14, 1&42 Tucson, Arisona a MENUDO PARTY a Sense of Family

About 1,050 words J. del Castillo Jan- 14, 1&42 Tucson, Arisona A MENUDO PARTY A sense of family responsibility has taken hold of «*** Grijalva and he decided to give a party at his house. This year Mike had his first child baptised u d nmde his first compadre. Of course, he had several other co.*>adree, but in mking them he had stood the godfather of the children of his friends- This Christmas Mike was going to Invite his ft-iends, his relatives and his compadres and their families to his house for a menudo party soon after the Midnight Mass of MAsa do Qallo. In t h e p a s t his mother used to give the party, before he himself ha* a family. His .mother now is living with him# and he earns the family keep, Idenudo is good, wholesome and nourishing, his mother often said. To feed so many relatives and ft*ienda menudo would provide a delightful meal at x a la co^ratively less coat. Besides, who is the Mexican who does not relish menudo? When Mike's family wants to eat manudo, there's always the problem of buying the entire tripe of a beef. It weighs f£ea fifteen pounds or more. It comes already cleaned aDd dressed for cooking from thB slaughter house. In the old d*ys a Mexican family killed their own beef, that was at a special fiesta or celebration. So when a Mexican family wanta to eat the delicious mfirudo it was best to get all the relatives together and all the ft* lends. On the afternoon of the Twenty-Fourth, Mike brought home t i e tripe, the whole entrails of a beef, including ths intestines. They were white and oloaned. His pother and his wife washed th e 2 tripe over to be sure It is thoroughly clean* Mike's wife ha# heard that If you soaked It In saltw ater It would be cleaner* The mother agreed, although ehe explained the nenudo would taete better with full flavor of the tripe In It* Vhen they were satisfied the tripe was wail cleansed, they chopped It up in small pieces, piling it over in a large basin* Before they had their supper, they had already .started % boiling the tripe In a huge kettle or cAldroa* The tripe lias to boil at least four hours* Soaetime when It has been boiling long enough they pour In com (hominy) and flavor it with pepper/ and salt to taste* By midnight the menudo would be tender and tasty enough to eat* The hominy would them be so steeped in the Juice o f t t i tripe kkaixJtatx and the tripe cooked in the corn that both aake a complete and appetlalng meal* kike took hit wife and mother to the Midnight Mass* Els mother always takes her doonairlon, and the three of them took Consunlcn on this Important holiday* When the Mass was over, the air had become chilly* It was good to hurry home* On the way they wmamh w ent some of their friends and they/fexikanS home together. Aunts and uncles with the children and in-laws began coming, coming f r a c i the -ass. The exchanged felicitations* On vhe table were set glasses and wire and tequila or brandy* Miktt began filling the glasses up and distributing drinks around* Many prefej^lne, and more wine* Port, said one of Mike's uncles, la also good for the health* But what they entire party waa In terested uost aoout was the hot asnudo, which they could «s>U— me ally and brothy • 5 Mike's wife, assisted by her friends, dished the menudo In wide bowls. It was steaming hot. It is best to eat menudo while it is hot, when you could get the full goodness and flavor of it* Among the tripe bits, curled and tender, swam kkt bursting com kernels, swollen with the rich soup of the tripe. The soup glistened with globules of fat and substance boiled out of the tripe. One could hardly wait for it to cool before one sipped it* AhJ sighed Mike's uncle, there's nothing like menudo for a good meal of a chilly evening. Ypu can feel it warm inside you and feel its strength nourishing your body. It peps you up. But one of Mike's aunis stared at her bowl with an air that did not agree with kike's uncle. She had in her bowl mostly soup and drifts of corn. She wanted to tell Mike's uncle that no wonder he appreciated his bowl of menudo so muoh--he had a bowlful of the tripe itself, but she remembered her manners and kept her peace. However, it would break no etiquette to accept a second bowl and one could suggest that she could do with a lot of tripe. It always understood that everybody relish menudo, and one could eat all one can. When one eat menudo, one seasons it with crushed herb season* ing and ch ili. The herb seasoning may be enough for those who could not stand the stinging hotness of chill sauce. Mike shook chili suace in his bowl until it turned deep pink, ’'hen he ate it, his face flamed up very red, water starting in his eyes. One may season his menudo to his individual taate--and capacity for en durance. Bread was served with the menudo for anyone vho wanted it and not satslfled with eating the bready hominy in the soup. Coffee and dessert eoe came tfte n next. 4 TUliSQH 1 S kaMDiX) PAhTY movie To celebrate the world’s premiere of the “Arisona", filmed in Tucson, the town held a public menudo party after f i r s t the/kxx»i show* XscKsanxla For fifty cents, one could eat all he wanted of menudo* But on the night of the menudo party, m they served bowls of menudo to whoever came and wanted to eat* Tucson intends to hold menudo parties during the town's festivals and during the Rodeo day—menudo at night and barbecue at day time* The movie personalities and the excitement of the first so world premiere the town ever had/dazsled the midnight menudo party that it is hard to draw a balanced perspective of the actual menudo eating part of the party. It seemed that the public was too excited to appreciate the flavor and appetising values of the menudo* The menudo party was better reeding at the time the publicity releases were pjdkwfcwrfxxpKfetixsrix published* From corners of the nation requests were made for the menudo recipe..

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