Chile is not a gastronome’s delight however there is enough
here to keep foodies entertained.
Seafood is more than abundant due to the close proximity of Chile’s
coastline, and a quick browse in any market reveals types of shellfish that are
not found elsewhere – even to me, a New Zealander used to many varieties of
kaimoana. This weekend marks Semana
Santa (Easter Week), which culminates in a feast of mariscos and pescado
(mussles and fish). I’m not sure of the
religious significance of this, but apparently it is a Catholic tradition that
is upheld by the majority of the people.
The Mercado Central of Santiago is thriving with patrons readying
themselves with preparations, and the news is rife with warnings about boiling
the mussels before eating. Raw seafood
is a delicacy of Chile, especially on the southern island of Chiloe (the second
largest island of South America) – ceviche, a dish of raw fish and lemon juice,
is immensely popular but be wary – Marea Roja (Red Tide) is a vicious disease
as a result of blooming algae and high sea temperatures in oysters, mussels and
clams, which has been known to cause severe illness and even death. In addition, Chile is the second biggest
exporter of Salmon in the world, and the South is the place to find truly delicious
(and very cheap) dishes utilizing it.
Chupe is a seafood casserole served in clay bowls, in particular Chupe
con Jaiba (crab) is especially delectable.
The island of Chiloe is noted for
blessing mainland Chile with Curanto, which is traditionally cooked underground
like a Maori hangi. It consists of all
types of seafood with chicken and meat and is truly a sight to behold. It is served throughout southern Chile, however
it is rarely cooked the Chilote way.
Mote con Huesillo is one of my favourites. It’s an interesting concoction of dried
peaches and huesillos (a type of wheat) in sweetened peach juice. This food-within-a-drink is available
everywhere at roadside stalls and is absolutely delicious. Fresh juices are equally abundant and the many
varieties are thanks mostly to the influence of Ecuador – in particular,
frutillar (strawberry) is a true thirst quencher. The water in Chile is generally safe to
drink, despite being contaminated with fluoride (whose arm of influence is ever
reaching it seems).
Travel shows always feature the
completo – Chile’s signature hotdog – which is served everywhere and gaining in
popularity (indeed, Chile’s fascination with fast food has seen it become the
sixth most obese nation in the world). There
is even a national day of the Complete, which sees thousands queuing up and
numerous eating competitions (and much drinking for the students!). The traditional completo is a gooey,
artery-clogging feast, featuring a frankfurter, a bun, gallons of mayonnaise
and mashed avocado.
Lomo a lo pobre (literally ‘poor man’s steak’) consists of a
plate of greasy chips topped with a chunk of steak and a fried egg – not
particularly inventive but its filling and real ‘man’ food. Expat Chilenos salivate at the sight of this dish.
Dining in Chile always begins with
white rolls and pebre – which is, in my humble opinion, the best thing about
Chilean food! Pebre is a spicy mix of
cilantro, tomatoes, lemon juice and
onion, and it is slightly different in every restaurant you go to. It is YUMMY!
The German influence throughout Southern Chile has meant
that the moist cake known as Kuchen is extremely popular.
Typically, Chileans have bread for
breakfast, a big lunch involving meat and lots of tea and coffee. “Once” is very popular. There are all sorts of theories as to how it
got its name as it doesn’t take place at eleven, but to be honest, Once’s take
a while to get used to. Instead of
having dinner, many Chileans partake in a repeat breakfast of bread and
tea/coffee. Chileans rave about their
staple bread – the marrequeata – which are two rolls joined together into a
bunch of four.
Porotos Granados is a traditional Chilean dinner of beans
with corn and potato, and probably one of the few vegetarian options
available. Porotos con riendas is
another variation containing pasta and dried poroto (brown in colour). Many
suburban eateries do not have menus either, and usually have a deal consisting
of juice, salad and the meal of the day.
A note on salads: Chileans have bizaarely
boring salads – think just iceberg lettuce or onion – and covered in salt and
lemon juice. They put lemon and salt on
everything (EXCEPT on tomatoes)!
Palmeras is a popular snack which is
basically just pastry covered with sugar;
sopaipilla is a roadside snack made of fried flour with Manteca
(vegetable oil); Berlin in a small hamburger filled with manjar (very sweet
evaporated milk, used as a spread) or crema pastelera. Ubiquitous to South America, the empanada is
obviously prevalent in Chile and umm, YUM!
They are very similar to an English pasty, and the meat ones always
contain a single olive. Anything can be
made into an empanada but my favourite is cheese with prawn – it is basically
like going to heaven with a single bite.
Chileans eat a lot of avocados, usually with salt and lemon,
mashed up over marrequeta bread. In
general, Chileans use a crazy amount of lemon and salt. If any readers are dating a Chilean, you need
to acquaint yourself with Chilean food – the way to a man’s heart is through
his stomach they say, and most guys are accustomed to the amazing cooking of
their mothers.
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