What’s Cookin’ Good Lookin’ – Mexican Cooking Class

Through my study abroad program I’ve been able to go on guided excursions, trips to the beach, take salsa classes and cooking classes! We had one cooking class earlier this month and we had another one a few days ago. I was excited for these classes because one of my favorite things to do with my mom is cook. I love food too, so that probably played into it. I loved this class in particular because we went to a “Quinta” or country home on the outskirts of Merida. The quinta was beautiful and we had so much space to work in. Our lovely teacher Señora Gloria taught us how to make two traditional Yucatecan dishes- Panucho and Chayitas. She even threw in a desert and we learned how to make sweet empanadas as well! Usually when I cook or bake I try not to stray too far from the measurements. But, in Mexico they follow family recipes that aren’t written down. A little flour here and dash of salt there and you have your dough! Although it’s a little intimidating to cook without explicit measurements or instructions I put some faith in Señora Gloria (and myself) and went for it! The results were delicious!  

 Beautiful bowl of Chaya leaves. If you aren’t familiar with Chaya it is a leaf similar to spinach and grows on trees here in the Yucatan! 

 Here’s me chopping up some Chaya and trying not chop off my fingers.

   
 We mixed the chopped Chaya with some simple dough and fried it up to create Chayitas! Some people put salsa on theirs but I preferred some shredded chicken! 

   

 For the base of the Panucho we stuffed the inside of some corn tortillas with beans and fried those as well. 

   
The Panuchos were topped with a little bit of lettuce, seasoned shredded chicken, cabbage, tomato and red onion soaked in sour orange juice. These were delicious! 

   

 For desert we made sweet empanadas. We made a simple sweet dough and pressed it into circles. We filled them with a cream cheese filling and then brushed melted butter on top. And for an extra bit of sweetness we sprinkled some sugar on top before baking. These weren’t like our typical American desert but they were delicious! I hope I can try to recreate some of these recipes when I get home! 

Thanks for reading and hasta luego! 

Study Abroad Struggle- Trying New Foods

Hola amigos! I’m not going to lie when I decided to come to Mexico for a month I had high expectations for the food. I want to preface this by saying I am not a picky eater and will try almost anything at least once. But, I dreamt of burritos smothered with queso and chicken quesadillas topped with sour cream. Well I was surprised to say the least when I actually made to Mexico. The food here hasn’t been bad but, it definitely wasn’t what I expected. The food is nothing like our americanized version of Mexican food here in the Yucatan. My house mom cooks the majority of my meals and I’ve tried some things I really like here and tried some things that weren’t hitting on much. My advice is if you’re studying abroad or traveling in general it is in all part of the experience to try the local food. Give it a try and if it’s not your thing you don’t have eat it again! (Probably.)

Now let’s get into what food I’ve tried since I have been here! In this tropical environment it’s not surprising that fruit is a staple here. Sadly, I’m not a huge fruit person but, I’ve had some delicious pineapple, grapes and apples. So, when one of those shows up on my plate for breakfast I am a happy camper.

They also love there veggies here and luckily I love vegetables. So, I’ve had some delicious stews with veggies. The stew here usually has pork or chicken and lentils. It’s different but it is tasty!

     

Probably my favorite food I’ve had here is my mama’s homemade cheese. It has some magical seasoning on top and little bit of olive oil. With some chips they make the perfect snack.

They also know how to make a good sorbet here. A place called “Colon” is super popular here. Their sorbets are delicious and super refreshing. (My personal favorite flavor is Lemon!)

Those are some of my favorites I’ve had since I have been in Merida. One of my biggest disappointments since I have been here would be Tamales. I was excited to try these because I know there are very popular in Mexico. Unfortunately I was not a fan of these but, if you get a chance try them. They may not be for me but, you may love them! My biggest advice is just to give new foods a try- you may find a new favorite!

Thanks for reading and hasta luego!

Adventure Time- Mexican Mercado

Hola! Today I got to experience something I have been waiting for- a Mexican mercado! I love going to markets. From the local farmers market in Lexington to La Boqueria in Barcelona, I think they are so fun to wander through. I feel that I become more immersed in the culture when I get to experience a local market. Today I went to the Lucas de Gavez Mercado in downtown Mérida. This experience was different than any other fresh market that I have been to. As with all markets there were a ton of local produce, fish, meat, flowers and spices available to buy. What set this market apart for me was the layout. It was a maze. There were hundreds of tight, winding rows of vendors. There was very little organization to how market vendors were set up. All the meat and fish vendors were in one are but, the rest was a guessing game. One table would be selling peppers and the next table was selling cooking knives. (A little scary since they were all out in the open!) Also something that really stood out to me about this market was the prices- everything was super cheap. You could buy half of a watermelon for less than a dollar! Although it was well over 100 degrees today getting lost in the market was a really eye opening experience. I was able to get an authentic Mexican experience and all the tastes, sights and smells (good and bad) that come with that. Not only did I get to see where some of the food I’ve been eating comes from but, I was also able to see how many Mexican people make a living! When traveling I recommend checking to see if where you’re going has a local market you can explore. It’s one of my favorite ways to experience a new culture!

Some of the flower vendors-

Some of the food vendors that I was able to get pictures of-

I also took an excessive amount of pineapple pictures-

Also there were little statues of virgins and saints for sale along with some lit votive candles scattered around the market-

Thanks for reading & hasta luego!