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Bourdain says sorry after Frito pie faux pas

Posted at 2:17 PM, Oct 01, 2013
and last updated 2013-10-01 14:17:28-04

(CNN) — Anthony Bourdain ran into hot water for his comments on a New Mexico store’s Frito pie recipe after the latest episode of his CNN show “Parts Unknown” aired on Sunday.

Comparing the mixture of chili, Fritos corn chips and cheese to a warm bag of poo, Bourdain said the concoction was made of “canned Hormel chili and dayglow orange cheese-like substance.”

Not true, says Five and Dime General Store Santa Fe manager Lorraine Chavez, who claims that she makes the chili fresh each day, according to CNN’s affiliate KRQE.

“It’s a basic recipe,” she said. “It takes at least a good hour and a half.”

Her take on Bourdain’s insult: “My response was obviously, ‘He doesn’t know New Mexico chili.'”

Despite sharing more harsh words for the dish on Twitter and telling the entire state of New Mexico to give up its claim to Frito pie (“Let Texas have this one”), Bourdain admitted he made a mistake with the canned chili quip. Spokeswoman Karen Reynolds said CNN will try to edit the reference out of all future airings of the episode.

“[C]ontrary to the impression left by some reports of the show, I in fact very much enjoyed my Frito pie in spite of its disturbing weight in the hand,” Bourdain said in a statement. “It may have felt like crap but was shockingly tasty.”

Chavez didn’t let the famed traveling chef get away with his insults without adding a little dig of her own: “I wasn’t even aware he was in here and even if I was, I’ve never heard of him before,” she said.

She also told KRQE the controversy over Bourdain’s claim has business booming, so she doesn’t mind so much.