Arizona: Let's Eat! Trivia Quiz

Answer: Mesquite

Arizona has three native mesquite trees, velvet, screwbean and honey, with the velvet mesquite being the most common. The mesquite pods are harvested before the summer rains. Pods are picked from the trees and tasted; when they're sweet, they're ripe! After drying for a couple of days, they are ready to be ground into flour with one gallon of pods yielding one pound of flour.

Answer: Saguaro

The Saguaro cactus blossom officially became the Arizona state flower in 1931. It blooms from April to June, with the egg-sized, red fruit ripening shortly thereafter. The fruit appears at the top of the Saguaro cactus, which can reach sixty feet in height, so poles are used to knock the fruit off the cactus for harvesting.

The Tohono O'odham people of southern Arizona have used the fruit for centuries, not only in syrups and jams, but also for making a fermented drink used in ceremonies. The syrup and jam can now be purchased at markets throughout the state.

Answer: Cheese crisp

Cheese crisps aren't quesadillas. The latter consists of folded soft tortillas filled with cheese or other ingredients. Cheese crisps are more like a thin crust Mexican cheese pizza made with a tortilla. The tortilla is covered with cheese and cooked until both the tortilla and cheese are crispy.

Although toppings can be added, cheese crisps are usually just served with taco sauce or salsa. And yes, the name "cheese crisp" is also used to describe the trendy baked circles of grated cheese, but that's not what you'll get in Arizona if you order a cheese crisp!

Answer: Chimichanga

A chimichanga consists of a burrito (a rolled flour tortilla stuffed with a mixture that can include meat, beans, veggies, and cheese) which is deep-fried until it is crispy outside. Although it sounds like it might have been invented in Scotland, two restaurants in Arizona take credit for it. Macayo's Mexican Restaurant in Phoenix claims they invented it in the 1950s, and El Charro Café in Tucson claims to have done so in the 1920s. According to El Charro, the chimichanga was the result of a burrito being accidentally dropped in the deep fryer, and in an effort to prevent cursing, the cook blurted out "chimichanga!"

Answer: Bacon

The bacon is wrapped around the hot dog like a candy cane and grilled to it. The standard Sonoran hot dog is then covered with pinto beans, onions, tomatoes, mayonnaise and jalapeno sauce, but other variations exist. A sturdy Mexican roll called a bolillo is used instead of a traditional hot dog bun.

The recipe allegedly originated in Hermosillo, the capital of the state of Sonora, Mexico, but it soon became a staple street food in Tucson before spreading throughout the state.

Answer: Apache trout

Native to Arizona, the Apache trout became of the official state fish in 1986. In 1973, the Apache trout became federally protected as part of the Endangered Species Act due to competition with non-native fish, particularly other trout species that were introduced for fishing.

A successful recovery project led to the species being one of the first to be down-listed from endangered to threatened within two years. Regulated fishing of Apache trout is now permitted in Arizona.

Answer: Fry bread

There are many recipes for Native American fry bread, but the original recipe supposedly came from the Navajo and was created after they were forced from their lands in the mid 1800s into camps. Among the food provided to them by the U.S. government were the ingredients that they used to create fry bread - flour, lard and sugar. So fry bread is symbolic for the Navajos as a part of their history and their survival. Fry bread is popular throughout Arizona; there are several restaurants which specialize in sweet and savory variations of the bread.

Answer: Tepary

The name "tepary" may come from a Tohono O'odham phrase "t'pawi" which brilliantly means "it's a bean"! The Tohono O'odham used to be called the Papago, which was a derogatory term that meant "bean eaters", so they apparently know their beans. Tepary beans are native to the southwestern United States and Mexico and are drought-resistant, so they grow well in the deserts of Arizona.

They come in a variety of colors and can be used in place of other beans in recipes.

Answer: Navajo-Churro sheep

The Navajo-Churro sheep is a breed that developed from the Iberian Churra sheep, which was brought by the Spanish to the new world in the 16th century. The Navajo acquired the sheep through trading in the 17th century, and over the years the "Churra" name became "Churro", and the breed raised on Navajo lands was given the name "Navajo-Churro" in recognition of the stewardship of the Navajo people. The threatened breed is mainly raised for its wool, but some culling is allowed for its lean meat.

Incidentally, the Turquoise Room restaurant at the historic La Posada hotel in Winslow, Arizona, began featuring the "Native Arizona Cassoulet with Churro Lamb and Goose" in the mid 1980s.

Answer: Prickly pear

Prickly pear cactus is the most popular culinary cactus in Arizona. The pads, nopales, are sold in grocery stores and can be eaten raw, but are usually sliced and cooked like chiles. The prickly pear fruit is actually called "tuna", but most Arizonans will call them "prickly pear fruit".

Besides candy, the fruit is used to make other items, such as jelly and syrup and in recent years, has become popular in margaritas.