Patricia Jinich ( born Patricia Drijanski, March 30, 1972) is a Mexican chef, TV personality, cookbook author, educator, and food writer. She is best known for her James Beard Award-winningJames Beard Foundation, "The 2018 James Beard Media Award Winners" and Emmy-nominated public television series Pati's Mexican Table,NBC News, "Award-Winning Chef Pati Jinich Touts Mexico's Varied, Evolving Flavors" her James Beard Award-winning PBS primetime docuseries La Frontera with Pati Jinich, and her James Beard Award-nominated PBS primetime docuseries Pati Jinich Explores Panamericana. Her first cookbook, also titled Pati's Mexican Table, was published in March 2013,Publishers Weekly, "Pati's Mexican Table: The Secrets of Real Mexican Home Cooking" her second cookbook, Mexican Today, was published in April 2016,Booklist, "Mexican Today: New and Rediscovered Recipes for Contemporary Kitchens" and her third cookbook, Treasures of the Mexican Table, was published in November 2021.Food & Wine, "23 Fall Cookbooks We're Reading (and Cooking from) This Season" Her fourth cookbook, Foods of La Frontera, will be published in September 2026.
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" She has appeared on The Today Show, Good Morning America, The Talk, CBS This Morning, Live with Kelly and Mark, All Things Considered, Morning Edition, and The Splendid Table among other media. Her food writing has appeared in The Washington PostWashington Post, "Tex-Mex cooking: It's not Mexican, and maybe that's the point"Washington Post, "For years, I taught my sons to cook. Now, I’m learning from them." and The New York Times.New York Times, "Finding the Soul of Sonora in Carne Asada"New York Times, "The Original Nachos Were Crunchy, Cheesy and Truly Mexican" In May 2014, Jinich was invited to cook at the White House for President Barack Obama's Cinco de Mayo dinner.The White House, Speeches & Remarks, "Remarks by the President at Cinco de Mayo Reception" In May 2018, she cooked at the James Beard House in New York City for its Cinco de Mayo dinner.James Beard Foundation, "Cinco de Mayo Celebration"
Early life Jinich was born and raised in Mexico City 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.New York Times, "A Taste of Passover, With a Mexican Accent" Her father was an architect who turned restaurateur, and her mother ran an art gallery.Washington Post, "Pati Jinich: Made for TV"
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 and a master's degree in Latin-American studies from Georgetown University, and she worked as a political analyst for the Inter-American Dialogue, 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"
She met her husband, Daniel Jinich, on a blind date.New York Times, "Forget the Wall: Pati Jinich Wants to Build a Culinary Bridge to Mexico" They were married in Mexico City in 1996 when she was 24.
Culinary career Jinich first began researching and cooking Mexican cuisine out of homesickness for her native Mexico City, when she moved to Dallas, Texas, with her husband.Washington Post Express, "A Real Spice Girl" 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, 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 Inter-American Dialogue, 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.About Pati Jinich
Jinich's charisma and intelligence caught the attention of television producers. After exploring different outlets, she decided public media 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" 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 ChannelAsian Food Channel, "Pati's Mexican Table" in Southeast Asia, Food NetworkSBS Food Network, "Pati's Mexican Table" in Australia, TLNTLN, "Pati's Mexican Table" in Canada, and TABI ChannelTABI Channel, "Pati's Mexican Table" in Japan.
The Pati's Mexican Table series premiered in 2011; it is now on its 15th season.The Georgetowner, "Mexico Salutes 'Pati's Mexican Table'" In 2017, Amazon added Pati's Mexican Table to its Amazon Prime Video Internet video on demand service.Amazon Prime Video, Pati's Mexican Table
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 to experience the region's rich culture, people, and cuisine, and reflects on the melding of cultures.PBS, La Frontera with Pati Jinich Both seasons are available on demand through the PBS website and video app and on Amazon Prime Video.Amazon Prime Video, La Frontera with Pati Jinich
In 2025, Jinich debuted the first season of her second PBS primetime docuseries, Pati Jinich Explores Panamericana, in which she embarks on a journey inspired by the Pan-American Highway, that will take her from Alaska to Argentina, to celebrate the many cultures of the Americas and how they enrich each other. The first season is available on demand through the PBS website and video app and on Amazon Prime Video. Season 2 will premiere Fall 2026.
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 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.Oregonian, "Cookbook review: 'Pati's Mexican Table' by Pati Jinich" It made Amazon's "Best of the Year in Cookbooks" list of 2013,Amazon, "Best Books of 2013: Cookbooks & Food Writing" the Washington Post's "Best Cookbooks of 2013" list,Washington Post, "Washington Post's best cookbooks of 2013" The Splendid Table's "Staff Book Picks of 2013" list,The Splendid Table, "Staff book picks 2013" and Serious Eats "Our Favorite Cookbooks of 2013" list.Serious Eats, "Our Favorite Cookbooks of 2013"
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's Maria Godoy said, "Mexican Today explores not just traditional fare but [also] the country's evolving cuisine and the many immigrant groups who have influenced it."NPR The Salt, "How Mexican Cuisine Was Doing Fusion 500 Years Ago"
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 and was named one of the best cookbooks of 2021 by The New York Times,New York Times, "Seven Dazzling New Cookbooks Bring the World to Your Table" The Washington Post,Washington Post, "Our favorite cookbooks of 2021" The San Francisco ChronicleSan Francisco Chronicle, "The ten best cookbooks of 2021" Glamour magazine,Glamour, "The Best Cookbooks of 2021, According to the Foodies Who Know Best" and Epicurious.Epicurious, "The Best Cookbooks of 2021"
Foods of La Frontera: Recipes and New Taste Frontiers from Both Sides of the Border Jinich's fourth cookbook, Foods of La Frontera: Recipes and New Taste Frontiers from Both Sides of the Border, will be published by HarperCollins in September 2026. It chronicles her travels along both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border through 125 recipes celebrating the rich cultures and foods from where the two countries meet.
Personal life Jinich lives in Chevy Chase, Maryland, with her husband Daniel Jinich and their three sons: Alan, Samuel ("Sami"), and Julian ("Juju"). Her sister Karen Drijanski is a chef in Mexico City. Her other sister, Sharon Drijanski, is a designer and has written vegetarian cookbooks. A third sister, Alisa Drijanski, is a pastry chef.
Awards and accolades Jinich was the Broadcast Media Hall of Fame honoree at the James Beard Foundation Awards (2026) Pati's Mexican Table won a James Beard Foundation Award for Instructional Visual Media (2026) Pati Jinich Explores Panamericana nominated for a James Beard Foundation Award for Travel Visual Media (2026) Jinich won an IACP Lifetime Achievement Award Pati's Mexican Table won an IACP Award for Culinary Video Series (2025) Named to The Washington Post's "Post Next: 50 People Shaping Our Society in 2025" List (2025)The Washington Post, Post Next: 50 People Shaping Our Society in 2025 La Frontera with Pati Jinich Season 2 won a James Beard Foundation Award for Docuseries Visual Media (2024)James Beard Foundation, The 2024 James Beard Media Award Winners Pati's Mexican Table won an IACP Award for Culinary Television Series (2024) International Association of Culinary Professionals, IACP 2024 Award Winners Announced Treasures of the Mexican Table won an IACP Award for Best International Cookbook (2022) International Association of Culinary Professionals, Congratulations to the 2022 Winners of the IACP Awards!