Unwrap the History of the Taco

America has a love affair with Mexican foods and flavors— especially the taco. So where did the wildly popular taco get its start?

It all began in the silver mines of 18th century Mexico, according to Jeffrey Pilcher, author of Planet Taco: A Global History of Mexican Food. “A taco was a hand-wrapped stick of dynamite, with gunpowder inside paper, used to excavate rock,” explains Jeffrey. “The miners used the same word to refer to their packaged lunches of potato and chile in a tortilla.”

When the mines closed, the workers moved to Mexico City and became vendors selling tacos de minero. “The idea caught on, and they started putting other things in tacos, too,” says Jeffrey. The rest is history.