Casa Tranquila
Calle 15 Numero 676 97322 Chelem, Yucatán, Mexico

Another delicious dish here in Chelem. Camarones a la Mexicana (Mexican Shrimp). The sauce on the shrimp is a mix of tomatoes, onion, and bell pepper with a few strips of jalapeño peppers to add a small amount of spice.

This dish is called "Pulpo al Ajo" (Octopus with Garlic). Although pulpo may not look very appetizing before preparation and some may argue even after preparation, this is a delicious dish. The local fisherman are currently in pulpo season. It's been pulpo season for over a month and it continues through the end of December. Pulpo is a valuable commodity for the local fisherman. Valuable enough they can use crab for bait, which makes it almost impossible to find fresh crab in the local restaurants.

I've had people tell me they could eat seafood for every meal, they should try it sometime. It's get's old no matter how many different ways it's prepared. Luckily, every Tuesday night the special at the Bullpen is BBQ ribs. A rack here is smaller than you might see in the States but for me it's about the perfect size and they are delicious.

A trip to the grocery in Mexico is an interesting experience. Many things found in Mexican groceries can't be found in the states and many things from the States can't be found here. But you get the same experience traveling to different regions of the States. Two of the more curious things in Mexican groceries are eggs and milk. Neither are refrigerated. My first thoughts were "Can this be safe?" and "Is this really cow's milk?". The answer to both questions is yes. Whe...n a chicken lays an egg there is a protective coating on the outside of the shell. This is what allows a hen to have an egg laying in her nest for a couple of weeks before she starts to incubate them to make baby chicks. In the States, this protective coating is washed off after which the egg must be refrigerated to remain safe to eat. In Mexico, the eggs are not washed so they can remain at room temperature. When you purchase Mexican eggs, they still look clean and the egg yolk is a much darker, richer shade of yellow. For me, eggs in Mexico have much more flavor than eggs from the States but this may not be from the processing. The milk in Mexico is pasteurized using a process called 'ultrapasteurization' where it is heated to 280F for a few seconds. After pasteurizing, the milk is packaged with very little air in the container and the container is airtight and completely protects the milk from light of any kind. Using these techniques, the milk has a shelf life at room temperature of six to nine months. Once the milk is opened it's normally good for two to three weeks. In fact, a carton of Borden milk I bought recently (November 2019) had an expiration date of April 24, 2020. By the way, the milk was excellent. Can you imagine how much money could be saved in the U.S. if we adopted these techniques? No more shipping in refrigerated trucks, no more refrigeration at the grocery store. In the States, milk has a shelf life of two to three weeks after which it must be pulled from the shelf as waste. The amount of waste is anticipated by the producers and goes into the cost of the product. Of course without all that waste, there would be a lot of dairy farmers out of a job. My point is, just because something looks different doesn't mean it's wrong. Give it a try.

Another excellent dish from Pa'puli. This is Pulpo a la Parrilla (Grilled Octopus). Octopus, sauteed potatoes, and garnished with young asparagus and cilantro.