A rundown of Lansing-area Mexican food

There are more than a score of Mexican restaurants, food trucks and shops around Lansing. But who has what you’re craving? Luckily for you, we’ve analyzed the menus of more than a dozen different places to give you a better idea of what you’ll find. Here’s a quick breakdown of each type of cuisine offered locally, followed by some places that serve them.

Tex-Mex

Tex-Mex, which originates from border states like Texas, New Mexico and Arizona, is characterized by its heavy use of shredded cheese as well as beans, meat, chili peppers and flour tortillas. Examples of Tex-Mex food include fajitas and nachos.

Northern Mexico

Northern Mexico is known for its strong ranching community. Beef and cheese are some of the main exports of this area, especially queso fresco. Popular dishes include roasted baby goat, machaca (a rehydrated dried beef) and burritos.

Northern Pacific coast

The northern Pacific coast, on the other hand, relies heavily on seafood in its dishes, including marlin, swordfish, tuna, black sea bass, shrimp and even octopus. Ceviche, which consists of raw fish or shrimp that’s “cooked” in lime juice, is popular in this area of Mexico.

Central Mexico

Central Mexico is known for its abundance of street food that hails from Mexico City. Popular dishes include tacos, chalupas and barbacoa (barbecued goat meat).

Southern Mexico

In southern Mexico, it isn’t unordinary to see folks cook with animals native to the area like armadillos and rabbits. Meanwhile, Oaxaca, a large city in southern Mexico, is known for its use of chocolate in savory dishes, such as mole negro sauce.