Ñam-ñam, ñam-ñam,ñam-ñam!
I’m a really big fan of food. Loretta=foodie. :D They say (technically
I say and since I don’t feel like doing any research right now, let’s just
make it a fact--haha! Call me Fox news or CNN or a lot of our mainstream news media) our food preferences come from the type of food we ate growing
up. I was raised on a Ghanaian diet
since as a child my Ghanaian parents fed me the food they bought from the
market and cooked in our kitchen.
Although I was force fed fufu (a sticky ball made out of mashed cassava
(yucca) and eaten with soup), I HATE fufu.
Actually, I HATE anything I can’t chew because I believe only old people
and babies should consume foods like fufu and mashed potatoes since these foods
don’t require teeth.* Maybe when I’m
107, I’ll like fufu but right now, I like to use my teeth to chew, crunch, and
munch! My top favorite foods are
therefore..
Food I can eat pretty much all day errday:
1.
Rice (arroz)—I like my rice crunchy and soft at
the same time but if you serve me a bowl of rice, there will be none left by
the time I’m finished with it.
2.
Cashews!---Omagawd, omagawd!! If you buy me a bag of cashews, we’ll be best
friends 4eva. Honestly, I LOVE nuts (fruto seco/nuez)—in
the traditional sense of course (not to be confused with testicles or crazy people). Walnuts,
macadamia nuts, Brazil nuts…you name the nut and I’ll probs like it. Buy my favorite nut is totally the cashew
nut.
3.
Fish (pescado)—YUM! Especially the grilled tilapia my mom
makes.
4.
Veggies (vegetales)—seriously, I should single
out a couple (broccoli, spinach, onions) but I enjoy any veggie product
since they are so damn yummy.
5.
Fruit (fruta)—Agghha! Mangos, Pineapples, Guava,
Blueberries…+ every fruit ever! Ñam,
ñam, ñam!!! Mouth dripping yum! The tartier, the better! ;)
6.
Bread (pan)—If I could travel the world and just
eat bread from different countries, my life would be probably the greatest life
a single human being has ever lived. Also, I would have to roll from point A to point B instead of traveling vertically. But I
don’t play when it comes to bread…so this just may be worth it!
*Note: Fufu is generally eaten with a soup made out of
veggies and meat so yeah, technically, you need to chew the stuff that comes
with the fufu but the fufu itself is just rolled up into itty bitty balls and
swallowed with the soup.
K. Now that I’ve
written this, I’m supper hungry! Ugggg,
tengo hambre. But it’s all good since I
can step down for dinner later.
 |
| Fufu with some kind of meat: You should try it for your self. Don't let my bias influence you! |
Fun Fact
Hey reader, if you’re coming to Cuba for the culinary experience, you should stop in your tracks and go somewhere else, like France or whatever. Yuppers, for the most part, the food here is pretty much composed of bland, white, empty carbs. I mean yeah, number 1 and 6 on my list is pretty much all I eat here in addition to 5 of course (this is a tropical island and OMG don’t even get me started about the succulent mangos, piña, and GWYABA=gwava I’ve enjoyed here). Although the food is considerably cheap and filling, apart from rice and bread the options are very limited. But this island (whose history and economy come from sugar) will more than satisfy your sweet tooth!! And although the variety of fruits may be limited as well (depending on where you are...this has been my experience in La Habana), the quality of the fruit is beyond mouth watering! The following is what I mainly eat during the week and other stuff that’s offered...
Hey reader, if you’re coming to Cuba for the culinary experience, you should stop in your tracks and go somewhere else, like France or whatever. Yuppers, for the most part, the food here is pretty much composed of bland, white, empty carbs. I mean yeah, number 1 and 6 on my list is pretty much all I eat here in addition to 5 of course (this is a tropical island and OMG don’t even get me started about the succulent mangos, piña, and GWYABA=gwava I’ve enjoyed here). Although the food is considerably cheap and filling, apart from rice and bread the options are very limited. But this island (whose history and economy come from sugar) will more than satisfy your sweet tooth!! And although the variety of fruits may be limited as well (depending on where you are...this has been my experience in La Habana), the quality of the fruit is beyond mouth watering! The following is what I mainly eat during the week and other stuff that’s offered...
Menu from a Paladar/Restaurant/on the streets/etc…
Food:
·
Arroz morro/Arroz Cristiano (rice with beans) +
something else (some type of meat, egg, cabbage, tomatoes, yams, sweet potato )--A
friend mentioned that it is sometimes called Cristiano because the Moors
(people of North Africa)= Beans and the white Spaniards/Christians=rice ~ $25
mondeda nacional=$1 USD
·
Tortilla (egg sandwich)— plain/with onions,
tomatoes/ham fried eggs on a plain, white, empty carb piece of bread~>$8
moneda= less than $0.50 USD
·
Pizza (with toppings: tomatoes, onions,
sometimes tuna, olives)—there are some many places that sell personal pizzas
with thin crusts and this very different tasting/looking cheese~$10MN
·
Pasta~$15MN
·
Tostones=fried green plantain!~$12 MN
·
Ajiaco=yummy soup made out of different meats,
veggies invented by the indigenous population
·
Junk food: baked goods are real yummy and super
cheap. There are a bunch of vendors who
sell stuff like guava filled pies, cupcake thingys filled with coconut, cookies
filled with coconut and guava and sooo much other yummy treats.~$3 MN
·
Ice Cream: one word: Coppelia!!!!!!! That’s all
I can say.~$5 MN for 5 giant scoops of sinful ice cream at Coppelia...after waiting in the ridiculously long line of course.
Drinks:
·
Batido—(fruit or chocolate) smoothies <3 :
less than $5MN
·
Jugo de (Gwayaba, mamay, naranja, etc)—Juice
(Guava, some type of melon, organge): $3 MN
·
Coffee—come in an itty bitty cup but the coffee
is so strong its like taking a shot of caffee ($1 MN no less than $3MN) sooo
cheep!
·
Alcohol: run (rom), piña-colada, mojito, +many
many others : mostly in CUC or the converted currency that is more or less the
equivalent of $1 and generally, drinks can be found for less than $5 CUC
(bottled ones in convenience stores, gas stations)
Other Food I can buy but choose not to
·
Burgers~$15 MN
·
Hotdogs~$5 MN
·
Ham Sandwiches—soooooo many ham sandwiches =$10
MN
Vegetarianism
Honestly, I’m not that much of a
carnivore. I don’t eat beef since I
think cows (besides horses) are some of the cuiet, smartest, coolest, most
chill creatures out there. I also hate
the taste of hamburgers and haven’t had one in years. Purty much, the only meat things I eat are
chicken and fish. I like the taste of
chicken but I could probs live without it.
What I CANNOT part with is fish. Ñam, ñam, ñam oh how I love fish. But if I wish to practice what I preach and
dedicate myself to eating as conscientiously as possible, I should part ways
with fish when I return to the states since our oceans are over fished and fish
farming is a screwed up process to mass produce other sentient beings. But yeah, as of right now, my stomach
dictates for me therefore, whenever I get fish on my plate, I’m super
happy.
It seems that most people aren’t
vegetarians/vegans* here and it’s kind of hard to eat this kind of diet
since almost all the main dishes are made with meat (especially pork). Even arroz morro has chunks of pork mixed
into it. This was also the case in
Ghana. Most people like to have meat
with their food in some kind of way. Hypothesis: the growing popularity of vegetarianism/veganism
is something that has mainly taken place in countries in North America and
Europe as a result of our inhuman food industry. But don’t quote me on that. This is just an observation I’m making based
on the documentaries I’ve watched, the animal rights groups I’m familiar with,
and my friends who are vegans or vegetarians.
So…I’d like to give vegetarianism a
swing. I did pescetarianism (veggies+fish: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pescetarianism) for like 4 months or so and really liked it. Having a limited option when it came to food
choice really made me take my food more seriously.
I feel like my food options are
very limited here (unless I go to the places that only serve meals in CUC ) but it’s frustrating that a variety of vegetables can't really be found so easily. Maybe its because most of my meals are at my residency and even though I'm paying so much for them, the quality of the food isn't that great. It feels like my freshman year when I was forced to eat the expensive but unappetizing meal plan. I hate being ripped off. Waaaaahhhh! I
miss spinach, broccoli, and so many other veggies!
I wonder why Cuba doesn’t have a lot of the produce I eat in
the States? Hmmm…could the embargo have
something to do with this? I’ll get back
to you on that one since I’m not feeling like doing research right now! :P
Note:
It just may be impossible to be a
vegan here unless all you want to eat is bread.
And I’m not a certified nutritionist but I’m pretty the daily nutrients
one needs to function don’t come solely from bread!
 |
| I made this with a friend in her apartment: Rice, turkey stew, and fried sweet plantain! |
Taste of Home
The following foods are things I'm familiar with since they are staples of the Ghanian diet: a super spice, yummy, and pretty healthy diet (main staples: rice, cassava or yucca, plantain)
-rice and beans
-plantain (red, yellow, green)
-fruits (mango, pineapple)
-yams
-sugar cane
-chocolate*: interesting fact--In Ghana and Cuba, its easier to find the cocoa plant (where chocolate comes from) than an actual chocolate bar. I'm pretty sure that even though Ghana was at one time, the world's largest exporter of cocoa and today still ships a crap ton of cocoa to be produced as chocolate in the factories of the industrialized world, the country doesn't produce its own chocolates. Actually, when I was there last summer, my cousins really wanted me to bring them chocolates and sweets.
In Cuba as well, a couple people have asked me for chocolates like M&M's and Hersey or whatever because they are pretty expensive here (like $10 CUC= a month's paycheck for the people who work in the residency I live in). Even though one can find chocolate bars in Baracoa, the texture isn't as rich and decadent as the chocolates in the super markets in the US.
*Fun Fact: Not actually that fun, kinda sad actually
Even though Ghana exports a crap ton of cocoa to the factories of the industrialized world where it is processed and made into the chocolate we all love oh so much, child labor and the exploitation of workers are common practices. I watched a documentary about this with my parents and my sister a while ago but I've forget the title. For you reader, I've found another Youtube clip. I didn't screen it myself it won't load on my computer so I apologize if it isn't that good...
The Challenge to Make Chocolate Child Labour Free
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FRG6NMVKHDs
Take Away
I admire vegans and vegetarians for their dedication to eating conscientiously. What we put into our bodies is oh so sacred and I think it takes a lot of guts to say: "You know what, I'm not going to eat this meat product because the animal that I'm devouring suffered great cruelty and as a fellow sentient being, I won't partake in this corrupt and inhuman food industry." But I also think its important that vegans, vegetarians, pescatarians, carnivores, bread eaters, whatever know where their food comes from and learn about its supply chain. Because after all, people matter more than chocolate and yes, more than animals. Although animal rights is important it is clear that: Human rights > animal rights!
Eat conscientiously and stay healthy!
--Peace, love, and happiness! PS: Can I have a bite?*
Besitos <3
*Note: My nickname at home is Madam
Bite since at home, whenever anyone is eating something yummy I want to try, I
walk over to them and as sweetly as I can, I say: “Can I have a bite?” ;)
Boniato=Yam!
I've had this argument so many times with various people. For some odd reason, a lot of people confuse yams with sweet potatoes. As a fan of both plants, I just want to clear up this misconception. http://homecooking.about.com/od/howtocookvegetables/a/sweetpotatodiff.htm
Also, this sentence irks me sooooo much:
"The word yam comes from African words njam, nyami, or djambi, meaning "to eat," and was first recorded in America in 1676."
There is no such thing as an "African word" because repeat after me: Africa is a CONTINENT not a country. Within this CONTINENT, there are many countries ( 54=recognized countries http://jfmaho.wordpress.com/2010/12/30/how-many-countries-are-there-in-africa/). Within these countries, people may or may not speak different languages. Ghana's national language for example is English however there exist numerous other languages as well (Akan, Ewe, Dagomba (Dagbani),Dangme, Dagaare, Ga, Nzema, Gonja,Kasem for example). So bam, African isn't a language. Would anyone ever say, that the word stems from a European word? No! They would make the distinction as to which European language--you know French, Spanish, German, etc. So get your facts straight!
http://www.infoplease.com/askeds/countries-africa.html
Boniato=Yam!
I've had this argument so many times with various people. For some odd reason, a lot of people confuse yams with sweet potatoes. As a fan of both plants, I just want to clear up this misconception. http://homecooking.about.com/od/howtocookvegetables/a/sweetpotatodiff.htm
Also, this sentence irks me sooooo much:
"The word yam comes from African words njam, nyami, or djambi, meaning "to eat," and was first recorded in America in 1676."
There is no such thing as an "African word" because repeat after me: Africa is a CONTINENT not a country. Within this CONTINENT, there are many countries ( 54=recognized countries http://jfmaho.wordpress.com/2010/12/30/how-many-countries-are-there-in-africa/). Within these countries, people may or may not speak different languages. Ghana's national language for example is English however there exist numerous other languages as well (Akan, Ewe, Dagomba (Dagbani),Dangme, Dagaare, Ga, Nzema, Gonja,Kasem for example). So bam, African isn't a language. Would anyone ever say, that the word stems from a European word? No! They would make the distinction as to which European language--you know French, Spanish, German, etc. So get your facts straight!
http://www.infoplease.com/askeds/countries-africa.html
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