Lost in Mexico

In Part II of this three-part series, I venture out of the high-end chef bubble, and into some very real, and very heated debates about the cultural appropriation of Mexican food. Is Enrique Olvera right that food belongs to everyone, or is that just a free pass for powerful chefs to exploit the culinary traditions of minority groups? What responsibilities do foreign chefs like Rick Bayless have to the indigenous communities that they took their recipes from? And then there’s the really ...

Mexican food is complex, delicious, and ... divisive. In this three-part series, I dive into the raging debate about the cultural appropriation of Mexican food, asking Mexicans from across the spectrum—high-end chefs, traditional indigenous cooks, and anti-racism activists—what they think about outsiders profiting from their traditional dishes. This series challenged so many of my assumptions: about how racism plays out in a context very different to the U.S., about the Western obsession with...

Telenovelas are ridiculous, over-the-top, and absurdly entertaining. But if you're thinking that they are just frivolous fun—think again. Telenovelas have had an outsized influence on Mexico, from helping to bring down the world’s most notorious drug lord “El Chapo” to increasing the sales of birth control. But as Mexico changes, telenovelas are struggling to keep up with a new wave of daring television. I speak to Mexico’s first openly gay telenovela actor, Rebelde's Christian Chavez, one of...

When my husband and I quit our jobs and moved to Mexico City, we didn't expect to be locked down in a tiny apartment at the center of Mexico's COVID-19 outbreak. In this episode, I hit the streets of Mexico City to ask people why staying at home isn't an option. Instagram: @lostinmexico.podcast and @nita.rao0112 Facebook: @lostinmexico Website: www.lostinmexico.com