Finding some Mexican in Georgia

Norcross, Ga., a northwestern suburb of Atlanta, is home to Ole Mexican Foods.

Living in the South Florida communities of Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, my first introduction to Ole Mexican Foods was La Banderita corn tortillas.

If you're in the Southeastern United States, La Banderita is the most common white corn tortilla brand. The major grocery chains like Publix and Winn Dixie do not carry any other brand that is produced this close to Florida.

It may seem counter-intuitive, but the very Latino communities of South Florida depend on most of their Hispanic food items from New York City, New Jersey and Norcross, Ga. There are some items tailored to South American-based communities that get made in Miami or Opa-Locka, but nothing in the Mexican-style.

Ole Mexican Foods' Chorizo Fino Sausage is a standard Mexican-style chorizo. It is ground very fine, so it is easy to break up in the skillet. It doesn't taste as good as the premium Texas-based Mexican chorizos, but it's not a premium chorizo. Nevertheless, it is definitely suitable if you're living on the East Coast.

It does have some shrinkage, but not so much that you end up with nothing but grease. On a scale of one to five stars, I'd give it a respectable three.

I do wish these chorizo makers would dispense with the "natural spices" description on the ingredients list. I'm assuming it has no cayenne. But I compensate with the near unanimous overuse of paprika in East Coast chorizos by adding cayenne and finely chopped fresh poblano pepper. Now we're talking Mexican!

Here is an excerpt on the history of Ole Mexican Foods from their website:

The story of Veronica Moreno and OLÉ Mexican Foods reads like a tale of the American dream realized. Her drive and devotion to her quality products have propelled OLÉ to a level of success few could hope for. From a humble start, Veronica relied on her will to succeed and her devotion to providing authentic tortillas to an eager and growing market. Her family played a big part in that journey, and today they have critical roles in the company. She was supported by them when things were at their toughest. Once when the budget was especially tight, her ten-year-old made the sage comment, “Well, if we don’t get sick this will work.” And work it certainly has! Today, OLÉ Mexican foods is one of the largest tortilla manufacturers in America.