Panamanian Delicacies - A Volunteer's Gotta Eat

PANAMANIAN FAVORITES

I was so excited to learn that the Peace Corps would be assigning me to Panama.  I imagined myself indulging in exotic fruits and vegetables and lots of interesting and spicy dishes.  It didn’t really go down like that. 

Panamanians love rice, chicken, and beans (usually lentils). And they are thrilled to eat those three things every single day. Restaurants generally will offer a choice of “pollo asado” (roasted chicken) or “pollo guisado” (stewed stewed chicken) but don’t expect your taste buds to be challenged. Seasonings tend to be unassuming and verging on absent. There is usually a bottle of hot sauce on the table but the savvy traveler will carry his own. Beef, pork, and fish exist but they are definitely overshadowed by the Panamanian favorite – chicken.

COMMON IN THE CAMPO

As a volunteer, you will have the privilege of living the simple life, sharing a home (at least for a season) and meals with “campesinos” (rural folks) whose diet has challenged the commitment of even the most hardcore of volunteers.  You will become well acquainted with the two, three, and on special occasions, four starch meal.  I have been proudly presented with many the plate filled with generous portions of rice, spaghetti, bread, and yucca (or one of yucca’s many starchy cousins such as ñame or otoe).  And just in case your meal wasn’t unhealthy enough, there is almost always a “fritura” (something deep-fried) on your plate.  Fortunately, what they lack in nutrition, patacones, hojaldres, and empanadas make up for in taste.   

After moving out of my host family’s home, I was able to better control my diet.  My next door neighbor was always curious about what I ate so I would often make a plate just for her.  I knew that she wouldn’t like most of what I made but I wanted to expose her to healthier proportions of protein, vegetables, and starch.  One day, I steamed carrots and took a plateful next door.  She tasted them and loved them but had no clue as to what they were.  Although very familiar with carrots, the only way she and every other member of her community ever used a carrot was to grate one (yes, one) and cook it in a pot of rice big enough to serve 20 people.  This is known as “arroz con vegetales” (vegetables with rice).  She loved the steamed carrots but as far as I know, she has not prepared them for her family to this day.

 As a volunteer, your first responsibility is always to your personal health, safety, and well-being, without which, you will have nothing to give to others.  This is where things get tricky.  How will you assimilate and build trust if you don’t eat what they eat?  Will you offend your hosts?  Only you can answer these questions and only when you are in the situation will you know the right thing to do.  Nonetheless, I can offer a few suggestions:

1. Take a multivitamin supplement every day!
2. Keep a jar of peanut butter and a spoon hidden with your things. 
3. Praise your host mom’s cooking to the point of embarrassment.  She will love it and she will be more receptive later on when you make diet and nutrition suggestions.
4. Use mealtime as an opportunity to talk about food groups and meals that you commonly eat in the US.
5. If you feel comfortable doing this, say yes to item A and B and no to item C but explain why you are doing it.  Remember to praise what you do eat.   
6. Offer to make a salad or side dish for the entire family to eat along with the rice and yucca.  You can usually find cabbage, carrots, and something called chayote.  Try not to get offended if they don’t like it. At least you’ll have a healthy portion of veggies for yourself and with the subject no longer taboo, you can continue to prepare veggies for yourself. Just make sure you also continue to eat what the family eats so as not to offend your host mom.

Don’t get me wrong. Interesting fruits and vegetables do exist in Panama.  But they are not commonly eaten in the campo. As a volunteer, you can play a huge role in changing the way people eat by subtly and respectfully introducing new ideas, along with new fruits and vegetables. 

THINK BEFORE YOU EAT

Mangos are only in season for a couple of months in Panama but when they are, the streets are literally littered with them. They are sweet and juicy and wonderful – but BEWARE!  Even if you enjoy eating mangos in the US, you could have an allergic reaction to them in Panama.  From what I understand, the problem is not so much in the fruit itself, but in the sap from the tree.  Panamanians are “acostumbrado” and less allergic than we are. 

So if your host mom (or the cook in a restaurant) puts some sliced mango on your plate, you’ll probably be fine.  But if you pick a mango from a tree or from the ground, it will be covered with the tree’s toxic tears which will leave you covered in hives and filled with tears (or worse).  What’s a volunteer to do?  If you insist on indulging, make sure you take precautions. If picking fruit while wearing latex gloves makes you feel like too much of a dork, pay a neighborhood kid to pick and clean them for you. 25¢ for 3 clean mangoes is probably not a bad price. If you insist on picking them yourself, be sure to wash the fruit with dish detergent before peeling it, keep your hands away from your face, and scrub your hands well after eating. And most importantly, always have Benadryl handy.  I have also been told that Green Mango Salad is a Panamanian dish that Americans tend to be highly allergic to.  As much as we want to encourage the eating of salads, just say no.

 

 

Cashews are probably my favorite nut and, lucky me, they grow them in Panama!  Enjoy these delightful treats – but BEWARE!  The process of roasting cashews (marañón) emits a substance in the air that can be very toxic to Americans.  Panamanians are “acostumbrado” but we can suffer anything from hives to anaphylactic shock.  If your host family roasts cashews, stay far away from the process but enjoy the roasted nuts!  

TO MY VEGETARIAN FRIENDS

Vegetarians are plentiful in the world of volunteering though the places where they serve are not always vegetarian friendly.  You will be tempted to fill up on starches which can lead to a host of problems including skin conditions, yeast infections, energy depletion, depression, and extreme weight gain.  You have to be resourceful but it is possible to stay vegetarian and stay healthy in Panama.  I am not a medical professional, nor am I a vegetarian, but I have observed some common struggles that vegetarians have while serving in Panama and offer the following suggestions:

1. Take a multivitamin supplement every day!
2. Eat a spoonful or two of peanut butter daily.
3. Start your day with a couple of boiled eggs.
4. Bring a high-quality protein powder with you.
5. Watch your sugar intake. 
6. Innocently looking dishes are often flavored with pork bone or simmered in chicken stock. Before leaving the US, spend some time thinking about your ideals and whether or not you are willing to make some temporary compromises in your diet.  
   
7. If you are vegan, consider gradually adding eggs and milk (or yogurt) to your diet.
8. Consult with a registered dietician before you leave the US for more specific guidance.

Whether you are a carnevor, vegetarian, or vegan, discovering new foods and overcoming food barriers are big parts of the volunteer adventure.  Be open, be curious, and be careful!

¡Buen provecho!