What happens when tradition meets ambition and is served with a splash of tequila? 🎙️🌮🥃
In this episode of Interviews with Immigrants, host Andrea Szew sits down with world-renowned chef, TV personality, and proud Mexican-American Aarón Sánchez. From his roots in El Paso and deep Mexican culinary heritage, to becoming a household name on MasterChef, Chopped, and Tasting Sabor, Aarón opens up about the immigrant journey that shaped his identity, on and off the plate.
We talk food, family, cultural pride, and yes… even sip a little tequila along the way. 🎙️🌮🥃
Here are some other topics we discuss in this episode too:
🌮 How Aarón’s Mexican roots shaped his culinary identity — and why preserving culture through food matters now more than ever
🧑🍳 Behind the scenes of MasterChef, Chopped, and more — what it’s really like being a Latin chef on mainstream TV
🥃 A surprise tequila tasting — and how tequila connects deeply to heritage and storytelling
❤️ His immigrant family’s journey — from El Paso to culinary stardom, with grit, love, and tradition
🔥 Advice for the next generation of immigrants — including what keeps Aarón grounded through fame, pressure, and purpose
Whether you love his cooking or are just hungry for a great story about resilience, culture, and representation, this one’s for you.
🎧 Available to listen everywhere.
Time Stamps
02:40 – Tequila & Mexican identity: why Jalisco is the cultural heartland
04:44 – Growing up bicultural in El Paso, Texas
07:45 – Redefining what it means to be an immigrant in America
12:28 – Kitchens as immigrant stories: “We weren’t just cooking. We were improving the value of our very culture.”
13:09 – Behind the kitchen walls: sacrifices of immigrant workers in New York
16:18 – Food as memory: “Eating a cook’s food is like reading a memoir.”
20:42 – Regional Mexican cuisines: the future of authenticity in the U.S.
22:43 – Discovering his calling during Día de los Muertos
23:56 – Mentorship and competition with his mother, Zarela Martínez
24:59 – Opening his first restaurant, Paladar, with a team of immigrants
26:54 – Pressure of being seen as an ambassador for Mexican food
29:27 – Tattoos, chefs, and the culture of kitchens
30:38 – Advice for first-generation immigrants: keep language, food, and culture alive
📚 Want more of Aarón’s story? Grab his bestselling memoir Where I Come From: Life Lessons from a Latino Chef 👉 https://www.amazon.com/Where-Come-Life-Lessons-Latino/dp/141973802X
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IF YOU MISSED EPISODE 1 - WATCH NOW - with the hilarious and brilliant Jade Catta-Preta 🇧🇷🎤 — Brazilian-born comedian and actress — whose journey from Brazil to the U.S. is filled with laughter, resilience, and plenty of surprises. https://youtu.be/m5rP4HL-FgA
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DISCLAIMER: This video and content is designed for general information only and is NOT legal advice. The information in this video should not be construed to be formal legal advice nor the formation of a lawyer/client relationship. The information presented in this video does not create an attorney/client relationship nor is it a solicitation to offer legal advice.
