Goals achieved

Goal 1: Find Chiltepín - achieved
On Monday I went to the market with some friends to buy vegetables, fruits and indulge in my very favourite blue tortilla dish. Everybody I've brought to this stall was blown away by the intense taste of the blue corn tortillas, freshly made and perfectly cooked on the comal (huge griddle to cook tortillas on).

On the way to the market we crosses again the feria (trade fair), which was not as large as on the Día del Trueque (Day of Exchange), but still amazing. K. from Canada was interested in a creamy liqueur and so we stopped at a booth which I normally would have ignored.

While she tasted the different spirits, the attached shop awoke my attention. I entered and found myself in the middle of paradise: Salsas as far as the eye could see. Aaaand, after rummaging around a bit, I encountered a salsa with chiltepín, the kind of chili my roomie had recommended to me for its delicious taste. Bought!

Chili Chiltepín in olive oil

What shall I say? Normally my taste preferences differ vastly from the one of my Mexican friends. But in this case it was totally worth the purchase. I can literally spoon it. Not hot and spicy, but definitely delish!

When it comes to sauces, Mexico does have some tasty options. One of my favourites is Salsa Macha con Cacahuates (Salsa Macha with Peanuts). It's ground chili with peanuts in oil (who'd have thought) and it's perfect for eating as is, or with any stir fry or whatever.

Salsa Macha: Ground chili and peanuts in oil

This time I also bought the version with sesame seeds in place of peanuts. Also great, but the goobers stay my fave.

By the way, the markets and fairs here always are worth some nice photos...

Hungry?!

Goal 2: Do well in the first exams - achieved
 The first gradings have been made and what shall I say - I certainly can be content. The grades here are from 0 (worst) to 100 (best).

Goal 3: Try new food - achieved
Ok, my all time goal is not that hard to achieve as I just down everything I get hold of. But who cares - it keeps me motivated to travel and discover the area around me.

Chalahuite (Inga Spuria); the vendor praised it as "natural chewing gum".

The fruit contains some seeds covered with a cottony fluff.

You suck the "cotton" from the fruit (that's why it feels a bit like munching chewing gum) and spit out the green kernel. The latter supposedly is edible when cooked and delish with some salt, lime and - of course - chili. Well, refreshing but not too much taste - won't by it again.

Medium-sized fat bananas. I ate them first in Vietnam, where they are common. Here they are hard to find, but always when travelling (Tepoztlán, Cuetzalan) I find some old man selling the bananas from his garden and that's exactly this sort. Love them - the taste is very different from the "normal" one and just indescibable.

Already wrote about my love for tuna (cactus fruit). In Tepoztlán I came across the red variety. It's insanely succulent and sweet. Wow!

Again an exam and several homeworks to do this week. So, back to work! See ya!