Cattle trade with US reopens as Sheinbaum weighs in on Rocha’s status in Sinaloa: Monday’s mañanera recapped

By

MND Staff

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August 24, 2026

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**Sheinbaum’s mañanera in 60 seconds**

🐄 Sonora-Arizona border reopens to cattle trade: Sonora Governor Alfonso Durazo joined the mañanera via video link from Agua Prieta, where the Douglas, Arizona, port of entry reopened to Mexican cattle on Monday, more than a year after the U.S. closed its border over New World screwworm concerns. Sheinbaum said the ban had shifted more Mexican beef to the domestic market but still hurt cattle sectors nationwide.
🏛️ Sheinbaum calls Rocha’s return “imprudent”: The president said she learned of Rubén Rocha Moya’s decision to return to the Sinaloa governorship via social media and didn’t think it was appropriate. She said his decision to leave again a day later was “the best thing for Sinaloa.” Rocha is accused of drug trafficking by U.S. prosecutors.
⚖️ Interim governor still to be named: Sheinbaum said the Sinaloa Congress must appoint an interim governor to serve until a new governor takes office in late 2027, following June’s gubernatorial election. She said the pick should be honest, professional and dedicated to Sinaloa’s people.
🗣️ Sheinbaum dismisses AMLO rumor: Asked if she’d discussed Rocha’s situation with former president López Obrador, Sheinbaum said she had not and called claims that he told Rocha to return to office “political fiction.”

**Why today’s mañanera matters**

Last Friday, Rubén Rocha Moya announced he had returned to his position as governor of Sinaloa more than three months after he went on leave following the unsealing of a U.S. indictment accusing him and nine other current and former Sinaloa-based officials of drug trafficking in league with the Sinaloa Cartel.

Rocha’s decision to return to the governorship of the northern state was described as “personal” by the federal Interior Ministry and opposed by lawmakers and state governors affiliated with the ruling Morena party, which Rocha also represents.

Why Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha Moya returned to office for only 48 hours

His return to the governorship didn’t last. On Saturday, Rocha asked to go on leave once again and that request was approved by the Sinaloa Congress on Sunday. His decision to leave the governorship — for a second time — came after President Claudia Sheinbaum wrote on social media that “no personal interest can ever be above the interests of the people and the nation.” She didn’t mention Rocha by name, but her message was clearly aimed at him.

The most significant aspect of today’s mañanera was that the president spoke in more detail about Rocha’s decision to return to the governorship of Sinaloa. Sheinbaum has endorsed the view of the Federal Attorney General’s Office that U.S. authorities have not provided evidence that warrants the extradition of the governor to face drug trafficking charges. While she has defended Rocha’s right to the presumption of innocence, she evidently doesn’t believe he should be at the helm of the Sinaloa government and thus serve as the foremost representative in that state of the “fourth transformation” (4T) political movement she leads.

Also of note at today’s mañanera was a live cross to Sonora, where Mexican cattle exports to the United States are resuming more than a year after the U.S. closed its border to Mexican livestock due to concerns over the spread of the New World screwworm in Mexico.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the Aug. 24 reopening of the Douglas, Arizona, port of entry to cattle trade last month.

Sonora-Arizona border reopens to cattle trade

Sonora Governor Alfonso Durazo joined the mañanera via video link from the northern border city of Agua Prieta, where the Douglas port of entry into Arizona reopened to Mexican cattle on Monday.

“We’re here at the quarantine station in Agua Prieta with the extraordinary news of the reopening of cattle exports to the United States,” Durazo said.

“We thank you and your team, president, … for all the steps you have taken to achieve this goal,” he said.

“We recognize and appreciate your commitment to agriculture in Sonora and those who make their living from it,” Durazo said.

The governor said that the cattle trade across the border between Agua Prieta and Douglas is resuming with an “enhanced health-screening capacity.”

Sheinbaum noted that the U.S. closed its border to Mexican livestock for an extended period due to screwworm concerns.

“There was an economic impact, although, believe it or not, meat production in Mexico increased,” she said.

“While [Mexican beef] wasn’t sold in the United States, it was sold in the domestic market. But the [ban on exports] obviously affected different cattle sectors across the whole country,” Sheinbaum said.

Sheinbaum: Rocha’s decision to return to the governorship of Sinaloa was ‘imprudent’

Sheinbaum told reporters that she found out about Rocha’s decision to return to the governorship of Sinaloa via his social media post on Friday.

“I didn’t have any prior knowledge that he wanted to return to his duties in the state of Sinaloa,” she said.

“The truth is that I didn’t think it was appropriate, to say the least,” Sheinbaum said.

The president said on Sunday that Rocha’s decision to once again leave the governorship was “the best thing for Sinaloa.”

On Monday morning, Sheinbaum noted that the Sinaloa Congress has to appoint an interim governor until a new governor takes office in late 2027 following the Sinaloa gubernatorial election in June of next year. Yeraldine Bonilla Valverde served as interim governor until Rocha’s surprise return last Friday.

Sheinbaum said that the interim governor should be a person who is honest, professional and dedicated to “the people of Sinaloa.”

Later in the press conference, she said that she didn’t agree with Rocha’s decision to return to the governorship of Sinaloa.

“At the very least, I thought it was imprudent,” Sheinbaum said.

“… Nothing personal can be above the interests of the people of Sinaloa and the people of Mexico,” she said.

“So I thought his decision was imprudent,” Sheinbaum said.

Sheinbaum rejects claims that AMLO told Rocha to resume his governorship

A reporter asked the president whether she had discussed Rocha’s situation with former president Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO), the founder of Morena and the 4T political movement.

“No, no, no, no, no,” Sheinbaum responded.

She went on to describe claims that AMLO told Rocha to return to the governorship of Sinaloa as “political fiction.”

“… Political fiction is the order of the day,” Sheinbaum said.

By Mexico News Daily chief staff writer Peter Davies (peter.davies@mexiconewsdaily.com)

When frequent family visits start to look like US residency: A legal primer

By

Richard T. Herman

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August 24, 2026

2

Mexican family walk in the US — Our legal expert explains how to keep family visits to the US from looking like an attempt to establish residency. (Lo Lindo/Unsplash)

For millions of Mexican families, a trip to the United States is not tourism in the ordinary sense. It may mean spending time with children in Texas, helping a daughter after a baby is born in California, attending a graduation in Arizona or staying with a son recovering from surgery in Chicago.

Those ties are unusually deep. Roughly 40 million people of Mexican origin now live in the United States, and U.S. immigration law expressly allows B-2 visitors to travel to see family and friends.

The shifting landscape of B-visas

Mexican family with their child — Visiting children and grandchildren in the U.S. is a form of temporary travel that requires a B-visa. But there are some potential issues to be aware of. (Melanie Rosillo Galvan/Unsplash)

One of the most difficult questions in visitor-visa law is also one of the most human: When does a family visit stop looking temporary and begin to look like residence?

That question is becoming more important for Mexican travelers. The State Department’s adjusted B-visa refusal rate for Mexican nationals rose to 21.36% in fiscal year 2025, up from 13.87% the previous year.

Since October 2025, the State Department has also generally required applicants under 14 and over 79 to appear for an in-person nonimmigrant-visa interview, subject to limited exceptions.

That latter change matters especially to families. A Mexican grandmother hoping to spend time with grandchildren in Houston may now face more scrutiny before the trip even begins.

There is no rule stating that someone admitted to the U.S. for six months has been invited to live in the country for six months every year. Nor does leaving for several weeks automatically reset the clock.

What constitutes a temporary visit?

A B-2 visa is for a temporary visit. Each admission is considered separately, and the fact that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) allowed a lengthy stay once does not promise the same result the next time.

Imagine a retired mother from Guadalajara who spends four months in Dallas after her daughter gives birth. She returns to Mexico for six weeks and then flies back for another four months because her daughter still needs help.

Her explanation may be entirely genuine. She may own her home in Guadalajara, receive her pension there and have no intention of immigrating. But the CBP officer sees another fact: For much of the year, she has spent more time in the United States than in Mexico.

The officer may reasonably ask where she actually lives.

Why legitimate travel may not always look legitimate

That does not make long visits unlawful. A parent caring for a seriously ill child may have a perfectly legitimate reason to stay for months. There is also no rule requiring visitors to spend twice as much time in Mexico as in the U.S.

What matters is the larger pattern: how frequently the person travels, how long the stays last, whether a genuine home and life remain in Mexico, and whether each trip is actually temporary.

This is where immigration law can collide with completely ordinary Mexican family life.

Plane flying overhead surrounded by clouds — Owning property or having bank accounts is not automatically prohibited, but visitors should avoid establishing patterns that suggest U.S. residency. (Philip Myrtorp/Unsplash)

There is nothing suspicious about a grandmother cooking meals, helping after a new baby arrives or spending time with grandchildren. Ordinary family assistance does not automatically turn a visitor into an unauthorized worker.

But if someone spends month after month in the U.S., returns briefly to Mexico and then comes back to resume the same arrangement, the larger issue may become whether the U.S. has effectively become a second residence.

Words can matter as well. A retired parent may casually say, “I live with my daughter in Houston half the year.” To the family, that may simply describe retirement. To an immigration officer, the words “I live in Houston” can raise the precise issue a visitor visa is designed to avoid.

Owning property in the U.S. is not automatically prohibited. Neither is having American children, grandchildren or bank accounts. But when those circumstances are combined with repeated lengthy stays, immigration officers may look more closely at where the traveler’s real life is based.

Visiting the US while obtaining a green card

Families sometimes make the opposite mistake when an immigrant petition has been filed. They assume that once a U.S. citizen child or spouse begins the green-card process, the Mexican beneficiary can no longer visit at all.

That is not automatically true.

The State Department’s own Foreign Affairs Manual recognizes that visitor visas may be issued even when an immigrant petition or immigrant-visa application is pending, provided the person can establish that the immediate trip is temporary.

Wanting to immigrate legally in the future does not necessarily mean someone intends to remain unlawfully today.

A Mexican mother waiting for an immigrant visa may still want to attend a granddaughter’s birthday in Chicago. A spouse waiting for consular processing may have a legitimate reason to temporarily visit a husband or wife. But the pending immigration case gives the government an obvious reason to examine whether this particular trip will really end with a return to Mexico.

Telling the truth about your travel history

The traveler should also assume that the government can see a history of prior entries and departures. Foreign visitors can themselves retrieve recent arrival and departure information through CBP’s I-94 system, so repeated lengthy stays are hardly invisible.

In appropriate circumstances, CBP can also search phones and other electronic devices during a border inspection. Most travelers will never experience such a search, but a phone or social media account describing a “move to Texas” can create obvious problems if the person tells an officer the trip is nothing more than a short family visit.

The answer is not to erase a phone or invent a better story. It is to tell the truth and make sure the truth supports temporary travel.

Couple visiting a grandchild — There is nothing wrong with families wanting to spend more time together, as this is a legitimate use of the B-2 visa. (Lo Lindo/Unsplash)

Most Mexican visitors who receive additional questioning are ultimately admitted. But when CBP concludes that someone is using a visitor visa to live in the U.S., the consequences can extend far beyond a missed vacation.

Depending on the facts, a visa may be canceled, a traveler may be allowed to withdraw the application for admission and return to Mexico, or a more serious immigration action may follow.

That is why someone who has already been warned about lengthy stays, refused admission or had a visa canceled should not simply try another airport or land crossing hoping for a different answer. The next inspection does not necessarily begin with a clean slate.

When family life collides with immigration policies

None of this means Mexican parents and grandparents should become afraid to visit their families.

Family visits are a legitimate use of a B-2 visa. The difficulty is that behavior that feels completely natural within a family can gradually collide with an immigration category built around temporary presence.

A daughter has a baby. A son becomes ill. Parents retire. Grandchildren grow up. The natural instinct is to spend more time together, particularly when Mexico and the U.S. are separated by little more than a flight or a drive.

But a visitor visa is not a residence permit, nor is it a substitute for the family-based immigration process.

With Mexico’s visitor-visa refusal rate rising and older applicants generally facing in-person interviews again, families should think about that distinction before an immigration officer asks them to explain it.

There is no magic number of days that guarantees a traveler will have no problem. The better question is much simpler: Is this genuinely a visit, and does the traveler still have a real life to return to in Mexico?

A tourist visa can connect Mexican families across the border for many years. Understanding where a visit ends and residence begins is one of the best ways to protect it.

Richard T. Herman is an award-winning U.S. immigration attorney and founder of Herman Legal Group. He has practiced immigration law for more than 30 years and is the co-author of “Immigrant, Inc.: Why Immigrant Entrepreneurs Are Driving the New Economy.” He writes about various immigration law topics, including tourist visas, student visas, work visas and immigration enforcement.

The lessons on living a good life you learn in Mexico

By

Charlotte Smith

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August 23, 2026

15

One of the first things you learn about Mexico is that it is not a homogenous country. Every place you go (such as Guanajuato, pictured here) is different. (Gerardo Martin Fernandez Vallejo/Unsplash)

Moving to another country is exciting, but it’s also a highly effective way of discovering just how little control you actually have over your life.

I’ve lived in Mexico for almost six years now, and I arrived with plans, expectations and a fairly clear idea of what I thought my new life would look like. Mexico, as it turns out, had other ideas.

House overlooking the ocean in Puerto Vallarta — If you only know Mexico from vacations, moving to a place like Puerto Vallarta provides an entirely different perspective. (Ty Downs/Unsplash)

That’s probably the first thing living here taught me. There’s a big difference between knowing about a country and actually living in it.

I knew Mexico from holidays. I knew about the beaches, the food, the history and the colorful streets. I knew enough basic Spanish phrases to get by, or at least I thought I did.

What I didn’t know was what it feels like when the water suddenly stops working. Or when something that should take an hour takes three days. Or when you’re told something will happen mañana and eventually realize that “tomorrow” can be more of a concept than a date.

Expectation vs. reality

I’ve learned to laugh about those things. Not because they’re never frustrating. They are. But because getting angry doesn’t make the water come back or the paperwork move any faster.

Mexico has taught me that sometimes you simply have to adjust your expectations and get on with your day. That lesson alone has probably saved me quite a few pesos on negating the need for blood pressure medication.

It’s also taught me that there isn’t one Mexico. The country I know from Puerto Vallarta is very different from the one I experienced in Guanajuato. Mexico City has a completely different rhythm again, while Guadalajara seems to be constantly negotiating the space between its traditions and its rapid growth.

Travel around Mexico long enough and you start to realize how ridiculous it is when people talk about the country as though it’s one big, homogeneous place.

It isn’t.

Even the Spanish changes. I arrived with some vocabulary and considerably more confidence than I deserved. But Mexican Spanish is full of slang, expressions and regional differences that can leave you wondering whether you’ve misunderstood the entire conversation.

I have. Repeatedly.

Learning from mistakes

Some mistakes have been mildly embarrassing. Others have been memorable for all the wrong reasons. But there’s something useful about being forced to become comfortable with not being good at something. You make a mistake. Someone laughs. You laugh, too. You try again. And eventually, you get better.

That applies to more than just language.

Mexico City zocalo — Moving to Mexico often means adapting not only to a new culture, but also to a new language. Mistakes will be made. (Luis Andrés Villalón Vega/Unsplash)

Living in another country means accepting that you’re going to get things wrong. You’ll misunderstand how something works. You’ll make an assumption that turns out to be completely incorrect. You’ll occasionally find yourself standing in the wrong line, wondering why no one else seems to be getting anywhere.

The trick is learning from it without deciding that the entire country is doing it wrong, and that’s harder than it sounds.

Mexico has also changed the way I think about money. One of the biggest misconceptions about living here is that everything is cheap. It isn’t.

Puerto Vallarta can be surprisingly expensive. Parts of Mexico City are eye-wateringly costly. Guadalajara has changed considerably as demand and investment have grown. Imported goods can cost far more than you’d expect, while local products are often considerably better value.

I’ve learned to keep some money aside for the unexpected because, eventually, something unexpected will happen.

That’s life anywhere. Mexico just has a particularly effective way of reminding you.

Finding value in small things

Then there’s food. I knew Mexican food was delicious before I moved here. I didn’t understand, though, just how much variety there was: tacos al pastor, birria, mole, pozole, tamales, seafood, fresh fruit, regional specialties and an almost endless variety of salsas.

Travel around the country and the food changes with the geography, history and culture. Some of the best meals I’ve eaten have come from places that would never make it onto a tourist list, so I’ve learned not to judge a restaurant by its facade. And when in doubt, order the tacos.

But perhaps the biggest change has been in what I consider a good day.

It doesn’t necessarily involve doing anything remarkable. It might be a long lunch with friends. A neighbor stopping for a chat. Someone remembering your name. Fresh tortillas. A walk with nowhere particular to go. A sunset that makes you stop for a minute.

Those things aren’t uniquely Mexican, of course. But living here has made me notice them more.

There’s a tendency when moving abroad to think the big things will determine whether you made the right decision: the house, the job, the finances, the location and the lifestyle.

Taco al pastor from Monterrey — What does living in Mexico teach you? When in doubt, order tacos. (Israel Albornoz/Unsplash)

They matter, but after almost six years, I think the smaller things have mattered more.

A complex place to call home

The people you meet. The routines you develop. The places that become familiar. The shopkeeper who knows what you usually buy. The restaurant where they recognize you before you’ve even sat down.

That’s how a foreign country slowly stops feeling foreign.

None of this means Mexico is perfect. It isn’t. There are things that frustrate me. Things I disagree with. Things I think could be done better. Living here for years has made me more aware of those things, not less. But that, too, has been part of the lesson.

You can love a country without pretending it has no problems. You can be grateful to live somewhere while still questioning how things work. And you can recognize that moving abroad doesn’t magically make life easier. It simply gives you a different set of problems, experiences and perspectives.

If I could go back and talk to the woman who first packed her bags for Mexico, I wouldn’t tell her everything was going to be wonderful. I’d tell her it was going to be complicated.

I’d tell her plans would change, that she’d get things wrong and that there would be days when she wondered what on earth she had done.

And then I’d tell her that was all OK.

Because six years later, I’ve realized that the goal was never to create a perfect life in Mexico. It was to create a life that felt like mine.

And somewhere along the way, this place I once had to learn how to navigate became home.

Charlotte Smith is a writer and journalist based in Mexico. Her work focuses on travel, politics and community. You can follow along with her travel stories at www.salsaandserendipity.com.

El Jalapeño: Puerto Vallarta crocodiles request civil restraint, propose designated zones for humans

By

El Jalapeno

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August 23, 2026

0

A coalition of local reptiles in Puerto Vallarta has called for a more measured approach to encounters between humans and crocodiles, proposing several recommendations to avoid further confrontation. (This image was generated using AI tools)

All stories in El Jalapeño are satire and not real news. Check out the original article here.

PUERTO VALLARTA, Jalisco — Representatives of the Puerto Vallarta crocodile population held a rare joint briefing Friday to address what they described as a growing wave of human encroachment, urging municipal leaders to enforce stricter zoning laws and reduce unprovoked expansion into ancestral estuaries.

Speaking on behalf of an estimated 350 local crocodiles, spokes-reptile El Gordo expressed deep concern over the recent spike in human encounters, calling the trend an unsustainable consequence of unregulated resort development and chaotic urban planning.

“We have lived in these wetlands for generations, navigating the seasonal rains with predictable, quiet discipline,” the spokesperson said through a state-certified environmental interpreter. “Yet every summer, hundreds of unvetted bipedal land-dwellers arrive, ignore clearly posted signs and walk directly into our dining rooms. We are simply asking for some basic boundaries.”

The statement comes following reports from Jalisco’s Ministry of Environment and Territorial Development (Semadet), which confirmed an uptick in interactions between humans and Crocodylus acutus. While state officials attributed the trend to seasonal rain patterns, the local crocodile coalition maintained that the primary driver remains human disregard for established ecological etiquette.

To de-escalate tensions, the reptile coalition submitted a list of formal policy recommendations to municipal authorities. Proposals include designated human-only enclosures, mandatory orientation seminars for beachgoers on estuary dynamics and a permanent ban on late-night selfie attempts near river deltas.

“We do not wish to disrupt the local economy,” El Gordo added. “However, if humans insist on roaming through protected mangroves at twilight, we must insist that they adhere to standard safety protocols. Respect goes both ways.”

In response, local authorities announced plans to install standardized warning flags and increase municipal patrols along high-traffic estuaries. Meanwhile, crocodile representatives confirmed they will continue monitoring coastal activity, expressing cautious optimism that both species can achieve peaceful coexistence through mutual spatial awareness and significantly fewer construction projects.

Check out our Jalapeño archive here.

Got an idea for a Jalapeño article? Email us with your suggestions!

The Jewish-Mexican food traditions hiding in plain sight

By

Lydia Carey

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August 23, 2026

10

Cabrito being cooked in Nuevo León — Cabrito, a specialty in Nuevo León, is one of many notable Jewish contributions to Mexico's food culture. (Nuevo León Travel)

My friend Jorge Fitz once told me a story about his childhood visits to the town where his grandfather grew up, Juliantla, just outside of Taxco, Mexico. He remembers many particular things about the way the town celebrated festivities and holidays, but one thing that stuck out in his memory was a special braided bread they made called pan de Juliantla.

As an adult, Jorge said he started making Jewish friends, and when he saw pan de Juliantla on their tables, he wondered how they knew about it.

Klein's in Mexico City — The Jewish community in Mexico City is estimated to be between 40,000 and 50,000, with many kosher choices when it comes to restaurant dining. (Klein’s)

“Jorge, that’s challah bread,” they would respond.

He later learned that Juliantla is believed to be the first Jewish settlement in the Americas, complete with a spiritual cleansing bath known as a mikveh that dates back to the 16th century.

As far as Jorge could tell, a majority of the townspeople didn’t realize where many of their customs and food came from. He and his parents definitely didn’t know about their Jewish ancestry until much later.

Hearing this story illuminated just how deeply rooted Jewish food is in Mexican culture, so much so that even when origins have been forgotten, they remain an integral part of community life.

Waves of migration and a culinary legacy

The first Jews to grace Mexican shores sailed in on the ships of Spanish conquistadors during the 1500s and 1600s. They were fleeing the Catholic Inquisition of the Iberian Peninsula, but found little solace in the New World as the Inquisition migrated across the ocean.

Many of these early Jews “converted” to Catholicism while continuing to practice their own religion in secret. In Spanish, they are called “conversos,” or the converted. In English, we often refer to them as Crypto Jews.

Mount Sinai Synagogue in Mexico City — Mount Sinai is one of several synagogues found in Mexico City. (Gobierno de Ciudad de México)

With these Sephardim came cinnamon, grapes, figs, dates, almonds, cherries, apricots, olives and olive oil, nutmeg, ginger, cardamom and mustard, as well as black pepper, thyme, basil, clove, fennel, oregano, cumin and other Mediterranean spices.

They also had a strong tradition of pickling what they brought to the New World. In northern Mexico, cabrito, slow-roasted baby goat, is a traditional dish among the Sephardic Jews of the Iberian Peninsula. Similarly, the region’s dessert bread known as pan de cemita and la capirotada, a kind of bread pudding, are also attributed to those early Iberian Jewish immigrants.

The second wave of Jewish immigrants to Mexico arrived at the end of the 1800s from the failing Ottoman Empire. Jews who were part of the diaspora from Spain and Portugal, now living in the countries of the Levant, came because of economic opportunities in Mexico. They arrived from what is today Lebanon, Syria and Turkey, and because they were not fleeing persecution, their culture, religion and food were much more visible.

Preserving culture in the neighborhood oven

A third wave of Jewish immigrants came to Mexico during and between the two world wars. Some had plans of continuing on to the United States but were turned away at Ellis Island because of the Immigration Act of 1924, which severely limited the numbers of Southern and European immigrants allowed into the country.

These immigrants brought the Ashkenazi dishes of Eastern European countries like Poland, Ukraine and Germany — hearty soups and stews made with root vegetables like borscht, matza ball soup, gefilte fish, schmaltz (rendered chicken fat), tzimmes, gribenes and braised meats like brisket.

Food is paramount for any immigrant community trying to preserve their identity. The Jewish community was no different.

Mendl's in Mexico City — Mendl in Mexico City’s Condesa neighborhood is one of the best Jewish delis in the city … and in the country. (Mendl)

When Syrian Jews moved into Colonia Roma at the beginning of the 20th century, they not only built one of the city’s oldest synagogues but also opened a community oven down the street where special traditional breads were baked and sold to worshipers coming from services. At the local market were kosher butchers, while elderly folks sat in neighborhood cafes sipping thick, Turkish-style coffee and eating the sweets of home.

Unlike some of the immigrant groups I have researched, the diverse Mexican-Jewish community not only preserved the traditional dishes of their culture, but also, over the generations, adapted and innovated with local ingredients and cooking methods, creating a distinct Judeo-Mexican cuisine.

The fusion kitchen and home recipes

“Sabor Judío,” published in 2024, is a recipe collection by two authors whose Jewish grandmothers passed down handwritten recipe books. They gathered together a comprehensive archive of recipes from kitchens across the Mexican-Jewish community. Among the book’s pages are traces of many cuisines — Mexican mestizo, Spanish, Sephardic-Iberian, Sephardic-Middle Eastern and Ashkenazi.

Yiddish blintzes with huitlacoche (Mexican corn smut considered a local delicacy), matza chilaquiles, a variation of shakshuka with poblano peppers and Mexican oregano, and brisket tacos with three-chile salsa are all included in the collection. Irma Appel’s stuffed poblano peppers with guacamole include a smattering of gribenes (often referred to as Jewish bacon), and Pati Jinich, of PBS’s “Pati’s Kitchen,” provided her recipe for jalapeño-mushroom matza ball soup.

Then there are traditional Mexican recipes that the Mexican-Jewish community has adopted as their own, cooking them for high holidays and other festivities. That includes nopal and tomato salad made in advance to eat cold during Shabbat, or ceviche with prepared horseradish on top, supposedly invented during a Passover Seder.

Not everything is kosher, but the community’s many identities are on full display.

Sabor Judío cookbook — Yes, there is a cookbook featuring recipes for Jewish Mexican cuisine. It’s called “Sabor Judío,” and was published in 2024. (Sabor Judío)

Scanning through the menus of Jewish restaurants in Mexico City, however, it’s hard to find the fusion dishes represented in “Sabor Judío.” For whatever reason, these dishes hold sway in family kitchens, but haven’t yet made it to commercial dining rooms.

Where to find Jewish food in Mexico City

Maybe the world isn’t ready for spicy gefilte fish?

That’s not to say that you can’t get glimpses of them — the salami chilaquiles at Klein’s in Polanco is a delicious example. You’ll also find chiles making guest appearances in the Israeli dishes at Merkava, and kosher cafe Guacho Grill has al pastor tacos made with fish and chicken, as opposed to the traditional pork.

So maybe fusion is yet to take off in restaurants, but at places like Klein’s or Niddo, which once described itself in an interview as Jewish-Mexican-Canadian, diners will at least find Jewish and Mexican dishes coexisting on the table.

Plenty of other expressions of Jewish food can be encountered throughout the city — Mendl, for instance, has incredible U.S.-style deli sandwiches and bagels with lox. And at Pat Patz, chef Mijeal Seidel has a labneh recipe that he adds dill to as a shout-out to his Eastern European side, along with tons of other dishes worth exploring.

You may have to make some fusion dishes at home, but a taste of Jewish-Mexican heritage is definitely available across Mexico City.

Lydia Carey is a freelance writer and translator based in Mexico City. She has published extensively both online and in print, sharing her insights about Mexico for over a decade. She lives a double life as a local tour guide and is the author of “Mexico City Streets: La Roma.” Follow her urban adventures on Instagram and see more of her work at mexicocitystreets.com.

How the Middle East has shaped Mexico for almost 2,000 years

By

Louisa Rogers

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August 23, 2026

3

Exterior of Templo de Santo Domingo de Guzmán in Oaxaca. (Sergio Mena Ferreira via Unsplash)

I’m sitting in the courtyard of Guanajuato’s Museo Iconográfico del Quijote, admiring the stone arches and columns, waiting for a chamber music concert to begin. I probably walk through at least one courtyard a day in Guanajuato because they’re everywhere in town – not just in museums, but in restaurants, universities, government buildings and parks. Even the classic Mexican colonial home has a courtyard with a fountain in the center, surrounded by rooms.

Mexican courtyards reflect the influence of the Moors, the North African Islamic group that ruled Spain for 800 years and whose ornate tilework, intricate geometric patterns and decorative calligraphy influenced the art and architecture of Spain. After the fall of the Moors in 1492, Spain continued to use Islamic patterns in its designs, creating a unique style that blended Islamic and Christian elements known as mudéjar, which later made its way to Mexico.

But it’s not just courtyards that bear the mark of the Moors. From architecture and folk medicine to crafts and textiles, here’s a quick roundup of the Islamic group’s lasting impact on Mexican culture.

Interior texture from the Morisco Kiosk in Santa María de la Ribera. — Interior texture from the Morisco Kiosk in Santa María de la Ribera, Mexico City. (Girl With Red Hat via Unsplash)

Alhambrismo

This is an architectural style in Spain and Latin America inspired by the decorative Islamic arts of the Alhambra, a palace and fortress complex in Granada, Spain, with Moorish elements such as horseshoe arches, intricate stucco and colorful tilework.

A well-known example of this is the Kiosk of Santa Maria la Ríbera, an ornate octagonal pavilion made of wrought iron with a glass cupola dome on the top, in Mexico City’s Alameda Park.

Churches

In many colonial Mexican churches, you can see echoes of the mudéjar architectural style, including azulejos, blue-glazed tiles that adorn domes, bell towers and facades; intricate geometric carved-wood ceilings resembling inverted ship hulls; and arches and doorways.

Oaxaca’s famous Templo de Santo Domingo de Guzmán, for example, displays these design elements in the intricate geometric arabesque patterns on the ceiling and the genealogical tree of the temple’s namesake saint.

Mexico’s early Syrian, Lebanese migrants had an impact often overlooked

Inward-facing living

I remember when my husband and I first saw the house we bought in Guanajuato. Although one of its assets was a close-up view of the dome atop one of the city’s signature churches, San Francisco, we could barely see it from the tiny window in one of the bedrooms.

Unlike in the U.S. and Canada, traditional Mexican houses face inward, revealing their Moorish and Andalusian roots, with walled enclosures and internal gathering spaces.

Urban layouts

While Spanish colonial urban planning in the Americas officially ordered a strict grid system, some historic Mexican towns like Guanajuato and Taxco have narrow, winding streets, reflecting the medieval and southern Andalusian urban layouts shaped by centuries of Moorish influence.

Tiles, pottery and ceramics

Moorish craftsmen influenced Iberian ceramic styles, including tin-glazed pottery, by integrating geometric patterns and calligraphic bands into their work. When the craft was established in Puebla during the colonial period, artisans carried over these traditional Iberian-Islamic design elements, including abstract script borders and traditional brushstroke motifs.

Puebla’s famous Talavera pottery also blends Indigenous styles with Spanish and Moorish glazed-tile traditions.

Man on bike passing Dia de Muertos art in Puebla. (Jesus Alejandro Moron Guadarrama via Unsplash)

Crafts and textiles

Mudéjar geometric inlaid woodworking and carpentry techniques influenced traditional lacquerware and furniture crafts in regions like Michoacán and Guerrero. Precise interlaced framing merged with Indigenous wood-carving and pre-Hispanic lacquering, creating colonial furniture like desks with repetitive geometric paneling and floral touches.

As for weaving, the traditional Mexican sarape displays complex linear, diamond and star-centered layouts that show cross-cultural parallels to Middle Eastern flat-weave blanket traditions.

Curanderismo (folk medicine)

Moorish and Islamic medical practices influenced curanderismo, the herbal medicine still widely practiced in Mexico. Ritual cleansing, petitionary prayers and talismanic magic elements arrived via Spanish traditions that had absorbed Moorish folk customs.

For example, the belief that the “mal de ojo,” or “evil eye,” can cause physical discomfort like fever, crying and restlessness was brought to the New World via Spanish and Moorish folk magic.

Middle Eastern influences beyond the Moors

Influential as the Moors were, they are not the only Middle Eastern influence in modern Mexico.

Following the fall of the Moors, many Sephardic Jews fled from the Middle East to colonial Mexico to escape the Inquisition. Later waves of Sephardic Jews arrived from the crumbling Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century. These communities established synagogues, cultural institutions and social networks, primarily in Mexico City.

While Mexico has seen periods of antisemitism throughout its history, modern Mexico hosts one of the largest and most vibrant Jewish communities in Latin America, mostly in Mexico City.

Meanwhile, the Lebanese diaspora in Mexico — currently standing at more than 500,000 descendants — has shaped the nation’s culture, cuisine and commerce since the late 19th century.

Before Náhuatl came Arabic: Spanish words of Arabic origin

In the 1890s, they left to escape political oppression, heavy taxes, religious conflict and military conscription. At the same time, Mexico’s then-president, Porfirio Díaz, encouraged foreign immigration and trade, offering a welcoming environment and growing business opportunities.

During the period between the 1890s and 1930s, more than 100,000 mostly Lebanese immigrants arrived from Arabic-speaking nations, settling predominantly in the Yucatán, but also in Veracruz, Puebla and Mexico City.

In the early 20th century, the Lebanese community contributed around 50% of the total immigrant input to Mexico’s economy, and it remains one of Mexico’s most successful immigrant groups.

I’ve known for years that words like ¡ojalá!, albañil, and azotea are Arabic in origin, but I had no idea about other enduring Middle Eastern influences. The next time I use the Talavera dish I bought in Puebla, I’ll appreciate its ancient Moorish history, going back almost 2,000 years.

Louisa Rogers and her husband Barry Evans divide their lives between Guanajuato and Eureka, on California’s North Coast. Louisa writes articles and essays about expat life, Mexico, travel, physical and psychological health, retirement and spirituality. Her recent articles are available on her website, authory.com/LouisaRogers.

MND Tutor | Gelman Collection

By

Drew Pittock

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August 22, 2026

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Welcome to MND Tutor! This interactive learning tool is designed to help you improve your Spanish by exploring real news articles from Mexico News Daily. Instead of just memorizing vocabulary lists or grammar rules, you’ll dive into authentic stories about Mexican culture, current events and daily news.

Mexico News Daily contributor María Meléndez argued this week that Mexico’s controversy over the Gelman Collection reflects a much larger problem: the country claims vast cultural heritage but severely underfunds its preservation, research and public access. Rather than expropriating the collection at enormous cost, Meléndez advocates tax incentives, conservation funding and partnerships with private collectors to make Mexico’s cultural heritage genuinely accessible and sustainable.

Discover more about the Gelman Collection and why Meléndez thinks expropriating it is a nuanced debate in our latest MND Tutor.

To learn more, read the full article here.

To get started, choose your level of Spanish:

🌵 Choose your level of Spanish

Let us know how you did!

Check out our complete MND Tutor archive here!

Mexico’s week in review: Fugitive swaps, a strawberry spat and a stronger peso

By

MND Staff

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August 22, 2026

2

Families play in the fountains of Mexico City's Monument to the Revolution on a warm day. (Camila Ayala Benabib / Cuartoscuro.com)

Mexico and the United States spent the week of Aug. 17 trading shows of security cooperation, from fugitive handovers to a new drone-technology pact, culminating Wednesday in a federal operation in Michoacán that saw nine alleged members of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel arrested and set off narco-blockades at more than 20 points across the state.

That cooperation ran alongside friction on other fronts. Mexico is contesting a proposed U.S. antidumping tariff on strawberry exports and objecting to Washington’s decision to deport some Mexicans to Central America rather than home, as trade uncertainty lingers more than a month after the U.S. declined to renew the USMCA free trade deal in its current form. Domestically, the fallout from the U.S. visa revocation of former president López Obrador’s son continued to shadow the government’s messaging on fuel-smuggling enforcement. Against that backdrop, the peso’s push below 17 to the dollar stood out as a rare point of good economic news, as the central bank held its interest rate steady on lingering inflation concerns.

The proposed U.S. tariffs could affect 5,000 Mexican strawberry producers. Mexico supplies 98% of the strawberries that the U.S. imports. (Unsplash)

The week also brought a new Mexico-made electric vehicle, a national debate over kids and social media, and a presidential sick day. Didn’t have time to catch this week’s top stories? Here’s what you missed.

Fugitive returns and a new drone pact mark security cooperation

Mexico and the United States kept up a steady drumbeat of security announcements this week. Ambassador Ronald Johnson said U.S. authorities returned three wanted fugitives to Mexico in a single day — one linked to the CJNG, one wanted for murder in Zacatecas and one for fraud — while separately handing over six more fugitives wanted for crimes including murder and firearms offenses. Jalisco police also captured Antoni Covarrubias, wanted for second-degree murder in California, in Puerto Vallarta, which Johnson called the ninth high-profile U.S.-targeted arrest in the state in recent weeks. At the same time, the U.S. and Mexico conducted a joint security exercise along the El Paso-Ciudad Juárez border, and the two countries signed a declaration of intent on drone technology that will let Mexico’s Defense Ministry access the U.S. Army’s marketplace for unmanned aircraft systems, though no models, quantities or purchases have been agreed.

Bilateral security cooperation nets more fugitives, including several priority US targets

Security Minister Omar García Harfuch drew public praise from DEA Administrator Terry Cole at the 40th International Drug Enforcement Conference in Buenos Aires, where García Harfuch said U.S. agencies are processing 155 arrest warrants tied to Mexican investigations and reported that Mexico’s Financial Intelligence Unit has frozen more than 8.6 billion pesos in assets. He also cited a more than 50% drop in daily homicides, from 86 to 42, over the past two years, a figure attributed to his ministry’s own count of arrests and seizures.

The Michoacán operation capped the week’s security news: Soldiers and National Guard troops arrested nine people, including two women identified as relatives of CJNG plaza boss Heraclio “Tío Lako” Guerrero Martínez, who evaded capture as the operation set off blockades that were largely cleared by Wednesday afternoon.

That flow of cooperation announcements ran alongside a separate dispute over fuel smuggling and politics. Sheinbaum said at Tuesday’s mañanera that fuel smuggling, or huachicol fiscal, is “practically over” in Mexico thanks to customs interventions and arrests — a claim she offered in the context of defending her government against opposition criticism. That criticism stems partly from the U.S. revocation of the visa of Andrés Manuel López Beltrán, son of former President López Obrador, which Sheinbaum has called a political matter, saying he “was not” ever on authorities’ radar for criminal involvement. The fuel-trafficking case itself advanced this week when Rear Admiral Fernando Farías Laguna, accused of leading a Pemex-linked smuggling ring, was extradited from Argentina and jailed at the Altiplano maximum security prison. The case has damaged the Navy’s reputation and drawn indirect allegations, which Sheinbaum has rejected, involving López Beltrán.

Strawberries, Vietnam imports and a Canada call test trade ties

Mexico is contesting a U.S. Commerce Department finding that could impose antidumping tariffs on Mexican strawberries, which supplies 98% of U.S. strawberry imports. Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard called the U.S. criteria “arbitrarily applied” and inconsistent with USMCA provisions; a final ITC ruling isn’t expected until early 2027, and the case could affect roughly 5,000 Mexican producers and 151,000 jobs if it proceeds. Sheinbaum has warned the case could set a precedent for challenging other Mexican agricultural exports.

Separately, Mexico’s imports from Vietnam more than doubled in the first half of 2026 to $18.4 billion, a jump that has raised suspicions — flagged in a recent White House report naming Mexico a “Tier 1” transshipment risk — that Chinese goods are being routed through Vietnam to dodge Mexico’s tariffs on non-free-trade-agreement countries. Mexico has denied being a transshipment hub for Chinese goods bound for the U.S.

Against that backdrop, President Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney discussed North American trade by phone on Thursday. Carney’s office said the two underscored the importance of renewing the USMCA pact soon, and separately thanked Mexico for deploying more than 400 firefighters to help combat wildfires in British Columbia. The call came as Trump-imposed tariffs on Canadian goods, delayed this week, loomed for Saturday absent a deal. (The U.S. tariffs on Canada ultimately went into effect after trade talks collapsed late Friday night.)

Peso strength collides with a cautious Banxico

The peso dropped below 17 to the U.S. dollar this week, dropping below 16.9 on Friday, largely on dollar weakness following a U.S. Treasury bond buyback announcement. The currency has appreciated nearly 6% in 2026, a gain Banxico credits with helping cool inflation.

Even so, the central bank held its benchmark rate at 6.5% earlier this month. In meeting minutes released this week, four of five board members cited persistent services inflation as a driver of that decision. Headline inflation slowed to 3.12% in July, but Banxico now doesn’t expect it to reach its 3% target until the fourth quarter of 2027. The bank also flagged Middle East tensions as an upside risk to oil prices. Separately, INEGI’s preliminary July data showed the economy growing 2.7% annually, which Rodríguez called “another piece of good news” following 2.1% growth in the second quarter.

Other business and finance news this week:

GreenLight will invest $100 million to build a plant near Mexico City producing the world’s first RNA-based biofungicide.
Business leaders say streamlined federal investment rules have already spurred $3.5 billion in new business.
Spanish company Cox will build a $310 million desalination plant in Rosarito, Baja California.
Sheinbaum says Mexico needs data centers for its own AI development but shouldn’t become a hub serving foreign demand.
Nearly 700 responses to MND’s personal finance survey reveal how foreigners living in Mexico manage money, including banking habits, investments and brushes with financial crime.

Mexico and My Money: What you told us about your personal finance habits and hang-ups

Mañanera themes: EVs, phone lines and a presidential sick day

On Monday, Sheinbaum said she opposes a social-media ban for minors like Australia’s, calling the idea “very problematic” and noting enforcement challenges, while Education Minister Mario Delgado announced a nationwide teacher consultation on classroom device rules ahead of the Aug. 31 school year.

At Thursday’s press conference, Sheinbaum unveiled a prototype of Olinia Carga, the government’s second domestically developed electric vehicle, a light-cargo EV that can carry 650 kilograms and will sell for around 150,000 pesos starting in late 2027. The same day brought a new arrest in the 2024 kidnapping case of Sinaloa Cartel figure “El Mayo” Zambada.

Sheinbaum unveiled Olinia Carga, a Mexico-made EV, at her Thursday press conference. (Presidencia)

On Friday, Interior Minister Rosa Icela Rodríguez, standing in for an ill Sheinbaum, told U.S. Ambassador Johnson that Mexico disagrees with Washington’s decision to deport some Mexicans to Guatemala, Honduras and Costa Rica rather than to Mexico.

Elsewhere, millions of Mexican cell phone lines were suspended after an Aug. 15 mandatory registration deadline passed, though regulators say most affected users can still recover service. Mexico also abstained from an OAS vote, which passed 29-1, to convene an emergency session on Nicaragua’s move to bar opposition candidates, with representative Alejandro Encinas citing Mexico’s non-intervention principle. Friday’s mañanera, run by Rodríguez after Sheinbaum announced she had the flu, also touched on new archaeological finds in a Chiapas cave tied to Zoque ritual traditions.

Regional news roundup:

A Sonora heat wave that has already caused 22 deaths is expected to intensify over the coming days, with highs reaching 47 C in parts of the state.
Aeroméxico plans a new direct Mexico City-Milan flight for spring 2027, pending government approval, which would make it the only airline connecting the capital to two Italian destinations.
A ranch once owned by convicted drug lord “La Barbie” will become a high school and health complex in Morelos.
Culiacán’s Independence Day “Grito” will return next month after two years of cancellations tied to violence between rival Sinaloa Cartel factions.

And some good news to close out the week:

Mexico’s women’s flag football team qualified for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics by beating Great Britain 20-19 for bronze at the World Championships in Düsseldorf.
Mexico City launched a drive to plant 1 million native trees in its most tree-scarce boroughs by 2030, starting with 100,000 saplings this year.
Mexico City declared pan dulce a piece of Intangible Cultural Heritage, with backers now pursuing UNESCO recognition for the sweet bread tradition.

Looking ahead

Several threads left open this week are likely to develop further: Security cooperation with the U.S. continues to strengthen, while trade friction between the two countries shows no sign of easing. On a practical note, cell phone users facing the next registration deadlines — Aug. 31 for numbers ending in “1” — should act before their lines are suspended.

Mexico News Daily

This story contains summaries of original Mexico News Daily articles. The summaries were generated by Claude, then revised and fact-checked by a Mexico News Daily staff editor.

From the archive: How to whistle like a true Mexican

By

Sarah DeVries

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August 22, 2026

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A man whistling — Learning how to whistle in Mexico takes time and patience, like any other art form. (Canva)

The goal of our “From the Archive” series is to revisit popular stories that capture the unique history and culture of life in Mexico. This Sarah DeVries article — originally published in January 2025 — is a perfect example, offering humorous insight into the fine art of whistling.

I have known no jealousy like the jealousy I feel when I hear Mexicans’ elaborate category of effortless whistles.

Okay fine, they’re not effortless. They just sound that way because they learned how to do it when they were kids. You know, like speaking Spanish.

Child puckering his lips to whistle — Most people in Mexico learn how to whistle from a very early age. (Canva)

Indeed, whistling is part of the language in some meaningful ways. There are specific whistles used for getting people’s attention. There are whistles for saying “Hey buddy, what’s up?” from across the street. There are whistles for saying, “But of course, my horse” — okay, maybe not exactly that, but a kind of “You know it!” with that adorable tone. There are whistles to say, “Wowza, nice butt, strange woman I don’t know!” Some whistles say, “Okay, back up your car now, a little more, a little more, a little more, stop!” There are even whistles to tell people where they can stuff it. Careful with those.

And I am going to learn them all.

A realistic goal

Well, I’m going to try. Forget turning my health or finances around; it’s too big a task. I need something I actually stand a chance at being able to bite off. Even though the prospect of practicing them takes me back to the deep humiliation I felt trying to string a four-word sentence together in Spanish while the three-year-old next to me rattled off deep, complex sentence after deep, complete sentence, I’m committed. I did it once, and I can do it again!

I won’t necessarily use them all, or use them frequently. In fact, I’m fairly certain that men whistle much more than women around here, anyway. Like cursing, it falls into a decidedly “male” category of behavior, and is seen as somewhat crass and unladylike.

I’ve also noticed that whistling is more prevalent among lower socio-economic classes than among the more well-to-do. Part of this is simply cultural habit, growing out of the need to communicate at great distances. It’s more pleasant sounding, and clearer, than shouting. If you’re willing to do some digging, there are actually some fascinating examples of whistles-as-language. There’s a cool short video about this below.

But I don’t need to be communicating over great distances in the Oaxaca countryside. I just want to have some fun.

Indigenous Whistle Language In Mexico

Watch this video on YouTube

And I don’t want to go too fast, but I’m also an eager learner. This video is pretty cute, by the way, as an introduction to the meanings of different whistles.

Here are the specific ones that I want to learn:

Learning how to whistle in Mexico (in different styles, for different purposes)

The whistle to get someone’s attention

Say you’re walking along a busy street and you need to get someone’s attention. Maybe it’s a vendor, or maybe a taxi that didn’t notice you! This whistle is perfect for it. It’s also important for me personally, because my voice does not carry at all. My loudest is not very loud, and the strain on my voice physically hurts! This can either be a quick low-high sound, or the more universally recognized high-low-slightly higher.

The ‘you can count on me, buddy’ whistle

I mostly want to learn this one because I think it’s both hilarious and adorable. My partner does this one sometimes, and even though it’s kind of a joke, I am 100% charmed.

‘Hey, friend on the other side of the street!’

Finally, I’ve just got to learn this whistle. It’s short and sweet, and I don’t care that I’ve hardly ever heard it from a woman’s lips.

So those are the three goals. Three distinct whistles — I can kind of do a “pucker” whistle now, but not very well — should be manageable in a year, right?

A woman whistling — Learning how to whistle in Mexico works wonders if you want to get someone’s attention. (Canva)

In the meantime, I’m dying to know: can you whistle? Can you do any specifically Mexican whistles? I especially want to know how many women out there can — please let me know in the comments!

Sarah DeVries is a writer and translator based in Xalapa, Veracruz. She can be reached through her website, sarahedevries.substack.com.