In no particular order, some of my current favorite Nica foods:
Gallo Pinto – Beans and rice, cooked together. A basic staple food, gallo pinto shows up on Nica plates morning, noon, and night. Tasty and filling.
Maduras fritas – Fried sweet plantains
Nacatamal – A specialty, “weekend only” type of food. ¡Muy rico!
Huevos con tomate y chile dulce – think really tasty scrambled eggs
Chop suey – do NOT think typical, Americanized Chinese take-out. Food of fiestas, and a kind of hodge-podge, kitchen-sink type food. My Nica mom’s version includes cabbage, carrots, sweet peppers, onions, and olives, sautéed in olive oil, Worchester sauce (“salsa de Inglaterra”), and vinegar. With some of those crispy noodles sprinkled on top.
Frutas – fresh fruit here is amazing and abundant. Right now we’ve got mountains of mandarin oranges, bananas, and watermelon. I’m told that next up on the list is mango and avocado. There is a small refrescería that sells fresh fruit juices in plastic bags. To drink, you bite a hole in a corner of the bag and suck out the juice. Only 3 cord, and makes for a fantastic snack when a break from class is needed.
Nica word of the week:
Chacho – used by my Nica mom to describe food that lacks flavor, but I can’t use it for her food, as she’s a good cook.
New Spanish I learned: The Spanish word esposa means “wife.” The plural, esposas, means “wives,” but also “handcuffs.
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