Interview no. 1794

Interviewee

Hugo Loera

Interviewer

Joshua I. Lopez

Project

El Paso Food Voices -- Private Kitchens

Summary of Interview

Hugo Loera spent his youth on both sides of the El Paso-Juarez border. He grew up primarily on the east side of El Paso with his two younger sisters and his parents. His mother, Rosalva Loera, was his inspiration for cooking. Hugo was curious in the kitchen, watching her and his grandmother cook his favorite food. Since Rosalva's passing in 2010, Hugo keeps her alive through cooking her recipes, some which she has handed down in handwritten cookbooks, and others Hugo learned by just watching. Hugo's relationships to food are deeply bound to his memories of his mother, but also in trying to live in a balanced relationship with his body and cravings. He recounts stories of when he was in high school, and his mother supported his first entrepreneurial adventure - selling chips at school out his tennis bag. He tells how Rosalva would bring chips from Juarez for Hugo to sell. He would later use his profits to buy his first laptop. Hugo also tells of the pressures being a single gay man where body image carries value. In trying to lose and maintain his weight, he shares stories of folklore medicine, diets, and how his idea of body image has changed through time. Hugo is now an accountant and lives with his partner in Denton, Texas.

Date of Interview

6-30-2022

Length of Interview

42 minutes

Tape Number

No. 1794

Transcriber

Joshua Lopez

Interview Number

No. 1794

Terms of Use

Unrestricted

Comments

Joshua Lopez transcribed the Summary.

For information on obtaining a transcript of this interview, please contact The Institute for Oral History

Recommended Citation

Loera, Hugo, "Interview no. 1794" (2022). Private Kitchens. 13.
https://scholarworks.utep.edu/ep_private/13