Why are turnips and cucumbers served on the side with tacos?

Question

Whenever I go to the local taco stands in my area and order tacos, there are always cucumbers and turnips served on the side. Why?

Answer 1

Hi Esperanza,

According to Wikipedia:

"As an accompaniment to tacos, many taco stands will serve whole or sliced red radishes, lime slices, salt, pickled or grilled chilis (hot peppers), and occasionally cucumber slices, or grilled cambray onions." No mention of turnips (nabos) but I suppose there are many variations.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taco

Hope this helps!

Andrew

Answer 2

...because they're tasty? Probably because they clear and refresh the palate.

They are tasty. :) - athegr8, Nov 9, 2010

Answer 3

Tacos are a basic food, like hamburguers. You get a tortilla shell, stuffed with whatever.

What else anyone chooses to serve with them is up to the individual cook, restaurant, cantina, home - whomever is serving them.

I have had hamburgers served with salad, fried potatoes, plain, garnished with assorted fruit, smothered in mushroom sauce, with a side of blue cheese dip... Should I ask "why" every time? How should hamburgers be served anyway, since we're on the subject?

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I was once taken to a small but very popular little restaurant in Cananea, Sonora (Northern Mexico). It was about as plain and authentic as any food establishment can possibly be. Definitely no tourist trap, this place. This is where the Cananeans went just to have a quick lunch and grab a beer, maybe. The place had been there for years, and decades, and the relative that took me there told me: this is where I used to come eat when I was a child.

These tacos consisted of a plain, soft, corn tortilla- not fried- with a bit of pork or chicken stew, and rolled tightly to make a small cylinder, about the diameter of a quarter (US$ 0.25), if that much. No lettuce, no cabbage, no cheese, no guacamole, no sour cream, no radishes, no turnips, no fries, no nothing! Just the tortilla and the stew stuffing. Wonderful!!

There is a awesome burger at a joint in Atlanta called the Vortex. The burger is 1/2 lb hamburger patty, 2 fried eggs, 8 slices of cheese, 6 slices of bacon, lettece, tamato and pickle... And the kicker, the bun is made of two grilled cheese sandwhiches. - kerflop, Nov 9, 2010

you forgot green chili - nizhoni1, Nov 9, 2010

Why is it served like that? ;) - Gekkosan, Nov 9, 2010

A smart person once said, Why ask :) But since you did... Cuz it is awesome! - kerflop, Nov 9, 2010

Answer 4

the place were i live serves them with salsa, i have never had a taco with radishes.

Answer 5

Around here they are served with shredded cabbage instead of lettuce, which is what I was used to.

Answer 6

I go to Puerto Peñasco, Mexico, all the time. Turnips & cucumbers are at most taco stands. Delicious.

Answer 7

Do you know what region the cuisine is from? I have had many tacos from different regions of Mexico and have never seen either of those served... Would be interesting to find out though...