Nicaragua: Bananas & Plantains
"Anyway, like I was sayin', shrimp is the fruit of the sea. You can barbecue it, boil it, broil it, bake it, sauté it. There's shrimp kabobs, shrimp creole, shrimp gumbo. Pan-fried, deep-fried, stir-fried. There's pineapple shrimp, lemon shrimp, coconut shrimp, pepper shrimp, shrimp soup, shrimp stew, shrimp salad, shrimp and potatoes, shrimp burger, shrimp sandwich. That's about it."
If we're playing the "name that movie" game and you just guessed "Forrest Gump," declare yourself a winner. This quote comes from Bubba, whose family is obviously in the shrimp business. Why have I chosen this specific excerpt to start off my latest post, you wonder?
Answer: today I was given a boiled green banana for lunch (it tasted like a potato) and I couldn't help but think to myself, "Bananas are the fruit of Nicaragua. You can fry them, boil them, bake them. There's banana bread, banana smoothies, banana milk. Sliced, chopped, mashed. There's green plantains, ripe plantains, bananos, apple bananas, tostones, tajadas, banana fruit salad, peanut butter and banana sandwich. And that's about it."
Basically, I'm in love with the Nicaraguan variety of bananas and ways to prepare them, similar to Bubba's shrimp obsession. I have yet to come across a banana concoction that I don't like. Tostones and tajadas are both prepared with green plantains...either chopped into thin strips or round coins...and then fried. The ripe plantains are by far the sweetest and most addictive, and the bananos (which are like mini bananas) are best for making bread. I've never heard of boiling bananas before, and now I wonder why I've been deprived all my life up to this point. Seriously folks, I'm bananas about bananas. I'm sure my potassium levels are off the charts.
The rest of my diet here consists of a lot of rice, beans, cheese, and vegetable soups. I now take my oatmeal as a cold drink instead of as a warm cereal and all of my juices are prepared with fresh fruit. Another observation: my diet is high in fresh foods period. I realized I had a craving for fake cheese the other day (as in the powder kind that comes in a box of mac and cheese) and all I could find was the real stuff, locally made and 0% factory processed. Tough luck, right?
The nica diet is not perfect, in fact it can be very high in carbs and sugar. The markets offer a beautiful variety of fruits and vegetables daily, however the nicas seem to prefer a carbo-loaded meal of pasta, rice, bread, and other starchy goodness. I don't understand why when such a supply of fruits and veggies are readily available.
The day I get sick of eating bananas will be a sad one. At this point, however, that day is not even on the radar.
If we're playing the "name that movie" game and you just guessed "Forrest Gump," declare yourself a winner. This quote comes from Bubba, whose family is obviously in the shrimp business. Why have I chosen this specific excerpt to start off my latest post, you wonder?
Answer: today I was given a boiled green banana for lunch (it tasted like a potato) and I couldn't help but think to myself, "Bananas are the fruit of Nicaragua. You can fry them, boil them, bake them. There's banana bread, banana smoothies, banana milk. Sliced, chopped, mashed. There's green plantains, ripe plantains, bananos, apple bananas, tostones, tajadas, banana fruit salad, peanut butter and banana sandwich. And that's about it."
Basically, I'm in love with the Nicaraguan variety of bananas and ways to prepare them, similar to Bubba's shrimp obsession. I have yet to come across a banana concoction that I don't like. Tostones and tajadas are both prepared with green plantains...either chopped into thin strips or round coins...and then fried. The ripe plantains are by far the sweetest and most addictive, and the bananos (which are like mini bananas) are best for making bread. I've never heard of boiling bananas before, and now I wonder why I've been deprived all my life up to this point. Seriously folks, I'm bananas about bananas. I'm sure my potassium levels are off the charts.
The rest of my diet here consists of a lot of rice, beans, cheese, and vegetable soups. I now take my oatmeal as a cold drink instead of as a warm cereal and all of my juices are prepared with fresh fruit. Another observation: my diet is high in fresh foods period. I realized I had a craving for fake cheese the other day (as in the powder kind that comes in a box of mac and cheese) and all I could find was the real stuff, locally made and 0% factory processed. Tough luck, right?
The nica diet is not perfect, in fact it can be very high in carbs and sugar. The markets offer a beautiful variety of fruits and vegetables daily, however the nicas seem to prefer a carbo-loaded meal of pasta, rice, bread, and other starchy goodness. I don't understand why when such a supply of fruits and veggies are readily available.
The day I get sick of eating bananas will be a sad one. At this point, however, that day is not even on the radar.
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