Patricia Jinich ( born Patricia Drijanski, March 30, 1972) is a

Mexican-American Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the United State ...

chef, TV personality, cookbook author, educator, and food writer. She is best known for her

James Beard Award The James Beard Foundation Awards are annual awards presented by the James Beard Foundation to recognize chefs, restaurateurs, authors and journalists in the United States. They are scheduled around James Beard's May 5 birthday. The media awar ...

-winningJames Beard Foundation
"The 2018 James Beard Media Award Winners"
/ref> and Emmy-nominated public television series ''Pati's Mexican Table''''NBC News''
"Award-Winning Chef Pati Jinich Touts Mexico's Varied, Evolving Flavors"
/ref> and her

-winning

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

primetime docuseries ''La Frontera with Pati Jinich''. Her first cookbook, also titled ''Pati's Mexican Table'', was published in March 2013, her second cookbook, ''Mexican Today'', was published in April 2016, and her third cookbook, ''Treasures of the Mexican Table'', was published in November 2021. Jinich is the resident chef at the Mexican Cultural Institute in Washington, DC, where she has run her "Mexican Table" live culinary program since 2007.''Washington DC Eater''
"Cooking Mexican Breakfast with Pati Jinich"
/ref> She has appeared on ''

The Today Show ''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'') is an American morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was the first of its genre on American television ...

'', ''

Good Morning America ''Good Morning America'', often abbreviated as ''GMA'', is an American breakfast television, morning television program that is broadcast on American Broadcasting Company, ABC. It debuted on November 3, 1975, and first expanded to weekends wit ...

'', '' The Talk'', ''

CBS This Morning ''CBS This Morning'' (''CTM'') is an American morning television program that aired on CBS from November 30, 1987 to October 29, 1999, and again from January 9, 2012 to September 6, 2021. On November 1, 1999, the original incarnation was repla ...

'', ''

Live with Kelly and Mark ''Live with Kelly and Mark'' (or simply ''Live'') is an American syndicated morning talk show hosted by Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos. Executive produced by Michael Gelman, the ''Live with...'' show formula has aired under various hosts si ...

'', ''

All Things Considered ''All Things Considered'' (''ATC'') is the flagship news program on the American network National Public Radio (NPR). It was the first news program on NPR, premiering on May 3, 1971. It is broadcast live on NPR affiliated stations in the United ...

'', ''

Morning Edition ''Morning Edition'' is an American radio news program produced and distributed by NPR. It airs weekday mornings (Monday through Friday) and runs for two hours, and many stations repeat one or both hours. The show feeds live from 5:00 to 9:00 a ...

'', and ''

The Splendid Table ''The Splendid Table'' is a weekly radio program about food hosted by Francis Lam. The program began in 1997 on Minnesota Public Radio, and was originally hosted by Lynne Rossetto Kasper until her retirement in 2017. It is produced and distribu ...

'' among other media. Her food writing has appeared in ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

'' and ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

''. In May 2014, Jinich was invited to cook at the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Northwest (Washington, D.C.), NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president ...

for President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

Cinco de Mayo Cinco de Mayo (; ) is an annual celebration held on May 5 to celebrate Mexico's victory over the Second French Empire at the Battle of Puebla in 1862, led by General Ignacio Zaragoza. Zaragoza died months after the battle from an illness, ho ...

dinner.The White House, Speeches & Remarks
"Remarks by the President at Cinco de Mayo Reception"
/ref> In May 2018, she cooked at the

James Beard James Andrews Beard (May 5, 1903 – January 21, 1985) was an American chef, cookbook author, teacher and television personality. He pioneered television cooking shows, taught at The James Beard Cooking School in New York City and Seaside ...

House in New York City for its Cinco de Mayo dinner.James Beard Foundation
"Cinco de Mayo Celebration"
/ref>

Early life

Jinich was born and raised in

Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...

to a Jewish family. The youngest of four sisters, her grandparents were Jewish refugees from Eastern Europe. The two had originally met in Europe and then reconnected in Mexico. Her father was an architect who turned restaurateur, and her mother ran an art gallery.''Washington Post''
"Pati Jinich: Made for TV"
/ref> Food was always an important part of Jinich's family life growing up. Her three older sisters pursued the culinary arts early on, but Jinich grew up dreaming of a career in academia. She earned a political science bachelor's degree from the

Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México The Autonomous Technological Institute of Mexico (), commonly known as ITAM, is a private university located in Mexico City. It is one of Mexico's most important institutions of higher learning; highly prestigious in the social sciences. It is a ...

and a master's degree in Latin-American studies from

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

, and she worked as a political analyst for the

Inter-American Dialogue The Inter-American Dialogue (Spanish and Portuguese: ''Diálogo Interamericano''), also known as the Dialogue or IAD, is a U.S.-based think tank in the field of international affairs primarily related to the Western Hemisphere. Headquartered in ...

, a Washington, DC think tank before switching careers.''Forbes''
"From Political Analyst To Mexican Chef On PBS -- How Embracing What You Love Builds A Fabulous Career"
/ref> She met her husband, Daniel Jinich, who is also Jewish-Mexican, on a blind date.''New York Times''

/ref> They were married in Mexico City in 1996 when she was 24.

Culinary career

Jinich first began researching and cooking

Mexican cuisine Mexican cuisine consists of the cuisines and associated traditions of the modern country of Mexico. Its earliest roots lie in Mesoamerican Cuisine, Mesoamerican cuisine. Mexican cuisine's ingredients and methods arise from the area's first agr ...

out of homesickness for her native Mexico City, when she moved to Dallas, Texas, with her husband. Soon, she was teaching Mexican cooking to friends and neighbors. At the same time, as she was writing her bachelor's thesis, she offered to help KERA, the Dallas public TV station, with a documentary on the Mexican Revolution, but they needed help with another project: the PBS series ''New Tastes from Texas'' with Chef

Stephan Pyles Stephan Pyles (born 1952) is an American chef, cookbook author, philanthropist, and educator. He received the 'Outstanding Restaurateur of the Year' award from both the Minnesota and Texas Restaurant Associations in recognition of his work in t ...

, for which she became a production assistant. Two years later, she relocated to Washington, DC, with her husband and their first-born son, where she resumed her academic pursuits, earning her master's degree from Georgetown and landing her "dream job" at the

, but she never stopped obsessively thinking about food and enrolled at L'Academie de Cuisine in Maryland. Jinich envisioned herself writing articles about Mexican cuisine and teaching it in her home kitchen, until she met with the executive director of the Mexican Cultural Institute in Washington, DC, who encouraged her to bring her cooking program to the institute. In 2007, she launched her "Mexican Table" series of live cooking demonstrations along with multi-course tasting dinners, which she still runs today. The classes combine Jinich's skilled Mexican cooking with her knowledge of the country's history and regions. Each one explores a single topic—for example, dishes of the Mexican Revolution, a historical vanilla menu, or convent foods from colonial Mexico. Around the same time, she started her blog about Mexican cuisine, which was followed by invitations to write about food for print publications and to give talks and cooking demos for radio and TV shows. Jinich's charisma and intelligence caught the attention of television producers. After exploring different outlets, she decided APT was the right home for ''Pati's Mexican Table'' because of her commitment to authenticity and the independence the PBS and public-TV platform allows over the content of its shows. The first season of ''Pati’s Mexican Table'' premiered in 2011.

Television

In ''Pati's Mexican Table'', Jinich shares authentic Mexican cooking, along with Mexico's rich history and culture; her personal experiences and family life; and her ongoing conversations with cooks on both sides of the border.PBS Food
"Pati's Mexican Table"
/ref> The series airs nationally in the United States on public television stations (distributed by APT) and on Create TV. It also airs on the

Asian Food Channel The Asian Food Network (AFN), formerly known as Asian Food Channel, is a Southeast Asian pay television channel and website owned by Warner Bros. Discovery International through its Asia-Pacific division. Launched in 2005, it provides a mix o ...

in Southeast Asia,

Food Network Food Network is an American basic cable channel owned by Television Food Network, G.P., a unit of Warner Bros. Discovery, who manages and operates it as a division of the Warner Bros. Discovery U.S. Networks Group. The channel airs both televi ...

in Australia, TLN in Canada, and TABI Channel in Japan. The ''Pati's Mexican Table'' series premiered in 2011. In 2017,

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology company * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek myth ...

added ''Pati's Mexican Table'' to its

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service owned by Amazon. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced or co-produced by ...

Internet video on demand service. In 2021, Jinich made her PBS primetime debut in a docuseries called ''La Frontera with Pati Jinich'', where she travels along both sides of the

Mexico–United States border The international border separating Mexico and the United States extends from the Pacific Ocean in the west to the Gulf of Mexico in the east. The border traverses a variety of terrains, ranging from urban areas to deserts. It is the List of ...

to experience the region's rich culture, people, and cuisine, and reflects on the melding of cultures.PBS
La Frontera with Pati Jinich
/ref> Both seasons are available on demand through the PBS website and video app and on

. In 2025, Jinich hosted another docuseries for PBC called ''Pati Jinich Explores PanAmericana.'' The series follows Jinich as she travels the length of the

Pan-American Highway The Pan-American Highway is a vast network of roads that stretches about 30,000 kilometers (about 19,000 miles) from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, in the northernmost part of North America to Ushuaia, Argentina, at the southern tip of South America. I ...

Cookbooks

''Pati's Mexican Table: The Secrets of Real Mexican Home Cooking''

Jinich's first cookbook, ''Pati's Mexican Table: The Secrets of Real Mexican Home Cooking'', was published by

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Company ( ; HMH) is an American publisher of textbooks, instructional technology materials, assessments, and reference works. The company is based in the Financial District, Boston, Boston Financial District. It was fo ...

in March 2013. The book is based on the traditional Mexican home cooking with which Jinich grew up, with many recipes gleaned from her childhood in Mexico City. It made

's "Best of the Year in Cookbooks" list of 2013, the Washington Post's "Best Cookbooks of 2013" list, The Splendid Table's "Staff Book Picks of 2013" list, and Serious Eats "Our Favorite Cookbooks of 2013" list.

''Mexican Today: New and Rediscovered Recipes for Contemporary Kitchens''

Jinich's second cookbook, ''Mexican Today: New and Rediscovered Recipes for Contemporary Kitchens'', was published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in April 2016. Jinich explores both traditional and rediscovered Mexican dishes as well as reinterpretations and new takes using Mexican ingredients in this book.

NPR National Public Radio (NPR) is an American public broadcasting organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It serves as a national Radio syndication, syndicator to a network of more ...

's Maria Godoy said, "Mexican Today explores not just traditional fare but lsothe country's evolving cuisine and the many immigrant groups who have influenced it."

''Treasures of the Mexican Table''

Jinich's third cookbook, ''Treasures of the Mexican Table: Classic Recipes, Local Secrets'', was published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in November 2021. It is Jinich's most extensive cookbook yet, with recipes she has encountered in her travels all around Mexico including everything from world-famous dishes to local specialties unknown outside their regions. It was a

New York Times bestseller ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...

and was named one of the best cookbooks of 2021 by The New York Times, The Washington Post, The San Francisco Chronicle Glamour magazine, and Epicurious.

Personal life

Jinich lives in

Chevy Chase, Maryland Chevy Chase () is the colloquial name of an area that includes a town, several incorporated villages, and an unincorporated census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland; and one adjoining neighborhood in northwest Washington, D ...

, with her husband Daniel Jinich and their three sons: Alan, Samuel ("Sami"), and Julian ("Juju"). Her sister Karen Drijanski is a chef in

. Her other sister, Sharon Drijanski, is a designer and has written vegetarian cookbooks. A third sister, Alisa Drijanski, is a pastry chef who is married to former

Telemundo Telemundo (; formerly NetSpan) is an American Spanish-language terrestrial television network owned by NBCUniversal Telemundo Enterprises, a division of NBCUniversal, which in turn is a wholly owned subsidiary of Comcast. It provides content ...

president Emilio Romano. Jinich is Jewish and regularly celebrates Shabbat.

Awards and accolades

* Named to

's "Post Next: 50 People Shaping Our Society in 2025" List (2025) * ''La Frontera with Pati Jinich'' Season 2 won a

James Beard Foundation Award The James Beard Foundation Awards are annual awards presented by the James Beard Foundation to recognize chefs, restaurateurs, authors and journalists in the United States. They are scheduled around James Beard's May 5 birthday. The media awar ...

for Docuseries Visual Media (2024)James Beard Foundation
The 2024 James Beard Media Award Winners
/ref> * ''Pati's Mexican Table'' won an IACP Award for Culinary Television Series (2024) * ''Treasures of the Mexican Table'' won an IACP Award for Best International Cookbook (2022) * Won a

Gracie Award The Gracie Awards are awards presented by the Alliance for Women in Media Foundation (AWM) in the United States, to celebrate and honor programming created for women, by women, and about women, as well as individuals who have made exemplary contr ...

for Producer ‐ Documentary /Unscripted / Non‐Fiction for ''La Frontera with Pati Jinich'' (2022) * ''Pati's Mexican Table'' won a

for Outstanding Television Program in Studio or Fixed Location (2020) * Won a

for On-Air Talent – Lifestyle for ''Pati's Mexican Table'' (2020) * ''Pati's Mexican Table'' won an

Imagen Award The Imagen Awards are administered by the Imagen Foundation, an organization dedicated to "encouraging and recognizing the positive portrayals of Latinos in the entertainment industry." To be considered for an Imagen Award, a media piece or person ...

for Best Reality Program (2020) * ''Pati's Mexican Table'' won an IACP Award for Culinary Television Series (2020) * Named to Hola! USA's "Latina Powerhouse Top 100" List (2020) * Nominated for a Realscreen Award for Lifestyle - Studio-based Food Program (2020) * ''Pati's Mexican Table'' won a James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Television Program in Studio or Fixed Location (2019) * Nominated for a

Daytime Emmy Award The Daytime Emmy Awards, or Daytime Emmys, are part of the extensive range of Emmy Awards for artistic and technical merit for the American television industry. Bestowed by the New York-based National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NA ...

for Outstanding Culinary Host (2019) * Won a James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Personality/Host for ''Pati's Mexican Table'' (2018) * ''Pati's Mexican Table'' won an Imagen Award for Best Reality Program (2018) * Named one of the Top-5 Border Ambassadors between the U.S. and Mexico by ''

Americas Quarterly ''Americas Quarterly (AQ)'' is a publication dedicated to politics, business, and culture in the Americas. Distribution ''AQ'' has an established relationship with NTN24, an online news channel from Colombia with three million viewers, to bro ...

'' (2017) * Nominated for a James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Television Program in Studio or Fixed Location (2017) * Nominated for a

for Outstanding Culinary Host (2016)The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences
The 43rd Annual Daytime Emmy Award Nominations
/ref> * Nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Culinary Program (2016) * Nominated for a James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Personality/Host (2016)James Beard Foundation
The 2016 James Beard Award Nominees
/ref> * Nominated for a James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Television Program in Studio or Fixed Location (2016) * Won an Imagen Award for Best National Informational Program (2016) * Won two consecutive Taste Awards for Best Ethnic Program (2016, 2015) * Nominated for an Imagen Award for Best National Informational Program (2014) * Nominated for an IACP Award for Best Culinary Series (2014) * The cookbook ''Pati's Mexican Table'' was selected for the 2013 Gourmand World Cookbook Awards Best in the World List * Jinich cooked at

the White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., it has served as the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800 whe ...

for President

Dinner (2014) * Named to the

Smithsonian National Museum of American History The National Museum of American History: Kenneth E. Behring Center is a historical museum in Washington, D.C. It collects, preserves, and displays the heritage of the United States in the areas of social, political, cultural, scientific, and m ...

's Kitchen Cabinet Board for the American Food History Project (2014) * Named to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

' Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves Chefs Corps (2015)

Organizations

Les Dames d'Escoffier Les Dames d'Escoffier is an American society of professional women involved in the food, fine beverage, and hospitality industry, hospitality industries. History Les Dames d'Escoffier was founded in New York City in 1976, by food writer Carol Broc ...

References

Bibliography

Works of Pati Jinich

* Jinich, Pati
The Century-Long Saga of the Caesar Salad"
''

'', July 1, 2024 * Jinich, Pati
"The Habanero Rules Yucatán. Let It Rule Your Kitchen, Too."
''

'', January 5, 2024 * Jinich, Pati
"On the Border, the Perfect Burrito Is a Thin, Foil-Wrapped Treasure"
''

'', November 27, 2023 * Jinich, Pati
"There’s Nothing Like a Good Concha. Here’s How to Make Them Great."
''

'', March 21, 2022 * Jinich, Pati
"Camarones Embarazados, the Grilled Shrimp Recipe That Brings the Beach to You"
''

'', July 29, 2021 * Jinich, Pati
"The Original Nachos Were Crunchy, Cheesy and Truly Mexican"
''

'', October 29, 2020 * Jinich, Pati
"For years, I taught my sons to cook. Now, I’m learning from them."
''

'', October 6, 2020 * Jinich, Pati
"Finding the Soul of Sonora in Carne Asada"
''

'', August 11, 2020 * Jinich, Pati
"Tex-Mex cooking: It's not Mexican, and maybe that's the point"
''

'', January 28, 2014

Works by other authors

* Carman, Tim
"Pati Jinich: Made for TV"
''

'', March 29, 2011 * Rochlin, Margy
"Pati Jinich on exploring the food and culture along U.S.-Mexico border: ‘I’ve never felt more at home’"
''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

'', June 21, 2023 * Severson, Kim
"Forget the Wall: Pati Jinich Wants to Build a Culinary Bridge to Mexico"
''

'', October 9, 2018 * Sussman, Adeena
"Pati Jinich on Mexican-Jewish Mashups"
''

Hadassah Magazine ''Hadassah Magazine'' is an American magazine published by the Hadassah Women's Zionist Organization of America. It covers Israel, the Jewish world, and subjects of interest to American Jewish women. It was established in 1914. Esther G. Gottesm ...

'', September 2016

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jinich, Pati 1972 births Living people Georgetown University alumni American cookbook writers American television chefs Women food writers Chefs of Mexican cuisine Mexican Ashkenazi Jews Mexican emigrants to the United States Mexican people of Austrian-Jewish descent Mexican people of Polish-Jewish descent American people of Mexican-Jewish descent American women chefs 21st-century American women