Tostilocos (also Dorilocos) are a popular Mexican

antojito Mexican street food, called ''antojitos'' (literally "little cravings"), is prepared by street vendors and at small traditional markets in Mexico. Street foods include tacos, tamales, gorditas, quesadillas, empalmes, tostadas, chalupa, elote, ...

(street food) that consists of

Tostitos Tostitos is a brand of Frito-Lay that produces different tortilla chips and a range of accompanying dips. Varieties There are many varieties of Tostitos chips: * Tostitos ''Gold'' (and bite size ''Gold'') - a thicker and larger version of t ...

tortilla chips A tortilla chip is a snack food made from corn tortillas, which are cut into triangles and then fried or baked (alternatively they may be discs pressed out of corn masa then fried or baked). Corn tortillas are made of nixtamalized corn, veget ...

topped with cueritos Cuerito is pig skin (pork rind) from Mexican cuisine, Venezuelan cuisine and Spanish cuisine. ''Cuero'' is the Spanish-language word for skin, leather or hide, so ''cueritos'' means "little skins". They are usually pickled in vinegar
(pickled pork rinds), cucumber,

jícama ''Pachyrhizus erosus'', commonly known as jícama ( or ; Spanish ''jícama'' ; from Nahuatl ''xīcamatl'', ) Mexican turnip, is the name of a native Mexican vine, although the name most commonly refers to the plant's edible tuberous root. Jíca ...

lime juice A lime (from French ''lime'', from Arabic ''līma'', from Persian ''līmū'', "lemon") is a citrus fruit, which is typically round, green in color, in diameter, and contains acidic juice vesicles. There are several species of citrus trees ...

, Valentina

hot sauce Hot sauce is a type of condiment, seasoning, or salsa made from chili peppers and other ingredients. Many commercial varieties of mass-produced hot sauce exist. History Humans have used chili peppers and other hot spices for thousands of ye ...

, chamoy, Tajín

chili powder Chili powder (also spelled chile, chilli, or, alternatively, powdered chili) is the dried, pulverized fruit of one or more varieties of chili pepper, sometimes with the addition of other spices (in which case it is also sometimes known as chili p ...

, salt, and " Japanese peanuts" (sometimes referred to as "cracker nuts"). The dish was first conceived in the late 1990s by street vendors in Mexico. In the 21st century, Tostilocos are now commonly sold by street vendors, stadium vendors, and at

Mexican juice bar A Frutería or Mexican juice bar (Literal translation: ''Fruit-shop'') is a juice bar that primarily serves Mexican desserts, beverages, antojitos and other popular Mexican snack foods. Mexican juice bars are popular establishments in many parts ...

s in both Mexico and the Southwestern United States.

Origin

The original Tostilocos were created in

Tijuana, Mexico Tijuana ( ,"Tijuana"
(US) and < ...

. The original mix contained tortilla chips, cueritos, cucumber, jícama, rueditas (little wheel-shaped pieces of fried flour), Japanese peanuts, lime juice, chamoy, and hot sauce. The word tostilocos is a combination of the name of Tostitos-brand tortilla chips and the Spanish word ''loco'', meaning "

crazy Insanity, madness, lunacy, and craziness are behaviors performed by certain abnormal mental or behavioral patterns. Insanity can be manifest as violations of societal norms, including a person or persons becoming a danger to themselves or t ...

". So the name essentially means "crazy chips" or "crazy Tostitos".

Recipe

The usual way of serving tostilocos is by cutting open a bag of tortilla chips lengthwise and adding chamoy, lemon juice, and if desired, Valentina hot sauce. After this, cueritos are added. Most often cucumber and jicama are the next toppings, but one can add any fruit desired. The finishing touches are Japanese peanuts and tamarind candies. The candies vary. The resulting concoction is eaten with a fork straight out of the bag, which is the original and most common way. However, vendors have also used Styrofoam plates or bowls.

Variations

Tostilocos is generally a "no rules" type of dish, so the ingredients may vary depending on personal taste. Besides the ingredients mentioned above, some vendors also use nacho cheese, shredded cheese, sliced pickled jalapeños, and chopped mango bits. The base chips can be any flavor of tortilla chips. Tostitos brand tortilla chips are the most commonly used (hence the name), but any brand of tortilla chips works equally well. Some vendors also use different kinds of chips, such as

Fritos Fritos is an American brand of corn chips and dipping sauces that was created in 1932 by Charles Elmer Doolin and produced since 1961 by the Frito-Lay division of PepsiCo. Fritos are made by deep-frying extruded whole cornmeal, unlike the simi ...

corn chips,

Doritos Doritos () is an American brand of flavored tortilla chips produced since 1964 by Frito-Lay, a wholly owned subsidiary of PepsiCo. The original Doritos were not flavored. The first flavor was Toasted Corn, released in 1966, followed by Taco in ...

(called "Dorilocos"), or hot

Cheetos Cheetos (formerly styled as Chee-tos until 1998) is a crunchy corn puff snack brand made by Frito-Lay, a subsidiary of PepsiCo. Fritos creator Charles Elmer Doolin invented Cheetos in 1948, and began national distribution in the U.S. The initi ...

. One variation of the Mexican dish comes from the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, where they add Spam or chopped

hot dogs A hot dog (uncommonly spelled hotdog) is a food consisting of a grilled or steamed sausage served in the slit of a partially sliced bun. The term hot dog can refer to the sausage itself. The sausage used is a wiener ( Vienna sausage) or a f ...

References

{{Reflist Mexican cuisine Mexican-American cuisine

Origin

Recipe

Variations

See also

References