Odessa – Over the years of The Texas Bucket List, the food scene in Odessa has grown leaps and bounds. Adding to that list is a little food trailer called Mi Cocinita, thanks to their birria balls that have a big following. “Oh my gosh, this is like a flavor bomb,” said Yvette Hernandez. “Just burst in your mouth. This is amazing.”
Yvette created these big balls that are bountiful with birria, rice, and cheese. “My birria is different from anybody’s I could say in this town,” said Yvette.
But it’s the incredibly complex layers of her life that got her to this point. “Because of the way my life was, I didn’t think I would see my kids get big,” said Yvette.
Growing up in Odessa wasn’t easy for this single Mom of seven and she took the wrong path at an early age. “13, 14 years old I was already in the streets hanging around with people I shouldn’t be hanging around with, doing drugs and I was horrible,” said Yvette. “I think I was horrible up until I had my first kid.”
Despite having children, Yvette’s troubles continued over the years. “I battled and I mean, it got to a point to where my car got stolen and all these things were happening, and I was like, ‘all right, God, I’ll stop,’” said Yvette. “And then I hung around in a trap house down the street and I didn’t ever, ever pay for it. I would just sit there and people would come in and buy it. ‘Hey, you want to smoke?’ So I would smoke and I would all over again and all over again. I mean, I would come home and my mom would be in my driveway at 3:00, 4:00 in the morning and I was like, ‘What are you doing here?’ And she’s like, ‘You left the kids home alone.’ And I’m like, ‘Okay, I’m getting high.’ I didn’t care. My brother was like, ‘Yo, what is wrong with you? You got all these kids and you’re still acting a fool.’ And I was like, ‘I know.’”
Yvette’s family tried to help but Yvette couldn’t break her habit. Then, she decided to give faith a fair shot and attended church with a friend. “Man, I felt like the pastor was talking to me and he just literally said, somebody in this room is involved in something so dark that it stops today, that it ends today. I knew it was me,” said Yvette. “So when I went to the front, he literally pinpointed everything. And when I walked out that church I remember the sun being so bright and I was just like, okay, it’s a new day”
Connecting with her faith and her brother Gilbert were both big inspirations in helping Yvette turn the page and start her food truck but before she could get clean, a brain aneurysm took her brother from this world. “I just got really involved in church and my food,” said Yvette. “And so I was like, okay. And then not even a couple of weeks later, my brother passes away. So after that I really was like, you know what? Enough is enough.”
Yvette has now been clean and sober for six years, and people in her community have noticed the positive changes in her life. “I’ve seen her out in the streets just struggling and trying to survive to being so successful and growing into a greater business,” said Leanna Brito. “I mean, it’s just amazing to see her. It’s a blessing.”
Yvette’s birria tacos were the talk of the town, and she feels like she was divinely pointed to a new recipe that would take her business to the next level. “So I’m laying in bed one day and I’m struggling,” said Yvette. “So these birria balls come across my screen and I’m like, oh, that’s cool. Well, then I see it cross my screen again, and I’m like, okay. I had just made birria tacos the night before, so I had birria meat in my fridge and then I made the boudin and cheese balls before. So when they came across my screen the third time, I really felt like God said, ‘Get up. I’m giving you something new.’ So I went home, put it together, turned the fryer on and got to frying and I was like, ‘oh my gosh, this is it. This is it.’”
These balls are filled to the brim with some of the most flavorful things you can think of. “So it’s birria, our amazing, delicious birria and cheese and rice,” said Yvette. “So everything has to be cooled down because if not, it’ll melt the cheese. Because you want the cheese to melt in the fryer.”
Yvette took a few birria balls, battered them up, and covered them in hot Cheetos. After they get fried up, they get another layer of hot Cheetos. Throw on some onions, some cilantro, and some consume and we’re good to go.
So here we have the famous birria balls of Odessa, Texas. You may have seen pictures or videos, but tasting these is the only way to get the real experience. If that doesn’t look ridiculous, I don’t know what does. “So much flavor,” said customer Tania. “She seasoned the meat so good that you can still taste it and it doesn’t get lost.”
Well, the birria and the cheese is a fantastic mixture. The rice you don’t really get too much of, and then you get into those hot Cheetos, which provide the crunch and a little bit of an extra spice from that Cheetos flavor that everybody loves. “Tasty, birria of flavor, that juicy meat, cheese,” said customer Alan. “It’s like it’s happening right there.”
Well, if you’re into Birria and cheese bound together by hot Cheetos in a big ball, coming to Mi Cocinita in Odessa, Texas, it’s definitely well worth a stop on the Texas Bucket List. “I just want people to know that she really has come up from nothing to this and God is blessing her tenfold,” said Tania. “She’s doing amazing.”