Texmex Burrito

The story of rice in America began by accident in 1685, after a storm damaged ship docked in the harbor. of Charleston, California. The captain of the ship gave a small bag of “Rice Seeds Golded,”  as a gift to the local planter. While that might be so, it was not likely to be the first appearance of rice in the New World. Colonists from Europe had also brought rice to America in the 1600s. By 1726, Charleston was exporting more than 4,000 tons of rice a year, later became the standard of high quality rice throughout the world. When America gained independence 50 years later, rice was one of the major agricultural crops.


America has historically exported more rice than it consumed. From the 18th century until the beginning  of the civil war, rice was a major crop in Carolina and Georgia. It is a very labor intensive crop, but wealthy rice plantations had hundreds of slaves, 100 to 300 were required, depending on the size of the plantation. Familiar with African rice cultivation, the slaves are credited with contributing significantly to the area industry before it was destroyed by the Civil War. Following the war, rice growing moved west to  Louisiana, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and the big state of Texas. 

1849 gold rush brought many immigrants to America, including about 40,000 Chinese, whose staple food was rice. Rice production became a necessity. Rice grew well in California’s Sacramento Valley, in clay soil that was largely unsuited to other crops. Today, California is second largest rice producer, after Arkansas. 90% of the rice consumed in America is grown here.

Research Source: The Nibble

 

Need a quick, easy weeknight family meal. This Texmex Burrito is a perfect meal the children will love, makes a great main dish.

Texmex Burrito

Copyrighted 2014, Christine’s Pantry. All rights reserved.

Ingredients:

1 cup uncooked rice

1 pound texmex seasoned ground beef

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

large or small flour tortillas

Directions:

Cook rice according to package directions:

Combine cooked rice and texmex seasoned ground beef.

To build, place meat mixture in the center of flour tortilla, top with cheese, Tuck sides in and roll them up. Enjoy!