“What in the Rachel Ray’s pozole is this?!” That was one of the many comments made by our communities across Twitter on Monday (December 5) when The New York Times reposted a recipe for chicken birria that they had shared with their readers about a year ago.
https://twitter.com/nytimes/status/1599812144664559621
We’re not sure how they responded initially, but this time around, our communities weren’t very impressed with the article and recipe published on the website’s cooking section.
https://twitter.com/petervargas__/status/1599854370640007168
One Twitter user referenced Rachel Ray in their criticism of the birria dish. Ray was mocked in 2019 for her questionable pozole-making abilities. Earlier this year, she was also ridiculed for burning refried beans and calling them “crispy.”
When the army of online Latine food critics saw the Times post for chicken birria, they didn’t take too kindly to the attempt. Some didn’t explain why they were upset with the recipe but knew they didn’t like the results.
Others accused the outlet of whitewashing and culturally appropriating a Latine dish. “NYT whitewashing Mexican food,” a tweet read. “Who would’ve thought?”
The Times article itself is short and explains that birria is “a classic Mexican stew from Jalisco, is traditionally made with goat but also enjoyed with lamb or beef. This weeknight version features juicy chicken thighs for faster cooking.” The recipe reads that the dish should take 45 minutes to cook, which was also a point of contention for many readers. “If it takes 45 minutes, you’re doing it wrong,” one user tweeted.
Mostly, people shared their disgust via memes. Nothing says “no thank you,” like a well-placed gif of Michael Scott from The Office making a face like he just licked someone’s boot.
Tell us you won’t be following this birria recipe without telling us you won’t be following this birria recipe.
