Staying Fit
Alejandra Graf (top left), Ana Regalado, Omi Hopper, Kimberly Stephanie Chacón, and Vanessa Mota are sharing their recipes and culture with their followers on social media.
From left: Courtesy Alejandra Graf, Courtesy Ana Regaldo, Courtesy Omi Hopper, Courtesy Kimberly Stephanie Chacón and Courtesy Vanessa Mota
As they work, the cameras on their tripods are doing triple duty: Not only are these Latinas preserving their ancestors’ culinary traditions, albeit with their own personal touch, but their recipes are garnering them a growing following on social media and connecting thousands of Latinos in the United States to the flavors they miss from their homeland. In addition, they’re helping their followers replicate these recipes, teaching them how to cook the basic staples, such as white rice, to the most complex dishes.
Meet five successful Latin cuisine influencer
Ana Regalado: Chilaquiles Blancos
AARP
Salty Cocina
TikTok followers: 2.5 million
When her mother cooked for the whole family in Cruces, Zacatecas, in Mexico, Ana Regalado was always at her side, watching. A resident of Arizona for the past 40 years, Regalado has turned into an international ambassador for the food of her native Mexico, with more than 2.5 million followers on TikTok. This experience has shown her that foods around the world have more similarities than differences. Her followers in India, Australia and China enjoy seeing how she employs ingredients that are also used in their native cuisines.
For years, Regalado was too busy working and raising her seven children to spend much time in the kitchen. But during the COVID-19 pandemic, after her children taught her how to use TikTok, she realized that many people wanted to learn to cook. Sure enough, her first video, in which she made salsa in a molcajete — the Mexican version of a mortar and pestle — went viral.
“I said, ‘OK then, I’m going to start making food to help those who are now looking for recipes to make at home,’ since restaurants were closed,” Regalado recalls. “I also thought, in case something happened to me, considering that so many people were dying of that disease, at least this way my children would have their favorite recipes there, so they could make them even if I’m not around, and they could see me.”
Regalado published her first cookbook, Nana’s Traditional Recipes by Salty Cocina, in 2021.
Among her goals is to write another book about her life story, to recount her family’s immigrant experiences in the United States.
Follow her on TikTok: @saltycocina
Chilaquiles Blancos
Courtesy of Ana Regalado, @SaltyCocina
You can prepare mouthwatering chilaquiles by using crispy corn tortillas in either red or green sauce. However, there’s another sauce variation that’s commonly used to create this delicious dish — chilaquiles blancos. Made with yellow peppers, this sauce offers a delightful and creamy explosion of flavor.
Serves 4
Ingredients
- 6-8 yellow peppers (Yellow peppers, also known as “chiles güeros,” come in varying sizes from small to large. Although they are typically mild in terms of spiciness, they can occasionally have a surprising kick.)
- 2-3 serrano peppers
- ¼ white onion
- 3 large garlic cloves
- ½ cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon Knorr chicken bouillon powder
- 1 cup water, chicken broth or vegetable broth
- 4 cups totopos (homemade fried tortilla chips)
- 1 cup Mexican sour cream, crema agria or heavy cream
- Shredded chicken (You can boil one chicken breast with onion, garlic and salt or opt for a faster option using shredded rotisserie chicken.)
- 2 eggs (The number can vary depending on how many people you’re cooking for.)
Topping suggestions: red or white onion, cilantro, avocado, queso fresco or cotija cheese
Instructions
1. To prepare the peppers, first wash them thoroughly. Then, trim the stems, cut the peppers in half, and remove the seeds and veins. In the case of the serrano peppers, cut them in half and remove the stems. You may remove the seeds for a milder flavor or leave them for more spice.
2. Heat the oil in a frying pan, then add peppers, onion, garlic and chicken bouillon powder. Fry them until they are well withered. Let them cool before blending.
3. Transfer all the ingredients to the blender, including the oil from the pan. Next, add one cup of water or chicken broth, and blend the mixture until it becomes smooth.
4. Transfer the resulting sauce to the pan, mix in the sour cream, and bring to a simmer for 2-3 minutes. Add in the totopos and mix until well coated with the sauce. Serve right away with shredded chicken or fried eggs, and garnish with your favorite toppings.
Alejandra Graf: Black Bean and Rice Vegan Burger
Courtesy ALEJANDRA GRAF
Ale Cooks
Instagram followers: 56,500
“What do people thank you for?” — a phrase from Danielle LaPorte’s book The Fire Starter Sessions — took on special meaning for Alejandra Graf 10 years ago.
At that time, the art expert from Monterrey, Mexico, had recently moved to Houston with her husband and three children, and she was spending a lot of time on the phone giving advice to other moms on how to make dietary adjustments for their children’s allergies.
Graf had been through a similar experience. Her son was born with a dairy allergy, and as a result, she had to make extensive changes to the way she cooked, as well as learn how to read food labels.
“That was 22 years ago, so no one knew anything. Being a vegan and not drinking milk wasn’t well accepted,” Graf says. “So 10 years later, my friends were asking me, ‘How did you do it? What changes did you make? How did you cook?’ Questions like that. Until one day my husband told me, ‘Enough already. You can’t be spending so much time on the phone. Post your recipes on a blog or something so they can reach more people.’ ”
That is how “Piloncillo y Vainilla” was born, a Spanish-language blog and social media page, followed by her English-language page “Ale Cooks,” where Graf shares vegan recipes, a practice she embraced at an early age.
Follow her on Instagram: @Piloncilloyvainilla
Black Bean and Rice Vegan Burger
Courtesy of Alejandra Graf, @Piloncilloyvainilla
Enjoy these vegan burgers — they’re meat-free but easy to make and packed with flavor!
Serves 6
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked black beans without the liquid
- 2 cups cooked rice (I prefer brown rice)
- ½ cup pumpkin seeds
- 1 tablespoon chipotle (optional)
- Salt to taste
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 350° F and line a baking tray with a silicone mat or parchment paper.
2. Put the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until well mixed. They should not be completely smooth, but they should be broken down.
3. Form the hamburgers and put them on a tray.
4. Bake them for 15-20 minutes or until firm. Be careful not to dry them out too much.
5. Serve them on a hamburger bun with avocado, leafy greens and tomato slices.
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