Tex Mex

Tex-Mex is a style of cuisine that has its origins in the border between Texas and Mexico (hence the name Tex-Mex). It is based on the types of foods immigrants from Mexico were able to make with products regularly available in the U.S. at the time. For example, in the interior of Mexico, tortillas are almost always made of corn (maize), but in Tex-Mex, tortillas are made of white (wheat) flour because that was what was available. Also available was a lot of beef (Texas is cattle country, after all) and so Tex-Mex tends to be pretty heavy on the meat. A lot of foods Americans consider to be "Mexican" (like burritos, chalupas, etc) are actually "Tex-Mex". Mexican food from the interior of Mexico (Mexico City, for example) is vastly different. So it's not people being "uppity"...they're just stating the facts when they say that Tex-Mex is not Mexican food as eaten by most Mexicans in Mexico. That said, it is also not entirely accurate to say that it is purely "American" food. Rather, it's a blend of cultures...Mexican and Texan (which itself is a blend of Western and Southern American cultures). At any rate, it doesn't matter what you call it! It's good eatin'!