My 8 year veggie-versary was last week sometime. I seem to have missed it.
The veggie thing was easy back home. Heck, other than the cook-it-all-yourself thing, even vegan is pretty easy back home. Here, though?
Without a kitchen I take what I can get. Sometimes that means quesadillas three times a day. Sometimes it means over-paying for Italian food. Sometimes it's eating a bucket of fruit and a bag of chips and hoping there's something available in the next town.
Honestly, it's pretty boring to be a veggie without a kitchen in Mexico. I'll probably last, but I don't know for sure. You wouldn't think it, but eating veggie is much more expensive in Mexico than eating meat. A big bowl of chicken soup is 25 pesos, enough veggies to make a meal cost about the same. A can of beans is 12 pesos, for the same price I'm halfway to a quarter of a chicken plus sides, salsa, and who knows what else.
The real problem, though, is that it all smells *so good*. I think about it. I really really do. I don't know that I could actually get meat to my mouth. It hasn't worked the two or three times I've tried in the last 8 years. The food always stops just short of my mouth as the gagging takes over.
I don't know, though... How long until I just can't face another quesadilla? How long until another boring bowl of beans and rice makes me gag too?
Meanwhile, I'm working on finding a way to feed myself that doesn't involve restaurants every day, or sammiches either. Ate about a dozen in the last week, and while the avocado, cheese, tomato, onion and mustard is a good sammich, it too gets dull after a while. Ideas?
Showing posts with label mexico. Show all posts
Showing posts with label mexico. Show all posts
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Horchata Fail
I don't know if it was the horchata itself that was fail, or just that it isn't the drink for me.
Now, I'm all about the jamaica, and I'll drink tamarindo all day long. If I'm ever forced to drink horchata again, tho, I might just puke.
It's not the flavor, though the bottle I had was kinda very too sweet. It's not the color, though that was also kinda odd.
It's one of those things that's all about the texture. Like drinking half-set pudding through a straw. I wasn't expecting that. I mean, sure, it's got coconut milk in it, and that's thick. It's also got rice milk in it, which is watery and grainy. I figured the watery-ness would thin out the coconut milk a bit. Instead I ended up with thick, slimy, gritty milky stuff.
But the burrito I had with it was good. And the quesadillas I had later that night at a little family run place (6 pesos each) with my ice cold glass bottle of pepsi. A friend munched his way through 4 really stuffed tacos (7 pesos each) and all the toppings he could pile on them.
Oh, and I remembered what the nopales tasted like. The way they were served, they tasted kinda like salty, canned french cut string beans. Without the weird string bean texture. Total win, I tell you.
Now, I'm all about the jamaica, and I'll drink tamarindo all day long. If I'm ever forced to drink horchata again, tho, I might just puke.
It's not the flavor, though the bottle I had was kinda very too sweet. It's not the color, though that was also kinda odd.
It's one of those things that's all about the texture. Like drinking half-set pudding through a straw. I wasn't expecting that. I mean, sure, it's got coconut milk in it, and that's thick. It's also got rice milk in it, which is watery and grainy. I figured the watery-ness would thin out the coconut milk a bit. Instead I ended up with thick, slimy, gritty milky stuff.
But the burrito I had with it was good. And the quesadillas I had later that night at a little family run place (6 pesos each) with my ice cold glass bottle of pepsi. A friend munched his way through 4 really stuffed tacos (7 pesos each) and all the toppings he could pile on them.
Oh, and I remembered what the nopales tasted like. The way they were served, they tasted kinda like salty, canned french cut string beans. Without the weird string bean texture. Total win, I tell you.
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Mexico, New Foods Taste Good
Veggie food in Mexico is kinda dull most of the time. I've learned not to ask *too* many questions, 'cause I can't always cook, and I'd starve to death if I did.
I've also learned about some shiny new foods. Er, ok, two are actually drinks.
So street food is cheap. It makes life happy. Street food during the day is mostly fresh fruit. In the evenings the bigger, fancy carts come out. They sell just about everything out of them, but strange pork products seem to be the most popular. I don't eat them, so I can't say how they taste, just that they're everywhere.
Then there are so-called "maya crepes", which are pretty much the same as normal crepes, spread with... something.. and folded up. Like nutella, or fish, or something.
After dark, though, the food stalls come alive. Tacos, empanadas, something they call gringas, which I can only assume are sammiches of some sort. And drinks. Cold, of course, to go with the hot food. Coke in glass bottles, or bags of fresh local drinks. Almost always the same three drinks, actually. Horchata, Jamaica, and Tamarindo, in a bag with a straw.
The three drinks are pretty much the non-coke, non-water drink of the Yucatan. Horchata
, of course, is basically seasoned vegan-milky drink thing, with coconut and rice "milk". Jamaica
(Ha-mai-ka) is sweetened hibiscus "tea"- like lemon zinger, or sweetened pomegranate juice. And tamarindo
is just sweetened tamarind water. Yummy, actually.
I've yet to actually try horchata, but the other two are freaking tasty. If you get a chance to drink them, totally go for it. Horchata's on the list for tomorrow.
The third new food is one I've actually been wanting to try, but too wimpy to cook myself.
Nopales. They're the leaves (paddles) of the prickly pear cactus. With the spines removed, cleaned up, and only the young, new-ish ones about the size of the palm of an adult's hand. Fried, it turns out.
See, it comes back to that whole "quesadilla" thing. No one wants to eat them all the time. But if you can change them up a bit, things get much more interesting. And nopales do that. Fried, diced, and tossed in my super yummy quesadilla last night, they are probably one of the better tasting strange foods I've wandered into lately. Srsly, if you see them in the grocery store buy them first, and look up cooking instructions or recipes later. They're worth it.
Super yummy.
Ok, yeah, and I paid 65 pesos for a sammich yesterday. It was worth it. Imported fresh mozz, tomatoes, fresh baked bread... zomg, sooooo good.
Still, try nopales. really.
I've also learned about some shiny new foods. Er, ok, two are actually drinks.
So street food is cheap. It makes life happy. Street food during the day is mostly fresh fruit. In the evenings the bigger, fancy carts come out. They sell just about everything out of them, but strange pork products seem to be the most popular. I don't eat them, so I can't say how they taste, just that they're everywhere.
Then there are so-called "maya crepes", which are pretty much the same as normal crepes, spread with... something.. and folded up. Like nutella, or fish, or something.
After dark, though, the food stalls come alive. Tacos, empanadas, something they call gringas, which I can only assume are sammiches of some sort. And drinks. Cold, of course, to go with the hot food. Coke in glass bottles, or bags of fresh local drinks. Almost always the same three drinks, actually. Horchata, Jamaica, and Tamarindo, in a bag with a straw.
The three drinks are pretty much the non-coke, non-water drink of the Yucatan. Horchata
, of course, is basically seasoned vegan-milky drink thing, with coconut and rice "milk". Jamaica (Ha-mai-ka) is sweetened hibiscus "tea"- like lemon zinger, or sweetened pomegranate juice. And tamarindo is just sweetened tamarind water. Yummy, actually.I've yet to actually try horchata, but the other two are freaking tasty. If you get a chance to drink them, totally go for it. Horchata's on the list for tomorrow.
The third new food is one I've actually been wanting to try, but too wimpy to cook myself.
Nopales. They're the leaves (paddles) of the prickly pear cactus. With the spines removed, cleaned up, and only the young, new-ish ones about the size of the palm of an adult's hand. Fried, it turns out.
See, it comes back to that whole "quesadilla" thing. No one wants to eat them all the time. But if you can change them up a bit, things get much more interesting. And nopales do that. Fried, diced, and tossed in my super yummy quesadilla last night, they are probably one of the better tasting strange foods I've wandered into lately. Srsly, if you see them in the grocery store buy them first, and look up cooking instructions or recipes later. They're worth it.
Super yummy.
Ok, yeah, and I paid 65 pesos for a sammich yesterday. It was worth it. Imported fresh mozz, tomatoes, fresh baked bread... zomg, sooooo good.
Still, try nopales. really.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Magic Leftover Concoctions
I'm getting ready to leave the Mystery Island. Actually, I'm leaving in about two hours. So yesterday a shiny new friend and I worked our way through the leftovers. You know, those bits and pieces that you didn't quite manage to finish before the end of your vacation, or the stuff sitting in the back of the fridge when you don't want to shop.
Between the two of us we had a rather interesting collection of stuff. We talked about making tacos, but with only 5 (small) tortillas and a bunch of stuff to put in/ on them it just wasn't going to work. Luckily, though, we had (most of) a couple bags of tortilla chips, close to a pound of queso oaxaca, some veggies and the dregs of a jar of salsa. Nachos, right? And black beans, extra cheese, and warm tortillas on the side.
No microwave, though.
See, this is where travel makes things interesting. Cooking in Mexico is done on gas. Electric is just too expensive, so everyone uses gas ranges and whatnot. But they use bottled gas, which can run out, so no constant pilot light. Which means you have to light the stove every time you use it. And the oven as well, oddly enough....
So we put together our nachos, all ready to melt in the oven. Then we realized we didn't know how to *light* the oven. The little switch that would spark and light the gas (if the stove were plugged in...) didn't do anything. So we pulled out the long, empty lighter-gun-thing
and tried to light the gas with that. Empty, because you don't need the flame, just the spark. It didn't work, though.
So I went down and asked. And got laughed at. And went back to the kitchen and tried again. Turns out I was trying to light the wrong part of the "flame making tube thing". Oops. So anyway, yeah.
Then there was dinner. About 4 weeks ago I picked up a bottle of wine. A bottle of *bad* wine. No, like really, really bad. It tasted worse the more you ate... So I put it in pasta. I had some sauce left. My cooking partner had pasta, and we both had some veggies left. We picked up a can of beans, some soda and a loaf of fresh bread.
The lady at the "grocery store" laughs at us, btw, 'cause we're in there at least twice a day each. It took two trips to get beans and soda. In twenty minutes.
Anyway, everything (except the lentils, which have been donated...) went in the pot while the pasta cooked. It was actually pretty good. If I can remember what exactly we really used, I'll put it up. It just looked like strange chili, actually, but it was tasty.
I guess the whole point here is that you can make *something* with what you've got, if you've got something to begin with. It might not always turn out perfect, it might not taste great. It'll feed you, though, and keep you from a third trip to the store.
New Site
I'm trying to keep the stuff here food related. I don't know how well cheap traveler food helps anyone, but I like having a place with mostly food. So I'm starting a new blog (slowly) elsewhere.
It's got a photo or three, and a post or two, and I'm trying working on making it pretty and useful. If you're interested in travel/ life stuff, I think the majority of my energy will be moving over there for now. So I'm not abandoning you, just changing my main focus... a lot.
You can find my shiny new blog at lazyjayn.com. Maybe I'll see you over there. Now, I have to go pack up my filthy, dirty clothes and catch a ferry.
Between the two of us we had a rather interesting collection of stuff. We talked about making tacos, but with only 5 (small) tortillas and a bunch of stuff to put in/ on them it just wasn't going to work. Luckily, though, we had (most of) a couple bags of tortilla chips, close to a pound of queso oaxaca, some veggies and the dregs of a jar of salsa. Nachos, right? And black beans, extra cheese, and warm tortillas on the side.
No microwave, though.
See, this is where travel makes things interesting. Cooking in Mexico is done on gas. Electric is just too expensive, so everyone uses gas ranges and whatnot. But they use bottled gas, which can run out, so no constant pilot light. Which means you have to light the stove every time you use it. And the oven as well, oddly enough....
So we put together our nachos, all ready to melt in the oven. Then we realized we didn't know how to *light* the oven. The little switch that would spark and light the gas (if the stove were plugged in...) didn't do anything. So we pulled out the long, empty lighter-gun-thing
and tried to light the gas with that. Empty, because you don't need the flame, just the spark. It didn't work, though.So I went down and asked. And got laughed at. And went back to the kitchen and tried again. Turns out I was trying to light the wrong part of the "flame making tube thing". Oops. So anyway, yeah.
Then there was dinner. About 4 weeks ago I picked up a bottle of wine. A bottle of *bad* wine. No, like really, really bad. It tasted worse the more you ate... So I put it in pasta. I had some sauce left. My cooking partner had pasta, and we both had some veggies left. We picked up a can of beans, some soda and a loaf of fresh bread.
The lady at the "grocery store" laughs at us, btw, 'cause we're in there at least twice a day each. It took two trips to get beans and soda. In twenty minutes.
Anyway, everything (except the lentils, which have been donated...) went in the pot while the pasta cooked. It was actually pretty good. If I can remember what exactly we really used, I'll put it up. It just looked like strange chili, actually, but it was tasty.
I guess the whole point here is that you can make *something* with what you've got, if you've got something to begin with. It might not always turn out perfect, it might not taste great. It'll feed you, though, and keep you from a third trip to the store.
New Site
I'm trying to keep the stuff here food related. I don't know how well cheap traveler food helps anyone, but I like having a place with mostly food. So I'm starting a new blog (slowly) elsewhere.
It's got a photo or three, and a post or two, and I'm trying working on making it pretty and useful. If you're interested in travel/ life stuff, I think the majority of my energy will be moving over there for now. So I'm not abandoning you, just changing my main focus... a lot.
You can find my shiny new blog at lazyjayn.com. Maybe I'll see you over there. Now, I have to go pack up my filthy, dirty clothes and catch a ferry.
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Backpackers and Free Food
Backpackers (long-term, low budget travelers with backpacks) are better than college students when it comes to sniffing out free food. Moving from place to place every couple of days, it's just tough to only buy enough for yourself. And *no one* wants to cart around an open bottle of oil.
So food gets passed on. The night before someone leaves they usually give their leftover ingredients away to whoever's in the kitchen. Sometimes they do it in the morning, instead, but they try to give it away. Whatever doesn't get claimed (or if there's no one there, because everything usually finds a new home) goes onto the free shelf or cubbie or box that most hostel kitchens have.
Just yesterday someone was leaving and walked out to the eating porch to offer someone his leftovers. Three other people claimed the same name and followed the first guy back into the kitchen.
I've benefited from this too, of course, over my time here. There were the German girls who couldn't finish their cream cheese (went in pasta), the Canadian couple that was flying home from Cancun in 5 days and needed to offload a small bottle of soy sauce (went in fried rice), and the vegan guy...
Of all the places to meet a vegan, you wouldn't think of (slightly touristy, island, rural) Mexico. It isn't the most vegan friendly kinda place I've ever been. He was prepared, though, with a full cooler bag of food. Quinoa, amaranth (I think), split red lentils, whole grain rice, spices, seasoning, you name it he had it in his big bag of magic food. Honestly, he *could* have fed himself from the stores, even here on the Mystery Island, but the food would have been kinda boring.
Actually, it's kinda boring anyway.
But he was leaving from Cancun to go home after a couple months in Mexico and two days on the Mystery Island, and didn't need or want to cart the food-stuff home. It ended up in the "free" box. I don't think it'll surprise anyone here to learn that I'm hoarding the stuff.
It's only fair, of course- when I leave a lot of my accumulated food will stay behind. And when I get to the next place, there may be half a bottle of oil for me to use. That's just how it works.
I guess it's not really "free", just food you share the cost of with people you haven't met yet. Or, in the case of stuff that's there when you arrive, with people you may never meet.
Those spices, though, were free. And they're coming with me.
Now, off to sweat and swim. The day is hot and it's siesta time.
So food gets passed on. The night before someone leaves they usually give their leftover ingredients away to whoever's in the kitchen. Sometimes they do it in the morning, instead, but they try to give it away. Whatever doesn't get claimed (or if there's no one there, because everything usually finds a new home) goes onto the free shelf or cubbie or box that most hostel kitchens have.
 |
| Tribu Hostel Dining Patio/ My Office |
I've benefited from this too, of course, over my time here. There were the German girls who couldn't finish their cream cheese (went in pasta), the Canadian couple that was flying home from Cancun in 5 days and needed to offload a small bottle of soy sauce (went in fried rice), and the vegan guy...
Of all the places to meet a vegan, you wouldn't think of (slightly touristy, island, rural) Mexico. It isn't the most vegan friendly kinda place I've ever been. He was prepared, though, with a full cooler bag of food. Quinoa, amaranth (I think), split red lentils, whole grain rice, spices, seasoning, you name it he had it in his big bag of magic food. Honestly, he *could* have fed himself from the stores, even here on the Mystery Island, but the food would have been kinda boring.
Actually, it's kinda boring anyway.
But he was leaving from Cancun to go home after a couple months in Mexico and two days on the Mystery Island, and didn't need or want to cart the food-stuff home. It ended up in the "free" box. I don't think it'll surprise anyone here to learn that I'm hoarding the stuff.
It's only fair, of course- when I leave a lot of my accumulated food will stay behind. And when I get to the next place, there may be half a bottle of oil for me to use. That's just how it works.
I guess it's not really "free", just food you share the cost of with people you haven't met yet. Or, in the case of stuff that's there when you arrive, with people you may never meet.
Those spices, though, were free. And they're coming with me.
Now, off to sweat and swim. The day is hot and it's siesta time.
Monday, March 28, 2011
Avocado Heaven
So, in the US, avocados go with Mexican food. Well, and in weird vegan concoctions that I find just scary enough to not try.
And they really do show up in food in Mexico. Imagine that. Mostly, though, they show up in *my* food. The thing is, they don't seem to sell much of anything in Mexico as a "per item" if it's produce. Nope, produce is per kilogram. So if you get a *huge* avocado, you pay that portion of the per kilo price. And if you get a tiny one ('cause it's the only one ripe enough to eat right then...) you only pay *that* portion of the kilogram price.
And they're about $2 per kilo here on the mystery island. 24-28-ish pesos per kilo, that is. Instead of 2/$3 with tiny avocados, or my least favorite, $3 *each*. Yesterday I picked up (and ate for dinner) two medium avocados for m$15, or about us$1.25.
So I'm sure no one will be surprised to learn that I'm stuffing my face with them. Not, I admit, the most healthy option. Not the cheapest either. But so very tasty. Avocados are full of (mostly) healthy fats, and are pretty high in calories, so *should* be enjoyed in moderation (except maybe by people without much other fat in their diets...) but are super tasty and a little slice can really improve a meal.
In the last week I've put avocado:
And they really do show up in food in Mexico. Imagine that. Mostly, though, they show up in *my* food. The thing is, they don't seem to sell much of anything in Mexico as a "per item" if it's produce. Nope, produce is per kilogram. So if you get a *huge* avocado, you pay that portion of the per kilo price. And if you get a tiny one ('cause it's the only one ripe enough to eat right then...) you only pay *that* portion of the kilogram price.
And they're about $2 per kilo here on the mystery island. 24-28-ish pesos per kilo, that is. Instead of 2/$3 with tiny avocados, or my least favorite, $3 *each*. Yesterday I picked up (and ate for dinner) two medium avocados for m$15, or about us$1.25.
So I'm sure no one will be surprised to learn that I'm stuffing my face with them. Not, I admit, the most healthy option. Not the cheapest either. But so very tasty. Avocados are full of (mostly) healthy fats, and are pretty high in calories, so *should* be enjoyed in moderation (except maybe by people without much other fat in their diets...) but are super tasty and a little slice can really improve a meal.
In the last week I've put avocado:
- on my fried potato/ onion thing
- on my black bean concoction
- on toast
- in a toasted sammich
- on chips as guacamole
- in my stomach straight from the skin
They also make taco night really amazing. Instead of cheese (or in addition), add a thin slice of avocado to your tacos and they're just better.
So, in the spirit of avocados everywhere, I thought I'd share my two favorite avocado recipes, and one variation I'm told is really good but I think looks gross.
Guacamole-
- 1-3 ripe avocados, pitted and removed from the skin
- 1/4C diced onion (approx)
- 1-3 cloves diced garlic
- salt
- juice from 1/2 to 1 lime or splash of vinegar.
Smoosh the avocado, mix in everything else. Eat on chips, tacos, sammiches, burgers, alone, etc.
variations: mix in 1-3 chopped/ mashed boiled eggs, up to 1 chopped tomato, cilantro, pepper, etc.
Simple Avocado
- 1-3 ripe avocados
- 1 lime
- salt
- spoon
Cut open and de-pit the avocados. Slice the avocado in a criss-cross pattern, being careful not to slice through the skin. Salt avocado. Squeeze lime juice over. Eat with spoon.
I've been mostly sticking to that last one, actually. Mmm, avocado.
Monday, March 21, 2011
Tourist Prices
I'm still relaxing (er, loafing) on my small quiet "mystery" island. Technically it's a "tourist" destination, in that the main income for the locals used to be fishing and now it's tourists. It's not "touristy" really, tho.
I mean, sure, there are a bunch of hotels, and of course the prices at most of the restaurants are a little high- though I'm sure they have special "local" prices, too. But it doesn't have that theme park feel Isla Mujeres does, and I have many, many chances to force my terrible (but swiftly improving) Spanish on people every time I leave the hostel. You see, people staying in hotels don't usually go to the supermarket, so the people there don't speak English. Or at the hole-in-the-wall tortillaria. Or at *any* of the street stands, mini-supers (convenience stores), bakeries or vegetable shops.
What am I saying... They *do* go to a couple of those places, but really only the ones right by the square. You know, ones on "wide" streets, with plenty of room to park their rented golf carts. 'Cause this island is so big...
So the longer I stay here, the farther from the main square I venture for my food, drinks, and snacks. You see, on the square a 600ml bottle of pepsi is 10 pesos, and 1.5L of water is 18. One block from the square (at the "real" grocery stores) it's 9 for pepsi and m$12 for the water. Two blocks more and they drop to 8 and 10. Heck, the bakery by the square charges m$8 for one roll, and the one way off in some small neighborhood (um... 4 blocks away) charges m$4.
I still haven't found anywhere that Nutella isn't *really* crazy, but I can deal with that. Everything on the island but fish and (some of the) eggs and chicken comes from Cancun, 3 hours away. I think I can handle the higher prices. Not sure how the locals do, tho- the ones who don't have their own business make between m$100 and 300 a day, with tips and whatnot.
Crazy, eh?
I mean, sure, there are a bunch of hotels, and of course the prices at most of the restaurants are a little high- though I'm sure they have special "local" prices, too. But it doesn't have that theme park feel Isla Mujeres does, and I have many, many chances to force my terrible (but swiftly improving) Spanish on people every time I leave the hostel. You see, people staying in hotels don't usually go to the supermarket, so the people there don't speak English. Or at the hole-in-the-wall tortillaria. Or at *any* of the street stands, mini-supers (convenience stores), bakeries or vegetable shops.
What am I saying... They *do* go to a couple of those places, but really only the ones right by the square. You know, ones on "wide" streets, with plenty of room to park their rented golf carts. 'Cause this island is so big...
So the longer I stay here, the farther from the main square I venture for my food, drinks, and snacks. You see, on the square a 600ml bottle of pepsi is 10 pesos, and 1.5L of water is 18. One block from the square (at the "real" grocery stores) it's 9 for pepsi and m$12 for the water. Two blocks more and they drop to 8 and 10. Heck, the bakery by the square charges m$8 for one roll, and the one way off in some small neighborhood (um... 4 blocks away) charges m$4.
I still haven't found anywhere that Nutella isn't *really* crazy, but I can deal with that. Everything on the island but fish and (some of the) eggs and chicken comes from Cancun, 3 hours away. I think I can handle the higher prices. Not sure how the locals do, tho- the ones who don't have their own business make between m$100 and 300 a day, with tips and whatnot.
Crazy, eh?
Thursday, March 17, 2011
Food Cost of "Luxury" and A Magic Kitchen Toy
I spent close to 200 pesos yesterday. About half was just trying to break a 500 peso note- not easy here. The rest was on (overpriced) water, a soda, and more than my share for communal dinner last night.
Which sounds bad. Actually, if "more than my share" of dinner was more than 15 pesos I might be more upset, but it was only about 25 pesos, and dinner fed 9 people for about 10 pesos each, so it's not that big a deal (spaghetti alfredo, if you're wondering- and yes, I think cream *is* cheaper here).
But that's not luxury, unless you're on some kind of low-fat diet. For me it was more of a hell (please let my abdomen like this, please oh please, etc), but it tasted good.
No, luxury was cheese and white bread, and a tiny tub of Nutella
for us$3.75 or so. Oh, and an avocado, but who counts those anyway. Nutella is magic stuff, by the way. Chocolate-y and melty, and "healthy" and good for breakfast. Not my usual speed, but still pretty good. Worth $3.75 (m$45), I think- when you consider it had to come all the way from Cancun, and from somewhere else before then, it's a pretty good price. But, yeah, total luxury. I'd probably be better off eating potato tacos again.
Kitchen Toy of Magic Shiny-ness
In the hostel kitchen (actually, in many hostel kitchens) they have something called a toasted sandwich maker
. They never really caught on in the States, but they're crazy popular pretty much everywhere else. In New Zealand ads for flat-shares would include the toasted sandwich maker
on the list of basic mod-cons. Somehow I managed never to use one.
Until yesterday.
Yesterday when I came back with my Bimbo bread and cheese and tomato and onion, I decided to be brave. I decided to use the toasted sandwich maker
. ZOMG, it's easy. It's fast. I has a new kitchen love. If/ when I ever have a really for reals home, I am totally putting one in the kitchen there. Maybe even before I add a wok.
It smooshed the bread, and half-sliced it, and melted the cheese, and softened the tomatoes, and toasted the outsides, and I'm sure if I'd thought to spread margarine on the outside it would have even made it better. And it's totally non-stick inside, so I just wiped it out with a kitchen rag after I unplugged it. I has love.
Then I used it again for breakfast. You know how Nutella gets all melty when it's hot? And kinda runny, and just somehow better? Yep, I spread that stuff on (more Bimbo brand) bread, slapped it in the hot sammich maker, and kept the lid shut just long enough to melt the insides and toast the outsides. I bet it'd be even better with the magical speculoos
spread (for people who fly Delta, it's a spread made from the same type of cookie as the cinnamony Biscoff cookies
they give out). Or, you know, both.
Um, so... yeah, not really a good day for budget eating, but sometimes a bit of "luxury" at home can keep you from wandering over to the pizza place or expensive restaurant, right? Maybe?
Which sounds bad. Actually, if "more than my share" of dinner was more than 15 pesos I might be more upset, but it was only about 25 pesos, and dinner fed 9 people for about 10 pesos each, so it's not that big a deal (spaghetti alfredo, if you're wondering- and yes, I think cream *is* cheaper here).
But that's not luxury, unless you're on some kind of low-fat diet. For me it was more of a hell (please let my abdomen like this, please oh please, etc), but it tasted good.
No, luxury was cheese and white bread, and a tiny tub of Nutella
for us$3.75 or so. Oh, and an avocado, but who counts those anyway. Nutella is magic stuff, by the way. Chocolate-y and melty, and "healthy" and good for breakfast. Not my usual speed, but still pretty good. Worth $3.75 (m$45), I think- when you consider it had to come all the way from Cancun, and from somewhere else before then, it's a pretty good price. But, yeah, total luxury. I'd probably be better off eating potato tacos again.Kitchen Toy of Magic Shiny-ness
In the hostel kitchen (actually, in many hostel kitchens) they have something called a toasted sandwich maker
. They never really caught on in the States, but they're crazy popular pretty much everywhere else. In New Zealand ads for flat-shares would include the toasted sandwich maker on the list of basic mod-cons. Somehow I managed never to use one.Until yesterday.
Yesterday when I came back with my Bimbo bread and cheese and tomato and onion, I decided to be brave. I decided to use the toasted sandwich maker
. ZOMG, it's easy. It's fast. I has a new kitchen love. If/ when I ever have a really for reals home, I am totally putting one in the kitchen there. Maybe even before I add a wok.It smooshed the bread, and half-sliced it, and melted the cheese, and softened the tomatoes, and toasted the outsides, and I'm sure if I'd thought to spread margarine on the outside it would have even made it better. And it's totally non-stick inside, so I just wiped it out with a kitchen rag after I unplugged it. I has love.
Then I used it again for breakfast. You know how Nutella gets all melty when it's hot? And kinda runny, and just somehow better? Yep, I spread that stuff on (more Bimbo brand) bread, slapped it in the hot sammich maker, and kept the lid shut just long enough to melt the insides and toast the outsides. I bet it'd be even better with the magical speculoos
spread (for people who fly Delta, it's a spread made from the same type of cookie as the cinnamony Biscoff cookies they give out). Or, you know, both.Um, so... yeah, not really a good day for budget eating, but sometimes a bit of "luxury" at home can keep you from wandering over to the pizza place or expensive restaurant, right? Maybe?
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
It's ALIVE!!!111one
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| Hostel BBQ Dinner |
And I totally admit to having no food photos either.
Not because I don't like taking photos, though it's really not my *most favoritest* thing to do.
Mostly because I don't like having to remember to fetch my camera from the locker, keep it in my pocket, not crunch or drench it while cooking, and only *then* snap pics of what I'm eating.
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| Mango, the (8 month old) hostel dog |
Also, I'm not so big on the going through the photos, picking out the ones that should ever see the light of day, and deleting the rest.
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| Iguanas, Hangin' Out |
I've been eating lazy food, anyway. I've fallen into a rut. I have quesadillas with black beans and queso Oaxaca (when the entire island isn't out of it), potato-cabbage taco-things, black bean "chili" in tortillas, on rice, mixed with pasta. I nom pasta with veggies and tomato sauce.
 |
| Part of a (hopefully) dead horse(?). Part of a scapula or pelvis, I think. There were other "horse parts" scattered around. Old, weathered bone really only *kinda* looks like wood. |
Friday, March 11, 2011
Food Should Look Good?
I don't actually have a photo of my breakfast/ lunch from today. I guess I really should just call it my breakfast, since I ended up taking a walk to the very end of "the Mystery Island of DOOM" and dragged a bottle of coke along with me. Um, the drink, not the white powdery stuff. That'd be *really* bad for the whole steady weight thing.
Anyway, this morning I made something that, while quite healthy, and even kinda tasty, looked like dog vomit. With catsup.
No, really, it looked foul. I put it in tortillas and ate about half before I was full. I then promptly tossed the rest.
Not just because it looked like something you should throw out (though it did) but also because I went a bit overboard with the cabbage. I won't be buying more cabbage until monday.
Also, there's *a lot* of cabbage in a softball sized cabbage. I never would have guessed.
Anyway, it was cheap, and kinda tasty (um, less cabbage next time, tho), and if you don't mind food that looks really *really* REALLY gross, you should try it.
Breakfasty Veggie Taco Filling- (feeds one very hungry person, or two normal people)
Anyway, this morning I made something that, while quite healthy, and even kinda tasty, looked like dog vomit. With catsup.
No, really, it looked foul. I put it in tortillas and ate about half before I was full. I then promptly tossed the rest.
Not just because it looked like something you should throw out (though it did) but also because I went a bit overboard with the cabbage. I won't be buying more cabbage until monday.
Also, there's *a lot* of cabbage in a softball sized cabbage. I never would have guessed.
Anyway, it was cheap, and kinda tasty (um, less cabbage next time, tho), and if you don't mind food that looks really *really* REALLY gross, you should try it.
Breakfasty Veggie Taco Filling- (feeds one very hungry person, or two normal people)
- 1 potato, diced
- 1-3 leaves cabbage, chiffonade-ed
- 1/4C onion, diced
- 1-3 cloved garlic, diced
- 1/4-1/2C tomato sauce
- splash vinegar
- 1tsp veggie oil
- 1/2tsp salt
- hot sauce to taste
- fresh squeezed lime juice (if you want)
Fry up the veggies (in the oil), starting with the potatoes(until about half done), then onions, then cabbage and garlic. simmer/ fry until the cabbage starts to wilt, then add vinegar and salt, simmer another minute or two. Add tomato sauce, hot sauce, and lime juice. Serve in a bowl and fork into tortillas for yummy filling breakfast.
For eggy types, this would probably be good with fried or scrambled egg, meaty types would probably enjoy it with some chopped ham or leftover chicken, or something.
But yeah, you're warned, it *looks* gross.
Oh, yeah, and everyone at home will be glad to hear it's a been a bit chilly. Needed blankets the last couple nights, and now I even *have* one. No, really, people were in long sleeves and sweatshirts this morning.
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Carnival and A Night Out
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| Random Sleeping Dog |
On the walk into town (all 6 blocks to the center) I caught a ride with some girls in a gas powered golf cart. I think they were about 8, with their dancing headdress balanced on the front seat between them. What can I say, I'm brave (or maybe stupid?).
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| Fresh Spinach Ravioli and a Glass Bottle of Coke. Yum |
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| Tiburon Balena on Land! (Whale Shark) |
Between dinner and the end of the party, though, I wandered around, watching the different dance groups. If Carnival here is anything like elsewhere, they are competing dance schools (of some sort). I'm not so sure about the one made up of all "ladies", but in my life I've learned that men will do strange things for beer. Last night I caught three groups dancing (a group in really flashy, expensive looking costumes, one in more home-made looking costumes, and men in drag) but I know there were more, because there were also two or three groups of kids running around with costumes or parts of costumes.
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| Dancers Between Numbers |
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| Dancing "Ladies" |
At one point a case of beer was dropped in the middle of the (very ugly) ladies/men and disappeared in less than a minute. I'm kinda sad about that group, actually- I tried and tried to get a picture of one of them fixing his pantyhose or something, but the one shot I got didn't turn out. Drat that night-time photography...
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| Ghost Dancers in the Street |
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Eating Out On A Budget, Mystery Island-Style
And just so we're clear here, the "mystery" island is *not* Cuba. I'm told there's *nothing* cheap there for tourists. I'm still solidly in Mexico. Just a very small, rural, way-the-heck out there part of Mexico.
Anyway, here on the mystery island (which isn't really that much of a mystery- I've been talking about it on twitter, after all.) Carnival is in full swing. The local-types and most of the tourists/ visitors are out in the square every night. The band shell is painted just for this week. There are music, games, dancing, and street food from one end of town to the other. And almost all of it costs 20 pesos.
Nutella
-filled crispy crepe-thing? 20 pesos. Pork tacos? 20 pesos. Quesadillas? 20 pesos. I'm sure there was stuff for other prices, but I wasn't paying much attention- it was all meaty and I wasn't buying.
Instead, I wandered over to the local by-the-slice pizzaria, Pizza Latina. Probably the best, longest deal on the entire island, you can get a 8"x4" (20x10cm) chunk of cheese pizza for (wait for it) 20 pesos, and I think toppings work out to about 5 pesos each. Yesterday I had cheese, but the day before I had one with zucchini on it, and that was 25. I'm only guessing here, btw.
So yeah, I came all the way to BFE Mexico (no, really, 3.5 hour 2nd class bus makes it BFE) to eat pizza.
Still, 20 pesos (...$1.70us?) isn't bad for something I didn't have to cook myself. Extra not bad when you realize that *everything* on the pizza has to be shipped in, on a ferry. Not bad at all.
Anyway, here on the mystery island (which isn't really that much of a mystery- I've been talking about it on twitter, after all.) Carnival is in full swing. The local-types and most of the tourists/ visitors are out in the square every night. The band shell is painted just for this week. There are music, games, dancing, and street food from one end of town to the other. And almost all of it costs 20 pesos.
Nutella
-filled crispy crepe-thing? 20 pesos. Pork tacos? 20 pesos. Quesadillas? 20 pesos. I'm sure there was stuff for other prices, but I wasn't paying much attention- it was all meaty and I wasn't buying.Instead, I wandered over to the local by-the-slice pizzaria, Pizza Latina. Probably the best, longest deal on the entire island, you can get a 8"x4" (20x10cm) chunk of cheese pizza for (wait for it) 20 pesos, and I think toppings work out to about 5 pesos each. Yesterday I had cheese, but the day before I had one with zucchini on it, and that was 25. I'm only guessing here, btw.
So yeah, I came all the way to BFE Mexico (no, really, 3.5 hour 2nd class bus makes it BFE) to eat pizza.
Still, 20 pesos (...$1.70us?) isn't bad for something I didn't have to cook myself. Extra not bad when you realize that *everything* on the pizza has to be shipped in, on a ferry. Not bad at all.
Saturday, March 5, 2011
Shop-o-rama, Rural Mexico Style
I went food shopping just yesterday. Other than veggies (ok, and some spices) I shouldn't need to buy anything ever again. Except I *really* wanted a sarong (cost in Cancun-75 pesos, cost on mystery island X- 230 pesos) and the smallest bill I had was a 500 peso note- a good couple days to a week's pay for one of the local fisherman-types. Obviously the veggie guy wasn't going to be able to break it- I'm lucky he has a scale (which I'm certain has a "tourista" setting). Heck, even the lady @ the (expensive) touristy gift shop had to go down the block for change.
Lesson #1- anything bigger than a m$50 note is too big to pay anything other than a (spendy) dinner bill, (large) bar tab, hotel, or (multi-night) hostel stay.
So, sarong and change in hand, I wandered off to the supermercado. I'll try and get photos, but I'm more of an empty-street kinda girl. At the grocery store I splurged. I was actually there for a can of beans, some vinegar, a couple potatoes, and spices. The potatoes were looking kinda sad, so I skipped them, and I forgot the spices entirely.
Don't worry, though, I made up for that with the island's cheapest (that I've found yet) bottle of (who knows what kind of) red wine- for 50 pesos.
Then it was off to hunt down the "good" veggie place. I've got a better Idea where it is... now. After wandering around for a while and finding the other, larger, grocery store- where I bought a (refrigerated, yummy) milky way bar... for 11 pesos. And forgot the spices again.
Wandered around a bit longer, and found the place I was looking for. Picked up the world's smallest head of cabbage and two white potatoes. Yummy white potatoes. My Spanish is *really* bad, by the way. And I guess I look totally clueless, too. I wanted cabbage. I *like* cabbage. It tastes good, it's good for you, it's (kinda, sometimes) cheap, and it doesn't turn into strange gelatinous slime when left out over night.
I, in fact, love cabbage.
I must be the only tourist who does, too, since the proprietor tried to tell me it wasn't lettuce. That he, in fact, *had* lettuce. I understood none of this, and looked, I'm convinced, more and more confused the harder he tried to explain. Finally someone else pulled out a head of lettuce from the fridge. Ah ha, I got it.
"No," I said. I pointed at the (very small, kinda sad looking) cabbage in his hand and pulled out a word I'd looked up on google just last night. "Col," I said, with a kinda questioning sound, "si? Col." Finally, convinced that I actually *might* know the difference between cabbage and lettuce, he weighed and sold it to me. With the potatoes. For 15 pesos. Always 15 pesos. Or else it's 1.5 and he's been robbing me blind.
And just think, tonight he gets to tell everyone he runs into about una loca gringa (um... yeah...) who actually *wanted* cabbage. I suspect that if I'd used one of my other words, you know, the ones I'm actually fairly comfortable using, I could have told him "want cabbage" instead of just (I'm pretty sure) "cabbage?"
Oh, well, that's a job for tomorrow. Or, rather Monday. I should probably go grab another onion, while everything is still open.
Total spent today? I don't wanna talk about it. But actual "food" was a very tiny part. No more shopping for me. Not this month, anyway.
Lesson #1- anything bigger than a m$50 note is too big to pay anything other than a (spendy) dinner bill, (large) bar tab, hotel, or (multi-night) hostel stay.
So, sarong and change in hand, I wandered off to the supermercado. I'll try and get photos, but I'm more of an empty-street kinda girl. At the grocery store I splurged. I was actually there for a can of beans, some vinegar, a couple potatoes, and spices. The potatoes were looking kinda sad, so I skipped them, and I forgot the spices entirely.
Don't worry, though, I made up for that with the island's cheapest (that I've found yet) bottle of (who knows what kind of) red wine- for 50 pesos.
Then it was off to hunt down the "good" veggie place. I've got a better Idea where it is... now. After wandering around for a while and finding the other, larger, grocery store- where I bought a (refrigerated, yummy) milky way bar... for 11 pesos. And forgot the spices again.
Wandered around a bit longer, and found the place I was looking for. Picked up the world's smallest head of cabbage and two white potatoes. Yummy white potatoes. My Spanish is *really* bad, by the way. And I guess I look totally clueless, too. I wanted cabbage. I *like* cabbage. It tastes good, it's good for you, it's (kinda, sometimes) cheap, and it doesn't turn into strange gelatinous slime when left out over night.
I, in fact, love cabbage.
I must be the only tourist who does, too, since the proprietor tried to tell me it wasn't lettuce. That he, in fact, *had* lettuce. I understood none of this, and looked, I'm convinced, more and more confused the harder he tried to explain. Finally someone else pulled out a head of lettuce from the fridge. Ah ha, I got it.
"No," I said. I pointed at the (very small, kinda sad looking) cabbage in his hand and pulled out a word I'd looked up on google just last night. "Col," I said, with a kinda questioning sound, "si? Col." Finally, convinced that I actually *might* know the difference between cabbage and lettuce, he weighed and sold it to me. With the potatoes. For 15 pesos. Always 15 pesos. Or else it's 1.5 and he's been robbing me blind.
And just think, tonight he gets to tell everyone he runs into about una loca gringa (um... yeah...) who actually *wanted* cabbage. I suspect that if I'd used one of my other words, you know, the ones I'm actually fairly comfortable using, I could have told him "want cabbage" instead of just (I'm pretty sure) "cabbage?"
Oh, well, that's a job for tomorrow. Or, rather Monday. I should probably go grab another onion, while everything is still open.
Total spent today? I don't wanna talk about it. But actual "food" was a very tiny part. No more shopping for me. Not this month, anyway.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Rejoice! I Haz A Kitchen!
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| Clear Water? Yep. |
So yesterday at about 7am I got up and started packing. I nommed the free breakfast (tea or coffee plus toast w/ sweet toppings), checked out, and was on my way by 8:30.
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| Mujeres from the ferry dock. |
Anyway, for m$100 a night (about us$250/month) I have a bed in a (girls only) dorm, hot and cold running water, a private balcony, kitchen access, wifi, all the hammocks I care to rock in, and one heck of a view. Did I mention that my bed is less than 100 feet from the beach?
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| Room with a view. |
At the first shop, generously called the grocery store (there are 3 on the island, I think, each about the size of a (small) convenience store) I got 900g of rice, 210ml of tomato sauce (like crushed tomatoes, not ketchup), 450g of lentils, and 200g of pasta (I think that was it) for m$35.50. The tomatoes were 5 pesos, and I might get them again, I don't know yet. Fresh ones are m$12/kg, and may be a better deal.
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| Roof View, too. Hammocks behind me. |
So yeah, 1kg of (*really, really*) fresh tortillas for m$8. I'll probably finish them in the next couple days, before they go weird.
Then off to hunt down the veggie guy. 1 head of garlic, 1 white onion, 1 (decent sized) zucchini, m$15. I'm told there is an actual veggie market here somewhere, I'll have to hunt it down tomorrow.
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| Veggie Tacos |
- 1/2 medium zucchini, sliced/ chopped into 1/4th rounds (2.5 pesos, .21us)
- 1/5 white onion, chopped (1 peso, .08us)
- 1 clove garlic, diced (.5? peso, ~.04us)
- 5 tortillas, small, fresh (~1 peso, .08us)
- oil (from the free bin), (.02us?)
- 1/4 tsp salt (also from the free bin) (<.01us)
Fry up the veggies in the oil and salt, stuff into tortillas, eat. Total cost, about m$5, or... 42 cents US.
I think picking up veggies ever day or every other day, if I can figure out what's cheap and in season, I can probably eat pretty good *here* on $1us a day. Heck, that's 12 whole pesos, and I only spent 5 on lunch.
I guess it makes up for the *really* good US$15 dinner I had last night.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Cancun? Pizza?
I actually woke up too late yesterday to take advantage of the free (er, included) breakfast at the hostel. I was up early enough today, but wow, was I ever busy. I decided to move on. I was just hanging out in the hostel anyway, and if I'm just going to loaf about I might as well do it on a beach, right? So I wandered over to Isla Mujeres (it was an elimination station on amazing race... 17?). Only took me all day to get here.
Important lesson- if you go aaaaalll the way to the slower, cheaper ferry, and the price has gone up and you just missed it, don't hang around and wait for the next one. Hop back on the bus and go to the (slightly more expensive, faster) ferry. The extra dollar isn't so bad, 'specially since I managed to spend something like $3 on soda and snacks waiting for the (slow, open) ferry.
Anyway, last night (after being "good" and eating what I already had) I decided to go out. I'm not yet brave enough (or fluent enough) to hunt down the rare vegetarian street food, so I wandered around until I found a pizza place. For 20 pesos each (what I just paid for an icy cold bottle of beer) I got a slice of pizza. Actually, I got two- and a Fanta. I *love* food I don't have to cook myself.
I also *love* knowing that there are places cheaper than 5* hotels to get food. While I was waiting (um, 3? 4 hours?) for the ferry, sipping on a (bottle of) coke and avoiding the rain, two guys came up to the stand I was loitering at. Not 200 yards from their fancy, spendy hotel, is this tiny little stand. With tacos (looked like pork, but what do I know), something else, and soda. I felt good for a moment. I think they spoke less spanish than I do.
Anyway, they wander up, wonder what there is, I talked them into two tacos each (easier for everyone, right?), and they got them. Small, taco sized tortillas, a good scoop of meat on each, diced red onion and some tomato, and a good slice of avocado on each. I think she said they were 2/10pesos, but I really wasn't paying attention. Like I said, I wasn't eating
them, and while it's bad in general to not stop people from over paying, if I gotta do it, they do too. So they
got the tacos, 2 each, paid (I'm pretty sure) twice the price she quoted them, and tried to kill themselves with hotsauce.
They eventually wandered off with their (only slightly spicy, thanks to the lady at the stand) tacos, happy to have found such totally cheap food.
40 minutes later they were back with their dad and more money.
Sometimes I think life would be so much easier if I just ate meat. Then I realize that I *really* don't want to, however good it smells.
Only thing that really sucked today was spending $8 each for (cheap) sunblock and contact lens solution.
Heck, I even enjoyed the rain when I woke up, and the nightclub that was still going strong at 8am, and the downpour that attacked me while waiting for the ferry.
Wish you were here?
oh, yeah- roof dog may *look* scary, but he'd bark a happy kinda "I don't think you should come over here, but if you want to throw me some food, that'd be cool" bark while wagging his tail about a mile a minute.
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| "Ocean" view |
Important lesson- if you go aaaaalll the way to the slower, cheaper ferry, and the price has gone up and you just missed it, don't hang around and wait for the next one. Hop back on the bus and go to the (slightly more expensive, faster) ferry. The extra dollar isn't so bad, 'specially since I managed to spend something like $3 on soda and snacks waiting for the (slow, open) ferry.
Anyway, last night (after being "good" and eating what I already had) I decided to go out. I'm not yet brave enough (or fluent enough) to hunt down the rare vegetarian street food, so I wandered around until I found a pizza place. For 20 pesos each (what I just paid for an icy cold bottle of beer) I got a slice of pizza. Actually, I got two- and a Fanta. I *love* food I don't have to cook myself.
 |
| cool building across the street |
I also *love* knowing that there are places cheaper than 5* hotels to get food. While I was waiting (um, 3? 4 hours?) for the ferry, sipping on a (bottle of) coke and avoiding the rain, two guys came up to the stand I was loitering at. Not 200 yards from their fancy, spendy hotel, is this tiny little stand. With tacos (looked like pork, but what do I know), something else, and soda. I felt good for a moment. I think they spoke less spanish than I do.
Anyway, they wander up, wonder what there is, I talked them into two tacos each (easier for everyone, right?), and they got them. Small, taco sized tortillas, a good scoop of meat on each, diced red onion and some tomato, and a good slice of avocado on each. I think she said they were 2/10pesos, but I really wasn't paying attention. Like I said, I wasn't eating
 |
| sunset over cancun |
got the tacos, 2 each, paid (I'm pretty sure) twice the price she quoted them, and tried to kill themselves with hotsauce.
They eventually wandered off with their (only slightly spicy, thanks to the lady at the stand) tacos, happy to have found such totally cheap food.
40 minutes later they were back with their dad and more money.
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| lonely (but happy) roof dog next door |
Sometimes I think life would be so much easier if I just ate meat. Then I realize that I *really* don't want to, however good it smells.
Only thing that really sucked today was spending $8 each for (cheap) sunblock and contact lens solution.
Heck, I even enjoyed the rain when I woke up, and the nightclub that was still going strong at 8am, and the downpour that attacked me while waiting for the ferry.
Wish you were here?
oh, yeah- roof dog may *look* scary, but he'd bark a happy kinda "I don't think you should come over here, but if you want to throw me some food, that'd be cool" bark while wagging his tail about a mile a minute.
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