No Pork with Cheese, is this a Jewish influence ?

I've heard this tale before, but only from small regions in central Mexico. It might be left over by migrating Spaniards from the areas in Southern Spain controlled over many centuries by the Moors and further influenced by the Sephardic populations residing there. 

For the most part, Mexico's past cuisine didn't lend itself to mixing pork with cheese...probably due to the ingredients, safety handling and the crude storage methods used long ago. Today's cuisine say...pork carnitas burrito a la wet with melted cheese, sauce and sour cream has put that notion to rest.

From what I've uncovered is that many of the early settlers from Spain to Mexico were from the northern region of Spain where pork is used abundantly and lard is almost always used as a cooking oil. This may explain why Mexico isn't really known for olive oil use as in other South American countries and olive oil is perceived as medicinal rather than for general cooking. 

As to why some Mexican habits, cuisine and myths may seem to be Jewish or Moorish in origin or likeness...well...a significant portion of Spain was under their control (Moors-North African) and influence (Sephardic-Jewish) for 700 hundred years and these idiosyncrasies were brought over as just ordinary ways of life. It doesn't mean that we are directly related to these groups, but possibly just influenced by them. My Filippina partner also has many similar tales as well.

As to Why "No Pizza Then"?

Neopolitans, Sicilians and Calabrese in Italy were once part of the Spanish Empire. As part or the vast Mediterranean culture, these two groups [Spanish and Southern Italians] are probably the most similar in the entire region. This cross cultural influence at the beginning of the colonialist era in Mexico may further cement the fact that there was a minimal Kosher influence in the early settlers as dietary habits were similar at the beginning and only diverged in modern times. This particular topic opens up a whole new understanding of how Mexico isn't really a country made up simply of Spaniards and Indigenous peoples, but a truly international and cosmopolitan hub preceding the United States as a melting pot. I have found that over many centuries certain regions/countries and peoples have had a significant influence in Mexico.

Here's a list:

India, China, Japan, The Philippines, The Netherlands (Holland), Switzerland, Italy, Portugal, France, Angola, Russia, Germany, North Africa...just to name a few.

I have never heard of this. I have heard of no pork, as someone else said. In my family we had a no blood rule. My mom grew up on a farm and her dad would always hang the animals upside down when slaughtering them for food by slicing them across the neck. All the blood had to drain into the ground before they could use the meat. When I asked my mom for the reason behind this, she said all she knew was that her father told her they should never eat the blood, because blood would make you sick. I know this is definitely not a widespread belief in Mexican culture, so I think it could reflect a Jewish influence. In that same vein (no pun intended!), on both sides of my family no egg is eaten without first inspecting it for any sign of blood. If there's even one spot, the whole egg gets thrown out. 

Hi David, 

It may be a far reaching custom derived from Jewish dietary law, except observant and some non-observant Jews to this day would NEVER eat pork.  As a matter of fact, they won’t even mention the word “pork”. 

You are correct that they will not mix dairy with beef. No cheeseburgers for them. 

Dietary laws are found in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14:21-22. 

Happy researching. 

Hi David, 

It may be a far reaching custom derived from Jewish dietary law, except observant and some non-observant Jews to this day would NEVER eat pork.  As a matter of fact, they won’t even mention the word “pork”. 

You are correct that they will not mix dairy with beef. No cheeseburgers for them. 

Dietary laws are found in Leviticus 11 and Deuteronomy 14:21-22. 

Happy researching.