Tuesday, June 26, 2007

A dónde se fueron las frutas y verduras?

Arroz, papas, fritada, pescado y carne – breakfast, lunch and dinner. Yummy! For the first few days or so.

Ecuador is a country with one of the greatest variety of climates. Like other tropical Latin American countries it grows citruses and other fruits needing warm humid climates. But in the Andes, it also produces grapes, apples, tomate de arból, and other colder weather fruits and vegetables.

So why does Quiteño cuisine only give minimal space in its platos for such wonderful and delicious variety? You’ve got me.

Seeking them out on a daily basis is not that hard – the local supermarket, convenient store or indigenous vendor on the corner is stocked full of them, and they are wonderfully inexpensive.
I will say that the one redeeming quality are the jugos naturales and batidos (milkshakes) of any and every fruit available in this country. Evidently, quiteños prefer to take in their essential vitamins and minerals via straw.

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