Different Types of Food in the Southwest Region of the U.S.

Mexican

• Encounter any Californians on the East Coast and they'll no doubt grouse about how there's no real Mexican food anywhere but at home or in Mexico. California was ceded to the U.S. by Mexico in 1848 and became a state two years later, its character shaped by the mix of cross-country settlers and the Mexican families with deep roots in the territory. That flavor lives on today in family restaurants where you may find much of the menu in Spanish, a telenovela on the TV and Our Lady of Guadalupe behind the counter. A typical meal centers on flavorful meat such as carne asada (steak), carnitas (fried pork) or even quail in a taco of two corn tortillas, cilantro, onion and green or red hot sauce. The beans are refried and sprinkled with queso blanco; spicy chiles and sweet chocolate meet in a mole sauce drenched over meat; seafood is plentiful; and horchata is on tap. To find the best eateries on your California trip, pay attention to whether the restaurant draws a large Latino clientele.

Native American

• A powwow in the Southwest is a chance for tribal members to gather, dance and play traditional games. It's also an opportunity for visitors to stop by and sample authentic Native American cooking. It's the smell of fry bread that can turn a local draw into a stampede. The versatile, deep-fried bread is at its best piled high with savory beef or pinto beans, lettuce, tomato and cheese -- the makings of an Indian taco. Fry bread can also be the crust for a pizza or the base of a sweet honey or ice cream dessert. Corn plays a hearty role in Native foods as well, from tamales to pozole (hominy stew), and meats such as venison and bison are a traditional staple. The massive Navajo Nation covers 27,000 square miles from the eastern edge of Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona to Farmington, N.M., and jutting into the corner of Utah. Yet the influence of Native American cuisine is felt throughout the Southwest. in myriad tribes and cities outside the reservations, from food trucks to five-star restaurants in Phoenix. Tribes also have developed their own unique dishes, such as the Tohono O'odham Nation's white tepary bean stew slow-cooked with short ribs or oxtails.

New Mexican

• The New Mexican style of cooking can best be described as living off the Land of Enchantment and its regional chile varieties while incorporating influences of Mexican and Native American cuisine. If you don't want to choose between red and green chile in your enchiladas, tamales or burrito, the Albuquerque Convention and Visitors Bureau recommends ordering "Christmas" style to get a sampling of both. Wine going back to the vines planted by Spanish missionaries in the state in 1629 ranks as a favored accompaniment to a smorgasbord including chile con queso, green chile chili and empanadas. And if you've ever grabbed a breakfast burrito instead of an egg sandwich in the morning, know that New Mexico claims the morning Mexi-nosh as its own.

Tex-Mex

• Take the old-school flavors of northern Mexico, blend in the adjustments made to the cuisine by Texas settlers and you have something that makes Californians cringe and Lone Star State denizens' mouths water. Tex-Mex is a flavor unto its own, much like the big state of Texas. However, Tex-Mex has spawned Mexican chain restaurants that have spread tentacles far beyond the Southwest. Nachos dripping in cheese sauce, sizzling fajitas, chili con carne, ground beef filling in enchiladas or burritos and crunchy taco shells with cheddar cheese garnish are all examples of Tex-Mex. Black beans offered as a side dish or burrito filling are decidedly more Tex than Mex, as is a soft taco in a flour tortilla instead of corn. When traveling in Texas, you can find Tex-Mex establishments everywhere. When traveling anywhere else in the country, you can usually find Tex-Mex at colorful neon-lit chain establishments branded as Mexican.