Is it just me or after reading that title did you not have the image of Jeff Spicoli munching on some pizza in Mr. Hand’s class? I know I did after I wrote it. Enjoy.
Well, perhaps that’s not exactly what I was going for when I wrote it. Still, however, as a HS teacher myself now and a HS student around the time of the movie’s release, I cannot help but think about it, too, and, well, I’m frankly glad I’ve never had a student order a pizza in my class… even though I teach Italian!
Still, with kids in school here in Argentina and a fascinating eclectic culinary culture to be discovered here, it’s inevitable, I guess, and not surprising, to find that both school and food have reached my Top 10. Of course, if you’ve been following my blog, you’ll likely know and recall that school and food were also on my NOT Top 10 list. Both these topics have been integral parts of my life this year and, as such, there are aspects of both, both positive and negative, that clearly stand out for me and allow them to justly make both the NOT Top 10 and…
…The Top 10 things I will miss about Argentina
8) La cocina argentina
Given that this was the first time in 19 years that I will have gone a year without working full-time, one of my responsibilities was to act as the principal cook of the family. I was used to making the kids breakfast and getting their school lunch ready almost every day back in the US but to handle dinners here every night was often a challenge. This was especially true this year considering that I am certainly no “born chef” by any means or definition, we were limited in what foods the kids would eat and adapt to here, and, because of the already mentioned meal hour difference here, we were rarely afforded the opportunity to get take-out.
Still, after almost a year of cooking dinners most evenings, without even a night of frozen food, I feel, in the end, I was able to do a decent, though not spectacular job, of cooking for the family, blending both our American customary tastes with foods and dishes that were more Argentine. As an Italian teacher, what more, I find it interesting and, I guess, ironic that some of the foods that I had on my “NOT going to miss” list were foods that were either inspired by or originated in Italian cooking. Indeed, the ubiquitous typical Argentine-Italian fare of pizza, milanesas (fried meat and chicken cutlets) and pastas (here generally known as fideos), while in reality not too different from Italian-American gastronomy, were things that were relatively substandard, to me, yet still I would occasionally cook here and, indeed, are present (and eaten by me and the kids) in the majority of the Argentine restaurants.
Nevertheless, there certainly were lots of gastronomic treasures that we all loved here, are important parts of the eating culture, partook of in heavy doses and, in the end, will miss when we can’t and don’t eat it much of it while back in the US. Here’s my list:
1. La carne – No food category I think is more representative to the core of Argentine cuisine and culture than meat. Not only is beef here eaten so much more than most countries of the world, but, by most accounts, including my own, it still has some of the tastiest and best beef in the world, even if it no longer has the ubiquitous grass-fed beef of the past anymore (read this NPR story from earlier this year). Indeed, it seems every other restaurant here is or has una parrilla (grill, steakhouse) that serves the classic cuts Argentina is known for. Hell, it’s so unique to the Rio de la Plata region that even the Spanish NAMES of the cuts here are unique… as you can perhaps see from these posters:
I usually reserved at least once a week at home to make bife de chorizo, ojo de bife, bife de lomo or something of that ilk for the family to enjoy, which we did almost always. Though butchers here (it feels like they are on every corner here) often leave more fat than Americans do and more than what I would prefer, the meat has almost always been a source of pleasure and satisfaction to both the palate and tummy. Some of the parrillas, as I mentioned, too, have excellent beef and going to them are great. To learn more about these cuts and see pics, see my post on it all last year.
Beyond, though, the amount of beef actually eaten and the number of parrillas found here, there is no cultural get-together more Argentine than the beloved asado – the Argentine barbecue. You may recall my post on this last year but we’ve had the opportunity to have various asados through the year with friends and, along with the mate sharing, is one of the most compelling and enjoyable Argentinean social events. While the meat, of course, is the central theme and element of the asado, the crux of it is the people who, on a common Sunday afternoon spend hours upon hours grilling, drinking, conversing, playing and having a nice time being together. In many ways it is similar to the American backyard barbecue I’d say but with its own special Argentine flavor which makes it unique and demonstrates the importance of meat in the greater Argentinean culture
2) Empanadas – While beef may rule the main meal time, there is no food more Argentine in terms of snacking and tradition than las empanadas (meat pies).
Whiles certainly not unique to Argentina in South America, they are one of the most common street/snack foods around. They come in different shapes and sizes depending on the filling. See below.
Empanadas are fried with some sort of filling (as above) inside like meat, cheese, ham, corn, vegetables, chicken or any other thing you can fill with. They often have some olives, egg whites, onions mixed in with the fillings. They vary here, of course, in terms of quality but, for the most part, they’re easy to get all over, relatively inexpensive, and a tasty snack to eat at most any time of the day. Gonna miss these.
3) Choripan – THE street food of Argentina. Often just known as un “chori”, they are essentially a sausage sandwich with a roll and lots of toppings including the omnipresent chimichurri sauce. The word choripan itself comes from the combination of the words chorizo (sausage) and pan (bread).
Though they’re fatty, greasy and probably not good for you at all, they’re inexpensive, super tasty, especially when you know a good place to get them, and something I’ll miss.
4) El helado – While most Italian inspired Argentine staples don’t make the cut here compared to their Italian or even Italian American counterparts in my opinion, this is NOT the case with their ice cream. While Argentine helados don’t have the “stuff” inside their ice cream like American ice cream does, the ice cream itself has quality and variety rivaled only by il gelato italiano. Indeed, it tastes and is presented much closer to Italian gelato than American ice cream and with lots of flavors like dulce de leche, it has its own unique Argentinean twist. It’s expensive, however, here and though our wallets and willingness not to gain a gazillion pounds wouldn’t allow us to partake in it as often as our eyes and stomachs would desire us to, we definitely had our share to enjoy and love here and will miss it… along with our favorite local friends who ran an excellent not chain place right by our apartment building. Here is a post I did at the beginning of the year.
Gonna miss all this great, tasty Argentine food, though my stomach will likely be happy to not partake of all of the calories and fat associated with it all! Now… onto the next item on the list
7) La Educacion en Argentina
With two school age kids here, having them adapt and feel comfortable in a school was a priority for us in addition for them being able to slowly learn the language as naturally and freely as possible. For this reason we chose a bilingual (Spanish/English) school for them. My older one went to a bilingual cole (colegio – elementary school) and the younger one goes to a bilingual jardin (preschool). This, thus, was our way of letting them learn the language with their Argentine classmates yet still keep up with their English here as well as being an easier transition to school here. Of course, it had its inevitable share of difficult moments and issues (which I mentioned in the other Top 10 list) but here’s what I like about our experience.
1. Bilingual education – One of the main reasons we came to Argentina was so the kids, still at a young age, could learn to adapt to a new country and culture and, through real immersion, learn a new language. In the 8 months the kids were in school (plus the summer holidays and other vacation weeks) I really saw what it’s like for young kids to become immersed in the language and get to know it. They were both the only non native Spanish speakers in their respective classes and, through real immersion, have learned to speak Spanish… in their own way. As a language teacher, it was fascinating to see them progress (each at her own rate) and little by little learn to communicate with their friends and teachers to the point they are at now. While they’re not fluent, I’d say they now feel comfortable speaking with their teachers and classmates in the language and have really cute Buenos Aires accents to boot. Amazing. Though they mostly refuse to speak Spanish with me (I’m “English only” apparently… they only speak Spanish with their teachers and friends!) I love watching them speak among their friends and teachers. Totally wild. I wish this existed more in the US. It really works.
2. Long lunches and home time – while back in NJ the kids have shorter days, here they have long lunch periods (1 1/2 hours) and 2 significant recess times. Fits in with the mid day large meal culture. It helps ease the long days and, what I like most, selfishly, is that it gives the kids an opportunity to spend more time socializing (good for the language) or, occasionally once a week, have lunch with Mom or Dad. Indeed the kids have the opportunity to either buy lunch at the school (comedor), bring their own packed lunch (vianda) or go home or out with their parents (casa). I love my weekly casa days with my kid as I take her out (today we went for pizza and ice cream) and she tells me about her day and we get to spend some great quality time together one on one. Gonna miss this!
3. Communication books – I’m used to emails nowadays as a teacher but every kid at their school have “communication notebooks” that the teachers and administrators use to communicate information – school progress, events, upcoming tests, personal messages, birthday invitations, etc. – to each parent. Though email is easier and, frankly, more efficient this seems to be a tradition here at all of the schools and it’s a nice personal thing to get. Handwritten notes seem so ancient but, as a parent, I must admit that they’re nice to receive. What more, it will make a good souvenir when we leave as well!
4. Uniforms – while I generally have mixed feelings about the idea of uniforms in schools (the school I taught at for my first 3 years had them) I must admit that I kind of got used to the idea of them and, despite their considerable expense and the need to wash them often, liked my kids wearing them. I like the sense of unity it promotes in the school and the fact that we don’t have to think about what they’ll wear on a given day. What more, they look pretty cute in them. 🙂 Wearing their own clothes has its advantages as well but it’s been enjoyable to see them each experience the wearing of uniforms in their schools. Thumbs up.
Besides these things I’d add that we’re really happy that both kids have enjoyed their new friendships with their classmates immensely, my older one has enjoyed her time, once a week, when they go to a field to do sports (Field Hockey for her this year) and that birthday parties generally include the whole class, pricy for the parents but nice for school and class unity. Plus with parental cooperation and camaraderie, it’s led to an overall very positive educational year, despite the aforementioned negatives, for us and our kids in Argentina. We’re excited to come home but we’ll miss a lot of the special and unique elements that have been a part of our kids’ school year and our Argentina adventure. 🙂
Guy
Mr. Rabner's adventure in Argentina 
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