Sunday - Market day

Previous Sundays have consisted of attending Catholic mass, weekend trips to the beach or country, or visiting family. Today though, we did something old, something we used to do when I was but a wee chipilín, munching happily on raw sugar cane.

We went to the market. Grandma had a hankering for a bowl full of chilate, a rather tasteless broth or atol, served with a side of sweet syrupy buñuelos or nuegados. Previous experience had taught me I was not the biggest fan of this afternoon snack. But in the food's defense, I had based my harsh judgement on samples provided to me by Mister Donuts - if you have never heard of Mister Donuts click here, but it is basically an antique American fast breakfast food franchise from the 50s that has remained popular in El Salvador. How wrong was I to dismiss this local dish based on Mister Donuts' cold, bland and chunky interpretation.

So what is chilate? It is a water-based broth made out of toasted maize flour, whole peppercorns and ginger, thickened slightly with corn starch. In Mexico, it is very common to add chili and cocoa beans which is where the name comes from, but in El Salvador, the broth is not condimented too heavily so as to better compliment the side of buñuelos and/or nuegados. To me, a bowl of chilate is nothing without its sweet syrupy counterparts and vice versa. The term nuegados means nuggets and refers to sugared plantain or sweet potato chunks. Sugared pumpkin on the other hand is prepared with cinamon and brown sugar loaf and is called ayote. If you go to one of the popular food chains which sell local food (e.g. Mister Donuts or Typicos de Margoth) buñuelos are large male fist-sized profiteroles, deep fried and covered in sugar and brown sugar loaf syrup. They are made out of egg and wheat flour, usually slightly hard and stale and far too big and sweet to be consumed by one person. You are better off visiting a local market, or keeping an eye out for street vendors pushing around their chilate cart between 3-4 in the afternoon. Their approach is often marked by the echoing sounds of "chiilaaaaaaaate...."

Today, in a market close to Santa Tecla, the chilate lady had plenty of options on offer. The drink itself is always the same, served piping hot in a gourd with the occasional floating peppercorn. The sides are a different matter with various choices crispy yet chewy egg or yucca buñuelos, and flavorsome plantain, sweet potato or pumpkin nuegados.  I had a serving of nugget sized yucca buñuelos and ayote candy with syrup, the perfect contrast to the peppery broth on a cool afternoon.

Maquilishuat - Tabebuia Rosea

Let me introduce you to El Salvador's national tree, the Maquilishuat (pronounced ma-ki-liz-wat) also known as the Roble de Sabana in Costa Rica, or by its Latin name: Tabebuia Rosea. It flowers from mid-January to the end of February much like the Japanese Cherry Blossom tree. According to the Wikipedia page its bark has various medicinal properties, but I'll be able to tell you more about that next year maybe.

Its flowers are medium sized and vary from a pale violet to a vibrant pink. They line the streets with their delicate petals and have a very faint sweet scent.

Puerta del Diablo and Panchimalco

Tourist day!

And what a day it was. Starting first with a productive culinary morning of homemade coconut milk, green mango chutney and a risotto-ish experiment (which turned out pretty good if I do say so myself), a couple hours later Abuela, Henry and I were off for a new Salvadoran adventure. First stop, Panchimalco.

Panchimalco is one of El Salvador's few historic towns, popular with gringo tourists such as myself for the visible Pipil and colonial influences. You've entered Panchimalco once you reach the cobbled streets and white washed houses with colourful doors. If you visit the town on a weekend, and head over to the church, you will meet Don _ the local Pipil expert who will greet you in the Panchimalco variant of Nahuat. He's a nice enough guy and since it's a tiny town he'll show you around the place and recommend sites like Miguel-Angel Ramirez' art studio and the Panchimalco Cultural Centre. I did not visit either of these, but Miguel Angel Ramirez for example is one of El Salvador's most famous artists known for his children's portraits. So if you're into art, his studio is definitely worth a visit.

The Panchimalco church is one of my favorite churches ever. And I swear I'm not really into churches at all. This one however, is made almost entirely out of wood, with the exception of the front façade which is made out of clay or brick(?). That last part needs to be confirmed. The inner floor is made out of clay and the interior structure is decorated with beautifully crafted wooden beams and altars. The front altar is another elaborate wooden structure which houses various figures of the Virgin Mary, Christ and other saintly figures. It reaches up to the domed wooden ceiling of the altar room. This church is the oldest surviving colonial structure of El Salvador having been built around 1725.

Panchimalco church and Puerta del Diablo

Facing the church, camera poised to take a picture, you will notice prominent cliffs to the left of the church. This natural formation is known as the Puerta del Diablo, the devil's door, and is also well worth a visit if you're up for a short climb that will provide you a full circle view of El Salvador and its major landmarks such as the San Salvador Cathedral, San Vicente (otherwise known as Chichontepec - the big breasted volcano), San Miguel volcano, and Ilopango - El Salvador's biggest volcanic lake. There are many myths and legends surrounding the devil's doorway, the most obvious one being that here lies the devil's entrance to the underworld. But as the entrance to the underworld is yet to be found, plenty of locals and gringo tourists make their way over for a spectacular view. You'll also get a taste for Salvadoran culture from the rastafarian moteros selling hemp products nestled on the side of the cliff, to the reggaetoneros blasting 70s rock at the foot of the cliffs. If you're extra adventurous be sure to wear stilettos for the steep upward climb.

Photies - click to enlarge

Panchimalco church details

A tiny doorway

San Salvador and Quetzaltepec volcano

El Salvador del Mundo - The Saviour of the World, famous monument

Conversations with Abuela

1st December:
"Abuela, Jesus is already in his manger"
"Yes, he was premature".

Recently, I noticed my grandmother has a tendency to sprinkle her vocabulary with magnificently butchered English words. After some time I realized it's not just abuela who has this habit but pretty much everyone around her, friends, family and employees included. No wonder some anglophones believe that English is endangered. Our conversations are always in Spanish, and my grandmother doesn't speak much English:

20th December:
"What are we going to do with the grafe?"
"Hmm? What do you mean?"
"The grafe, should we peel it?" Mary points at grapefruit.

24th December:
"Abuela, what are you doing with that electric saw?"
"I'm cutting the turkey in sly"
"Sly?"
"Si, sly". Aunt Gina enlightens confused niece by indicating with a horizontal hand motion.
"Ahh, slices", and a whole conversation about sly cutting procedes to take place between Aunt Gina and Abuela.

27th December:
"Y alli concluye nuestro eevening tourr. Como te gusto el sy sitting?"
"...You mean site seeing?"
"Si! Sy sitting. See, you understand".

So as you can see, a pattern is already emerging here. I plan on investigating further and keeping an ear out for any more borrowings other than the already commonly accepted ones such as wachar (to keep a look out - observar), parquear (to park a car - estacionar),  and maybe even do a very informal sociolinguistic survey based on observations. Maybe.

Christmas - Tamales

'Tis the season to be jolly and eat like nobody's business. Already tummies are starting to swell with contented pies and cookies. Turkeys have been distributed (although this is really a North American tradition that has been adopted by Salvadorans), fragrant spices and oranges bought, festive pupuseadas organized, and pre-ordered tamales collected. The freezer has been filled with chilaquilas and chancletas alike, and various new years gifts, including calendars, cookies and pomelo fruits have been distributed to friends and family. I have yet to see mariachis though.

Traditionally, Christmas - although the more I think about it the more alien the concept of Christmas, the turkey, the presents, the pine tree, becomes. I seriously doubt the Pipiles, the Cacahuiles and the Lenca celebrated Christmas. They probably celebrated the end of the year though, much like the Maya did by building a fire pit to bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new dawn with a fresh bed of pine needles, rosemary and incense. But back to food and El Salvador. Sadly, not very much is known about the traditions of the indigenous people of El Salvador and traditional Christmas means nothing to me. I do know however that before the turkey revolution, it was customary to eat tamales.

Tamales come in various shapes, sizes and flavours. Each central american country has a version of its own, with its own unique combination of flavours. Generally though, a tamal consists of some sort of corn dough wrapped in a large leaf. Mexicans and Guatemalans enjoy dry tamales wrapped in corn husks. When unwrapped the inner dough is very bready and delicious with cream or cottage cheese. They make a great travel snack and are easily portable.

Salvadoran tamales are decidedly juicier. They take two days to make, and tamaleras - women who make tamales, are known for their upper body strength needed for the continuous mixing of the corn masa over an open fire. As well as the masa and the banana leaves which need to be prepared in advance, a chicken broth flavoured with tomatoes, potatoes, chickpeas, green olives, capers and raisins  is cooked on a low heat overnight. Then with a process also employed by pupuseras, the dough is skillfully shaped to resemble a canoe, filled with delicious broth, bits of chicken and vegetables, sealed, wrapped in banana leaves and finally, boiled for 30 minutes. The end result is a type of congealed pie filling nested within a packet of banana leaves which can be enjoyed on its own or with a side of tortillas.

Now, you might be thinking, "Salvadoran food is not very vegetarian friendly" and you would be right. It is not. However, the tamal offers one of those rare instances where a vegetarian option is available in the form of tamal de chipilín, chipilín being a little local herb I haven't quite got my head around yet. Although it is widely used in Central American and Mexican cuisine and has a pleasant enough taste, it is almost instantly forgetable. I could not, in fact cannot describe its flavour. Nevertheless, chipilín tamales are tasty and suitable for all except vegans. That's another story.