sustaining their ability to accumulate wealth. This allowed them to replace the hunter-gatherer way of life with a more agricultural lifestyle. Many plants and animals are typically associated with this transition between the nomadic and agricultural lifestyle. Some plants which would typically improve the quality of life include: barley and wheat. These grains are an excellent source of fiber and nutrients. They can easily be sown by hand and require little attention from farmers. Grains can also be stored for extended periods of time. Many animals also contributed to the economic success of the Europeans. Sheep where domesticated for their wool, which was in turn, used to make clothing. Cattle and goats normally produce milk, which is high in protein and can be used to produce other dairy products like cheese. Chickens produced protein rich eggs, which also assisted people geographically. In comparison to other African nations of the time, zebras and loins are difficult animals to domesticate. Plants and animals were used to support people of geographically “lucky” regions. Some animals were used for transportation purposes between countries. Horses, donkeys, and camels were typically used for transportation amongst countries. The interaction between people of different countries led to a flow of goods and information. Many European countries greatly benefited from the exchange of ideas, which led to the development of various technologies. These countries accumulated great riches from the flow of goods. For example, a European country could easily trade a chicken to an African nation in exchange for a diamond. Or perhaps they could trade a camel to a Middle Eastern country in exchange for gold. We also see the trade of goods with Southeastern Asian countries in exchange for spices, which could be used in the homes to prepare food or sold in local marketplaces. The Europeans ability to trade with various countries is the main reason they were able to flourish financially in accumulating great riches, whereas some African nations remained historically poor. 

I agree with Jared Diamond in that geography is the main factor in which counties become rich and powerful through the development of technology; however, I only agree with him to a certain extent. I believe that you do need a suitable geographic location to initially become rich and powerful. If you are doomed to fail from the start, then there is no way you will succeed. Once your country becomes rich and powerful, it becomes the duty of the citizens to continue to develop new technologies and learn to adapt to their surroundings. They must continue to flourish and prosper in order to accumulate such riches and power.

References:
Jared Diamond, “Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies”