Mexican food in the UK

No matter how desperate, do not give into Discovery.

Hey, I like Discovery spicy refried beans....better than El Paso 

Maybe I had a bad can, a coincidental virus perhaps....sweating thinking about it...

Hey, I like Discovery spicy refried beans....better than El Paso 

I've not tried their refried beans, but I always choose Discovery over Old El Paso tortillas. Pretty much anything is better than Old El Paso.

I've not tried their refried beans, but I always choose Discovery over Old El Paso tortillas. Pretty much anything is better than Old El Paso.

Yup!!

Yay New Jersey!    I think I know just where you might be from.  I lived in Edison for a while, and if anyone were to take a stroll down Oak Tree Road, they'd find plenty of Indian restaurants, not to mention clothing and jewelery stores.

I live in the same congressional district & county as Edison so, yea. There isn't as high a concentration of Indian restaurants here but Edison's pretty close and I definitely grew up with plenty of Indian kids. I didn't discover Indian food until college but then again, I didn't eat Mexican food until college, either. I was a super picky eater who had to get a slice of pizza when the rest of the family got Chinese take out because I thought it was weird! Now I can't believe I was ever that fussy of an eater, I'll eat almost anything as long as it doesn't involve meat, eggs or olives.

My BF's town in Kent has a Mexican restaurant. It's not very good but they have one, so that's a start. I've definitely had worse Mexican food than there.

I LOVE wahaca. It's a Mexican restaurant that's has pretty authentic food. There's one at Canary Wharf, Covent Garden, White City, and Soho. They even serve horchata and cheladas!

http://www.wahaca.co.uk/flash/main.html

Side  note: In Dublin in Temple Bar area there was a Mexican place called The Alamo...it was proper Mexican for this side of the pond.
Fresh Guac and gorgeous fajitas but the salsa could use help but we were impressed.

I am British and love love love REAL mexican food, having been exposed to "the good stuff" in Los Angeles whilst dating my hubby, sad truth is most mexican restaurants here are sorry substitutes , but me and my hubby simply make our own.

You can source the majority of ingredients on line and make your own corn tortillas, or even buy them ready done, we get em in bulk and shove em in the freezer. we buy a few bags of ancho and chipotles, a few cans of tomatillas as staples as create many a favourite from those...so all is not lost  Whilst the prices may be a lil pricey in places when you consider just how many cheap meals you can make out of them ....it's a no-brainer....soft tacos, hard taco shells, tostadas, burritos, enchilladas, huevos rancheros , taquitos...mmm mmm mmm

I agree it's a cultural thing, but one , I think is starting to shift. Even our cooking shows are starting to demonstrate mexican and latino cuisine as an emerging trend ...Nigella made quesidillas, and an omellette with corn tacos. Market Kitchen made "fish tacos" the other week....I think the food landscape could shift over time.

In the meantime, like you say ....improvise.

Having grown up in NC and TX I LOVE Mexican food - that and Southern food are true comforts to me.  My husband likes it now too although he can't handle eating too many beans...

We have two Mexican restaurants in Maidstone, Tacos Locos and Mexxa Mexxa.  I've only been to Tacos Locos and wouldn't recommend it - they stopped serving refried beans (still on the menu though) and they use doritos (!) to make nachos. 

We can buy some of the ingredients needed but not all of them.  I buy dried black and pinto beans and make home-made refried beans which are tasty but time-consuming.  Flour tortillas are easy to get but I would kill for some home-made ones or (soft) corn tortillas!!  Also certain peppers, mole, etc.  I adore the dried refried beans made by Fantastic Foods and sometimes my mom sends them to me (you might be able to get them at Whole Foods but I haven't checked yet). 

P.S. In central North Carolina there are brilliant Mexican restaurants AND Indian restaurants!

Oh I hate the Doritos thing! They always serve those at "Mexican" restaurants. It's so disappointing.

I've been making my own Tex-Mex since moving over. I'm having a really hard time finding dried pinto beans to make my own FF refried beans. Anyone else find them? Where?

I've been making my own Tex-Mex since moving over. I'm having a really hard time finding dried pinto beans to make my own FF refried beans. Anyone else find them? Where?

I buy them at Morrisons - at my store, they're in the section by the gluten free stuff.  Morrisons is 'fabulous' about stocking the same thing (such as dried beans) in more than one section of the store, so if you don't find them in one place, keep looking - lol!

Before Morrisons carried them, I bought them at a health food grocery in city centre.

Failing the dried pinto beans, plain pinto beans in a tin (in water & salt) are pretty widely available, IME. 

I never 'fry' or 'refry' them - I just cook the beans whole & season them with bacon, chipotles, really whatever takes my fancy.  I like whole beans rather than the mashed up ones - but I cook them until they're good & squishy.

Thank you Mrs. R. I'll have to convince hubby that we need to go to Morrison's this weekend

Thank you Mrs. R. I'll have to convince hubby that we need to go to Morrison's this weekend.

I hope yours has them!  Seems like the stock carried varies from one location to another.  I've pretty much always been able to find tinned pinto beans at Morrisons, so they should have those if not the dried ones.

And if you don't manage to find dried pintos in a supermarket, try a health food grocery.