National Menudo Month – January 1, 2027

Expected National Menudo Month Deals

Throughout National Menudo Month, expect Mexican restaurants and grocery stores to feature special promotions. While official 2027 deals are still to come, past years have seen local eateries like El Pollo Loco and regional chains offer menudo specials, often paired with traditional sides. Grocery stores such as H-E-B and Vallarta Supermarkets frequently highlight ingredients like beef tripe, hominy, and spices for home cooks. Look for family-sized menudo kits at Northgate Market and special prices on broth and seasonings at Fiesta Mart. Even larger retailers like Walmart and Target in areas with strong Hispanic populations may feature menudo-related ingredients. We will update this page with confirmed live deals as January approaches.

History of National Menudo Month

Menudo is a famous traditional Mexican soup, commonly served as a main dish and eaten for breakfast. The dish is made with tripe (cow’s stomach) cooked in a broth with a chili pepper base. It’s seasoned with hominy, oregano, cilantro, onions, and lime. The exact recipe is different for every family, the favorite seeming to be honeycomb tripe.

The Menudo originated in Mexico, though it is unclear exactly in which part of the country it came from. Cooking Menudo is a family event as it takes many hours for the tripe to fully cook, though some may buy ready-made ingredients to shorten the process. The meal is traditionally served on Sundays and special occasions such as Christmas, New Year’s, births, and weddings. This healthy meal is filled with nutrients and is considered a great choice for curing the common cold and other ailments.

Although its specific year of origination is unclear, Menudo became popular around the 1930s in either north or central Mexico. It’s said that farmers used to discard offal meats such as intestines and internal organs when slaughtering cows, not seeing their benefits. They eventually began cleaning those parts more thoroughly and cooking them. Tripe takes a long time to clean to become good enough to eat, which is why the dish takes so long to prepare.

Menudo became popular in the U.S. in the mid-20th century when restaurants began adding it to the menu, usually only adding it on the weekend since it’s too time-consuming to make all week. Others offer canned Menudo. There’s an annual Menudo festival in Santa Maria, California organized by the National Latino Peace Officers Association where restaurants compete in making the dish.