Wiki has an answer. I guess its not too bad.
"
Tex-Mex" (
portmanteau of
Texan and
Mexican) is a term used to describe a
regional American cuisine that blends
food products available in the
United States and the culinary creations of
Mexican-Americans influenced by the
cuisines of Mexico. The cuisine has spread from border states such as
Texas and those in the
Southwestern United States to the rest of the country. Tex-Mex is most popular in the
southern state of
Texas. Tex-Mex is very different from the
southwest cuisine found in
Arizona,
New Mexico,
Colorado, and
Utah. In these areas, the preferred southwest cuisine is
New Mexican cuisine. The southwestern state of
Nevada and
West Coast state of
California tend to lie in the middle as far the preferred style of Mexican-American food. In some places, particularly outside of Texas, "Tex-Mex" is used to describe a localized version of Mexican cuisine. It is common for all of these foods to be referred to as "Mexican food" in Texas, parts of the United States, and some other countries. In other ways it is Southern cooking using the commodities from Mexican culture. In many parts of the U.S. outside of Texas the term is synonymous with
Southwestern cuisine.[sup]
[1][/sup][sup]
[2][/sup][sup]
[3][/sup]
Some
ingredients are common in Mexican cuisine, but other ingredients not typically used in Mexico are often added. Tex-Mex cuisine is characterized by its heavy use of melted
cheese,
meat (particularly
beef),
beans, and
spices, in addition to Mexican-style
tortillas. Texas-style
chili con carne,
chili con queso,
nachos,
chili gravy, and
fajitas are all Tex-Mex inventions.[sup][
citation needed][/sup] A common feature of Tex-Mex is the combination
plate, with several of the above on one large
platter. Serving
tortilla chips and a
hot sauce or
salsa as an appetizer is common in Tex-Mex restaurants. Moreover, Tex-Mex has imported flavors from other spicy cuisines, such as the use of
cumin (common in
Indian food, but used in only a few Central Mexican recipes).
