the grocery store..
el 25 de julio
One thing that I find quite amusing is to browse the aisles of the supermarkets. Strange, I know, considering that they look pretty similar to what we are used to, but I love to see what kind of different things they have here. Sometimes what I discover is completely new, other times it may be something that I have heard of or tried here, and many times the most interesting items are things that we have in the States, but with a little twist. One prime example of this is tuna. Like me, you may be a bit surprised to find that canned tuna is a bit market item here, but it is. Really big; so much that the tuna section takes up about half of an aisle. There are so many different varieties of tuna that I think you could eat a different one every day for at least a month. You can choose from: tuna in water, tuna in oil, tuna in vinegar, big chunks, flaky small ones, tuna with vegetables, tuna with corn, tuna with jalapeño, tuna with lime, smoked tuna, tuna with bell peppers, tuna in tomato sauce, tuna with oregano, tuna with garlic, the list goes on. I feel like the comment “I don’t like tuna” is no longer valid. The issue is that those who claim they don’t like tuna just haven’t found their flavor yet. Next example: mayonnaise. You can buy it by the jar, as we do, but really the more common packaging here is a thick plastic bag of sorts that is somewhat flat on the bottom and sits nicely on the shelf. Add to that a handy twist-off and squeeze-out top and you are set. Only thing now is to pick your style: mayo, mayo light, mayo with lime, light mayo with lime, mayo mixed with ketchup (a typical salad dressing). Once again, the options are numerous. An additional comment about the whole stand-up plastic bag thing – it’s also a common carrier of salsa, puréed beans (sounds bad but it is really good – kind of like refried beans but a little smoother, without the little chunks of whole bean), and even sour cream. I must admit, the little magic bag can provide quite a clean and easy method of serving. Another thing I love is the cookie/cracker/ aisle. Ah, so many delicious options to choose from. They have many of our local American favorites – soda crackers, vanilla wafers, even the real Oreo and Chips Ahoy – but the best part is the incredible assortment of local Costa Rican-made treats, as well as other Latin American products. I love that they package them in individual serving packs and that they really feel like a light snack – in contrast with a package of Twinkies or Ho-Ho’s. :) Plus they have some amazing tortilla chip options; ones that actually taste like they were made from corn or flour tortillas. And if you pick the ones with lime and salt flavoring it’s even better. Then there are the yucca chips, which are make from the yucca root and are a tasty, healthier version of a traditional potato chip. But I think that my favorite snack of all has to be platanitos – baked plantain (like big bananas) chips – with lime and salt flavoring. Mmm, mmm, mmm. I just can’t seem to get enough of those. I am eating them like they are going out of style (which is comparable to saying the same thing about apples in Washington). Oh well, when you find something you like… As if that has been a problem for me here. Ha!
One thing that I find quite amusing is to browse the aisles of the supermarkets. Strange, I know, considering that they look pretty similar to what we are used to, but I love to see what kind of different things they have here. Sometimes what I discover is completely new, other times it may be something that I have heard of or tried here, and many times the most interesting items are things that we have in the States, but with a little twist. One prime example of this is tuna. Like me, you may be a bit surprised to find that canned tuna is a bit market item here, but it is. Really big; so much that the tuna section takes up about half of an aisle. There are so many different varieties of tuna that I think you could eat a different one every day for at least a month. You can choose from: tuna in water, tuna in oil, tuna in vinegar, big chunks, flaky small ones, tuna with vegetables, tuna with corn, tuna with jalapeño, tuna with lime, smoked tuna, tuna with bell peppers, tuna in tomato sauce, tuna with oregano, tuna with garlic, the list goes on. I feel like the comment “I don’t like tuna” is no longer valid. The issue is that those who claim they don’t like tuna just haven’t found their flavor yet. Next example: mayonnaise. You can buy it by the jar, as we do, but really the more common packaging here is a thick plastic bag of sorts that is somewhat flat on the bottom and sits nicely on the shelf. Add to that a handy twist-off and squeeze-out top and you are set. Only thing now is to pick your style: mayo, mayo light, mayo with lime, light mayo with lime, mayo mixed with ketchup (a typical salad dressing). Once again, the options are numerous. An additional comment about the whole stand-up plastic bag thing – it’s also a common carrier of salsa, puréed beans (sounds bad but it is really good – kind of like refried beans but a little smoother, without the little chunks of whole bean), and even sour cream. I must admit, the little magic bag can provide quite a clean and easy method of serving. Another thing I love is the cookie/cracker/ aisle. Ah, so many delicious options to choose from. They have many of our local American favorites – soda crackers, vanilla wafers, even the real Oreo and Chips Ahoy – but the best part is the incredible assortment of local Costa Rican-made treats, as well as other Latin American products. I love that they package them in individual serving packs and that they really feel like a light snack – in contrast with a package of Twinkies or Ho-Ho’s. :) Plus they have some amazing tortilla chip options; ones that actually taste like they were made from corn or flour tortillas. And if you pick the ones with lime and salt flavoring it’s even better. Then there are the yucca chips, which are make from the yucca root and are a tasty, healthier version of a traditional potato chip. But I think that my favorite snack of all has to be platanitos – baked plantain (like big bananas) chips – with lime and salt flavoring. Mmm, mmm, mmm. I just can’t seem to get enough of those. I am eating them like they are going out of style (which is comparable to saying the same thing about apples in Washington). Oh well, when you find something you like… As if that has been a problem for me here. Ha!
posted by Dynasty goes to CR at
11:05 AM
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