Does Mexican Food Have Peanuts?

Does Mexican Food Have Peanuts?

Mole sauce is the Mexican national dish.

This dish consists of garlic and onions combined with exotic herbs like cumin, chili, cloves, tomatoes, black pepper, sesame seeds, and groundnuts, stewed with either dry fruits or chocolate.

But there are many Mexican dishes apart from this, and you might wonder, does Mexican food have peanuts? From a general perspective.

No! In most Mexican dishes, you will not find peanuts. The exception here is mole sauce. However, there is still a need to practice caution as some restaurants use peanut oil for cooking. If you want to have your mole sauce without peanuts, you can prepare it from home, replacing peanuts with other nuts, seeds, or spices.

Mexican dishes and peanuts have their connection to culture. Have you ever wondered what people mean when they say, “You are what you eat?”

Well, this is all in the connection between food and culture of a particular place and the ethnicity of residents.

Laymen may dismiss the correlation between a country’s identity and the people’s culinary habits as being far-fetched.

However, with more research being dedicated to this correlation, more truth has been documented.

From a long, varied history, Mexican cuisine has much to say about the hard times that the country has undergone.

Are Nuts Used When Preparing Mexican Food?

From a general point of view, nuts are not often used when cooking Mexican foods.

Some dishes may get you confused, like peanut sauce which is meant to appear Mexican, but it is Asian.

There are other dishes that you need to be cautious of, like mole sauce, as they contain peanuts.

Others in your watch list should be; Mexican Pesto, Picadillo, Mazapan, Chile Rellenos, Champurroados, and many desserts.

These are generally made with nuts in them, and it’s best to avoid them when eating Mexican food.

Some of the dishes that will not have peanuts include; enchiladas, tacos, and quesadillas.

Since food trucks mom and pop shops tend to lean towards traditional foods that contain more nuts, it’s wise to be careful with them.

Where Did Peanuts Originate?

A native South American legume, the peanut Arachis hypogaea L., moved into the Zaña Valley in Northern Peru some 8500 years ago.

It was assumed to have come from the Andes Mountains. When it was discovered, the peanut was widely grown throughout subtropical and tropical areas of this hemisphere.

The Indians were found cultivating peanuts by early Portuguese and Spanish explorers in the West Indian Islands, in Mexico and on the coasts of Brazil, near the Rio de la Plata basin.

It was from these regions that peanut was disseminated to Europe and other parts of the world.

Are There Different Types Of Peanuts?

Yes. Ideally, there are legume peanuts and alkaline nuts. Nuts (the alkaline ones) are amazing foods in helping you transition to an alkaline lifestyle.

They can be used as snacks, a trail mix, and they can come in handy in alkaline desserts.

When it comes to the health benefits of alkaline peanuts, they are useful in blood sugar level regulation, decreasing hunger urges, controlling inflammation, and lastly, they help regulate your bodily functions, releasing anti-aging benefits.

There are large amounts of fiber to be found in alkaline peanuts. This is handy in ensuring that you get long-lasting energy.

They provide healthy fats which have an anti-inflammatory effect. They contain high quantities of Zinc and Vitamins E. These are great for the skin, nail health and hair.

Essentially, alkaline peanuts are anti-oxidants that help in the fight against free radicals.

If you eat poorly, exercise less, smoke, when you are exposed to chemicals and when you take alcohol. When you eat peanuts, omega 3 in them helps in fighting depression and anxiety.

Now let’s talk about peanuts. Although they bear the name, they are not nuts but legumes. These are to be avoided.

Peanuts are associated with aflatoxin-producing mold. Aflatoxin has been documented as a known carcinogen.

Additionally, consumption of this toxin causes stunted growth in children.

Peanuts create congestion in the liver, and as such, they potentially hinder its important functions like fat-burning and detoxification.

Why Are Peanuts Classified As Toxins?

Peanuts are susceptible to toxins since they are legumes. Unlike nuts, peanuts do not have a hard, protective shell. What these legumes have is a soft, permeable pod.

Additionally, they grow underground since they form part of the plant’s root system.

The underground growth makes them susceptible to molds as they are at the mercy of moisture and temperature.

This is because of their permeable pod. Again, after they are harvested, storage may also expose peanuts to molds.

Astonishingly, they can also get molds during shipping or in the grocery store.

Organic peanuts and peanut butter are also vulnerable to this since the nature of the peanut are what makes all its products susceptible to such toxins.

Unfortunately, manufacturers will take the pretty-looking peanuts that show mold to prepare your cocktail peanuts, while those with nasty mold are used for peanut butter.

Is Peanut Oil Used To Cook Mexican Food?

Yes and No. Whether Mexican foods are cooked with peanut oil or not depends on the cook.

Some restaurants will use peanut oil, which is the same as giving you peanuts anyway.

Additionally, some dishes must be cooked with peanut oil.

Although the person who prepares the food has much to do with the safety of the final recipe, I would rather recommend that you avoid foods cooked with peanut oil.

However, if you still want to enjoy your Mexican food cooked with peanut oil, remember that refined peanut oil has fewer proteins and may be referred to as safe for those who have a peanut allergy.

If you can’t handle food cooked with peanut oil, ask the chef before you eat a meal that you will regret later.

Again, remember that many restaurants are accommodative when it comes to food allergies. Most Mexican food doesn’t use much peanut oil as when preparing a mole sauce.

Enchiladas are the main dish at restaurants that use peanut oil or peanut butter in the sauce.

Can I Make A Mole Sauce Without Peanuts?

Yes. You can substitute peanuts in a mole sauce with other seeds and make it safe for all family members.

Regardless of whether you are on a keto diet, have food allergies or on a protein diet, your meal doesn’t have to be very different or even plain.

For instance, consider cooking a mole sauce where you substitute the peanuts. But you ask, how can I make a mole sauce if there are no peanuts? It’s not hard.

The purpose of the peanuts is to thicken the mole sauce. Additionally, it also balances the sweetness of the chocolate or any fruits used.

Although peanuts are not recommended for people on a keto diet, most people will always avoid them.

Indeed, when you try on keto, you will be able to resist peanuts either on the go or at home.

Switching to a keto is beneficial, but you don’t have to give up the yumminess altogether.

When substituting peanuts in your mole sauce, you will need to use pumpkin seeds and raisins.  

What Oil Is Used In Cooking Enchilada Sauce?

In normal circumstances, enchiladas don’t have peanuts. However, some restaurants and eateries do use peanut oil to make enchiladas.

They  may also use peanut oil to fry the tortillas before they roll them. On the other hand, other restaurants use peanut butter to thicken their enchilada sauce.

Therefore, we can deduce that peanut oil can make enchilada just the way peanut butter can.

As pointed earlier, some people argue that refined peanut oil has little to no protein.

Therefore, you might not be very vulnerable to get any allergic reaction, but the threat of aflatoxin is still real.

Additionally, with regard to an allergic reaction, it will solely depend on how badly your body reacts to particular allergens.

Therefore, it might be misleading to assume that you might not get an allergic reaction if you take your enchilada sauce made with either peanut oil or peanut butter.

Making enchiladas at home might be a fun experience, though.

Since you are the one with the ingredients, your family members allergic to some products will be safe as you substitute them with others.

Should People With Peanut Allergies Avoid All Ground Cumin?

Yes. If you have peanut allergies, avoid ground cumin, at least for now.

After several months of cumin recalls, the FDA has finally advised that people who have peanut allergies should not use cumin.

This was necessitated by the declaration that there are peanut ingredients and tree nut ingredients in the cumin.

Unfortunately, these ingredients were not declared in the cumin package and therefore exposed people to allergic reactions.

Although there were proactive efforts to recall all products, it’s never safe to use these products as long as the source of the peanut products remains largely controversial.

How Do You Avoid Peanut And Cumin Products?

There is no easy way in this. However, it’s essential to read labels and do better than that.

Since food labeling law in the US is neither elaborate nor binding, you might be confused.

For instance, consider the fact that cumin is not regarded as one of the serious food allergens. Consequently, cumin will not be declared in “plain language” in labeling.

Therefore, if you have any packaged food that is not a spice or spice mix, the ingredient label may not list cumin as an ingredient even if it’s there.

Indeed, some food labels declaring some spices in the list of the ingredient may not have all the spices declared in the food label.

Therefore, the label might be deceptive and give you a false sense of security.

All the same, understand that these manufacturing companies have broken no law.

They are within their legal requirements since food companies in the US are under no obligation to make a total declaration of all the ingredients.

Did you know that they also do not have to declare expiry dates by law? As disgusting as it might sound, your food packages do not have to show the expiry date as it’s not covered in law.

All they do is to give a best before date, which is also not obligatory. As a consequence, you will need to not only rely on the label but also to look at the appearance of the product.

Go beyond this and call the companies themselves to ascertain any peanut ingredient in your product.

Conclusion

Peanut is an allergic food that many people will want to avoid. Originating from Mexico, the dangers of eating peanuts have been well documented.

In addition to the obvious allergies, peanuts are associated with aflatoxin and other serious conditions. You need to avoid peanuts.

However, you might say that you are not allergic to peanuts, other serious health concerns like their carcinogenic tendencies.

Surely, you want to steer away from a product that will keep you at risk of developing cancer.

When you plan to eat Mexican foods, remember that they may have peanuts or peanut oil.

For instance, consider how the restaurants can influence the end product for some dishes and make them sound like real Mexican foods that contain no peanuts.

It’s best to raise the issue with the chef and let them know of your allergic tendencies to peanuts.

Once you identify a good restaurant that does not use peanut products on your Mexican foods, stick with them and continually remind them that you can never take peanuts.