Food!

A lot of people have been asking about the food here, so here it is. An entire post dedicated to Paraguayan food. I´ll add to this during the next week too. Breakfast here is almost nothing. Milk with coffee or chocolate, some bread, and maybe some tea. Lunch is the principal meal, and EVERYONE eats lunch at home. Dinner is basically just for weekends, and instead we have "merienda" in the late afternoon, and again around 8 or 9.

This is Sopa Paraguaya. It´s one of the most "Paraguayan" foods there is. It´s made with egg, cheese, flour, and some seasonings. It´s super common, and it´s really good. It reminds me a little of the crust part of some casseroles.

This is chipa. Chipa is a cheese-corn mixture eaten several times a week. Because dinner isn´t big here, we have "merienda" in the late afternoon. From about 3PM to dark, there are chipa vendors that walk or ride bikes around town selling fresh chipa door-to-door. Chipa is usually half moon-shaped, but it is occasionally ring-shaped like a bagel. In Asunción, they had prepackaged chipa that tasted like fritos, but I definitely prefer the fresh kind.

This is mbeyú. Mbeyú is made out of corn flour, manioc flour, cheese, and milk. It starts out in a crumbly dough, then is cooked in a pan over the stove. The cheese melts to hold everything together. It doesn´t have a really strong flavor, but it pretty good.

Empanadas are sort of fast food, Paraguayan style. They´re little fried pockets filled with egg, chicken, beef, corn, vegetables, or basically anything else. These are usually eaten as an evening snack, or sometimes as a side dish to lunch.

This is called borí borí. Borí are little balls made out of corn, served in soups with vegetables, chicken, or beef. This is another very "Paraguayan" food that no other country has. I´ve only had this a few times, because it´s mainly a "winter food" and autumn is just starting here.

Mandioca is eaten almost every day at lunch. Usually, it´s just peeled and boiled, but it can also be fried, or used to make other foods such as mbeyú. It´s a lot like a potato, and has a very mild flavor.

This is chipa so'o. It´s like chipa, except it's filled with a ground beef-and-veggie mixture.

I can´t find a picture of the actual soda, but guaraná soda is AMAZING. Simba is the most popular brand here. It´s flavor is kind of hard to describe, I´m sure I´ll bring some back.

Lomito is basically a hamburger in a slightly different shape. Lomito and hamburger are both eaten with different toppings here though- fried egg, mayonnaise, salsa, lettuce, tomato, and choclo (corn) are the most common.

Tereré IS Paraguay. We drink it every day, everywhere. Home, school, in the car, outside, inside, everywhere. Almost everyone has their own Termo, Guampa, and Bombilla. Termo is the pitcher, guampa is the cup, and bombilla is the straw. Tereré is a type of cold tea. First, the guampa is filled with Yerba Mate, a mixture of leaves, about halfway. Then ice water is poured in from the termo. You drink a cup, fill it again, and pass it around. I'm planning on bringing a bunch of this home.