Many people have been dying to know what our daily cuisine consists of whilst we have been staying in Guatemala. So for all you foodie lovers…. This post is for you!
The main staples of the Guatemalan cuisine are rice (arroz), black beans (frijoles), eggs, (huevos), bread (pan), avocadoes (used in guacamole or eaten on their own) and of course tortillas……muchas tortillas! These are a feature of at least two meals and sometimes eaten three times per day. They are handmade from scratch of course, no supermarket tortillas here!
Tropical fruits are very abundant and cheap in Guatemala and breakfast in Guatemala typically starts with a bowl of fruit. Fruits include bananas, mangoes, papaya, melons and pineapple.
Aside from fruit, pancakes topped with bananas and honey are very popular, as are eggs and tortillas.
Lunch is considered the main meal of the day. Meat is a luxury for many Guatemalans as it can be expensive so it does not feature as heavily as it does in the Western diet. We have been lucky so far to be treated to some delicious meals of Pollo en Crema (chicken in cream based sauce), served with mashed potatoes and shredded carrot and lime, as well as beef patties mixed with onions and chillies served with salsa, guacamole and tortillas.
Other favourites (not pictured) included Carne Guisado (a meat stew featuring both chicken and beef), as well as steaks cooked on a hot plate and accompanied with vegetables such as tomatoes and onion, served with tortillas, guacamole and salsa.
Dinner is usually a lighter affair where eggs, soup or pasta are more commonly on the menu. The two meals pictured below were favourites of ours. The first picture is scrambled eggs served with refried beans, tortillas and a side of fried sweet plaintains for dessert.
In the second picture is a simple mixed vegetable frittata with a side of pumpkin and salsa.
There are no end of delicious snacks to be found here to keep us going between meals. Some of our favourites include chucitos, choco bananas and tostadas.
Chucitos are a typical kind of Guatemalan tamale made from dough using corn maize flour and the centre is usually filled with meat and spices. They are cooked and then wrapped in corn husks. Served with salsa and absolutely delicious!
Choco bananas are frozen bananas dipped in chocolate and covered in peanuts – these are my personal favourite and found everywhere in Guatemala. They are so cheap (as low as 3 Quetzals, equivalent to A$0.50) as well as being delicious and nutritious (well sort of!).
At school during the morning break, we have been served Tostadas de frijol to go with our morning coffee. These are fried corn tortillas stuffed with black beans.
We have been staying in homestay style accommodation while studying Spanish in Guatemala so a lot of the meals pictured were prepared by our Guatemalan “madre”. When we have ventured out on our own, we have stumbled across a few great cafes in San Pedro.
We found the best hot chocolate ever at Café Cristalinas, as well as a hidden sanctuary at Home Café where you can enjoy some tasty treats and while away an afternoon in a hammock reading people’s stories from the Shared Journal.
More tasty updates to come so stay tuned 🙂
Buen Provecho!
Operation Whiskey 