The Newcomer’s Club gives all its members a free guide of tips on how to get by as an English-speaker. When I got mine a few months ago, a paragraph in the introduction caught my eye: “What do you do when you’re having your husband’s boss over for dinner, only to discover ricotta cheese — the star ingredient in your lasagna — can’t be found at your local supermarket?”
I remember scoffing at this. Lasagna? You’re really making lasagna for your husband’s boss when you live in Mexico City? Dude, sacar the Rick Bayless and hook up some chicken thighs bathed in tomatillo sauce!
Of course, I totally ate my hat during Crayton’s birthday. I tried to make mac n’ cheese — his favorite — only to discover that my local supermarket (nay, two supermarkets) didn’t have sharp cheddar. I fretted in the grocery store for a few minutes, feeling like a pampered expat wife, before realizing that any type of melted cheese would do just fine, especially when smothered in heavy cream. I picked gouda and gruyere. Everyone loved it.
It’s interesting how difficult it’s been to tweak my American eating habits. I thought: I’ll arrive in Mexico and only cook with fresh, local ingredients! But I’ve done it in baby steps. Buying nopal tortillas. Crumbling panela cheese on salads.
Some days I just want a turkey burger. (Ground turkey doesn’t exist here.) I want diced apple on my cereal, even though it comes from Washington and is way more expensive than papaya. (Which, IMO, kind of smells like vomit.)
Maybe a cooking class would inspire me. Or unearthing my two Diana Kennedy cookbooks and actually reading them, instead of skimming them until my eyes glaze over.
I always thought papaya smells like fart! Glad I’m not the only one who thinks the fruit smells gross.
I had a similar experience cooking in Mexico once. My husband and I tried to make Laksa (a spicy, coconut-milk based stew) for my relatives, and discovered that despite the availability of coconuts at ever street corner, nobody had ever heard of coconut milk (which is a common ingredient in Singapore). We ended up grinding and squeezing our own coconut milk through a hankie. A couple of throbbing forehead veins and half an hour later, we had about a tablespoon and a half of coconut milk. Not an experience we want to attempt again!
I can’t believe you actually squeezed your own coconut milk. That is dedication! Although, I’m embarrassed to admit that I thought coconuts were full of milk — all you needed to do is hack them in half, like in the movies. Guess that’s false. Glad you cleared it up.
papaya…sweet tasting, yet suspect-smelling.
Aha! Common mistake. The “milk” comes from pulverized coconut meat; coconut water is the liquid inside a hacked coconut. I draw upon years of experience of watching the Food Network, not actually using either ingredient mind you.
Your mac-n-cheese sounds scrumptious! Might need the recipe.