We developed a theory based on our early experiences here that you can tell a lot about a culture from the grocery store. I mean think, about it, what you can buy, how much space is dedicated to what kinds of products, where things are located, how things work… it’s all very culturally relative.
Little stores with lots of personal attention were out of our league when we first arrived (too much conversation required!), so we started shopping at the place that seemed the most anonymous and culturally accessible for us- Ipercoop (eee-pair-cop, a huge supermarket/co-op). Even so, we got big headaches the first few times.
To find out why, take this simple Italian Culture quiz we failed miserably in August. I’ll put one question and answer up per day along with photos I took like the spy that I am (please forgive the framing and lack of focus).
Q. What kinds of food should be available in a supermarket?
A. If you answered with any of the following: refried beans, cheddar cheese, peanut butter, Crisco, sliced bread, whole turkeys, 'Italian' sausage, Polish Sausage, bacon, jars of spaghetti sauce, long grain rice, cilantro, vanilla extract, dill, cumin, chicken stock or sweet potatoes you will be disappointed- 99% of the foods available in our supermarket here are Italian, not American Italian, but local Bolognese-Italian. The ‘ethnic foods’ section is two feet wide and includes Uncle Ben’s Mexican Beans (sugary whole kidney beans!?!) and instant friend rice. Experimenting with exotic cooking here means trying foods from other Italian regions, like Sicily. If you like prosciutto, parmesan cheese, or mortadella (bologna)- you are in luck! The quantities available for purchase are astounding!!! Whole parma hams, 30-40 kg wheels of aged parmigiano-reggiano, and the mortadella as big as a car (OK, that one you can’t buy the whole thing, but around the holidays you can have a piece cut off the huge one and vacuum-packed before your eyes) are all featured prominently.
Have you bought a whole parma ham, or a wheel of parmigiano-reggiano? Are they supposed to last for a year each?
ReplyDeleteSorry about the refried beans. We can send you some ground chilis if it would help.
Gibbs says- only one ham? for a year? are you crazy? He's being silly, of course, but I think families easily eat 2-4 whole ones a year, mostly sliced paper-thin and we know more than one household with a fancy meat slicer that can do just that. As for the parmigiano, I've never seen someone buy a whole wheel, but at .5 kg hunks a pop, it's no wonder the grocery stores need to keep lots of it on hand- it is THE condiment of the area, and really of all Italy. Italy's love of Parmigiano is the main reason that when I tell people I'm lactose intolerant, they invariably feel very sorry for me.
ReplyDeleteps: we got an early delivery of chili powder and have successfully made a few pots of Chili for friends, thanks for the offer... :)