Time to take your taste buds on a mini-vacation.

Tajín is my favorite go-to seasoning if I want a little more kick than salt and pepper deliver.

In Mexico, where Tajín is made and bottled, the spicy condiment is sold as a seasoning for fruit. But early-adopters and lovers of this chile pepper-dehydrated lime juice-salt concoction use it on everything. And I mean everything.

Excellent with eggs. Terrific with tuna salad. Stupendous with steak. Amazing with… you get the picture.

Tajín’s appeal is hard to describe. It’s a bit spicy… but not so spicy that it’ll burn your face off. It’s a bit salty… but you won’t feel like you’ve just dined at a salt lick. There’s a nice acidic bite, but it won’t make you squint and pucker up.

Yep… this is exactly what you need to breathe new life into your boring mealtime repertoire.

If you’ve never tried it, sprinkle a little on some sliced cucumbers or melon. Pretty soon, you’ll be shaking it all over everything… and loving it. Your leftover turkey sandwich never tasted so good.

They’re making a low-sodium variety now, in addition to the Tajín Classico. You can find it in most supermarkets, Trader Joe’s, Target and Wal-Mart.

Let me know if you try it, what you tried it on and how you liked it!

Wanna know where food and drink are going in 2013? Well, you’ve come to the right place! Mama’s scoured the internet for food trends and predictions for the upcoming year. Would you believe:

• You’ll be drinking more wine out of a box

• Eating more sauerkraut and

• Taking more photos of the food you eat?

That’s where the trend trackers say we’re headed in the New Year. Here are a few more…

Veggies Rule: Whether it’s the rising cost of meat or our desire to eat healthier, we’re going to see more vegetables on our plates… and it won’t be the old stand-bys like corn and potatoes. Have you had a marinated cauliflower steak? Look for similar veggies with strong flavors like cabbage, broccoli and Brussels sprouts… which leads into another hot trend…

King’s Spicy Kimchi

Sour Flavors: Last year I told you about my infatuation with kimchi (fermented Korean cabbage). In the coming year, you can look for similar sharp, sour flavors like brined Moroccan lemons, pickled Mexican carrots, sauerkraut and citrus cured Peruvian ceviche… which takes us into 2013’s smokin’ hot cuisine…

Peruvian Food: We’ve done Mexico, we’ve sampled Cuba, now it’s time to explore Peru. The South American country’s geographically and wildly diverse (Japanese, Spanish, African, Chinese, Italian and Quechua) cultures bring together crazy culinary flavors… from sashimi-inspired tiradito to aji chili-flavored pastas and snacks like…

Popcorn: The whole-grain appeal of popcorn makes this one-time movie snack a featured player in ice cream, as a crouton and topping casseroles. It’ll get exotically cheesed, spiced and flavored and will pop up everywhere, just like…

Boxed Wine: Higher quality wine producers will start thinking inside the box because of lower shipping costs and the elimination of oxidation. Single serve options (I keep thinking of juice boxes, and that really worries me) will also increase as more of us try to cut back on our alcohol consumption and opt not to open a bottle.

Social Food Sharing: Do you take a photo of what you’re eating (or just created in the kitchen)? You aren’t alone. In the coming year we’ll continue to upload millions of images everyday to sites like Pinterest, Foodspotting and Food Gawker. I’m still trying to figure out the psychology of why this has become such a trend…

And that’s not all. There are a bunch of other things trending, like protein added to everything from beverages to salty snacks and ramen noodles coming out of dorm room and on to our dinner plate.

Strap yourself in… 2013 is gonna be a great year for food, drink and new ideas!