SMF

I had been wanting to try some sweet Mexican chocolate, so I stopped this evening at a mercado a few blocks from where I live, figuring they were much more likely to have it than our usual supermarket.
I asked the young lady behind the counter if they had Mexican chocolate bars, Taza or any other.
She looked at me blankly and said, "No hablo ingles."
So I asked, "Does anyone here speak English?"
And she replied, "No."
There were at least 5 people working there, stocking shelves and so forth, and there was a small restaurant-type area in the back with two cooks and half a dozen people sitting at tables, eating.
I said, "No English?"
And she again said no. Then she got out her cell phone, started the Google translate app, and handed me the phone. I typed in "Mexican chocolate bar." She looked at the translation, then called out for someone named Miguel, asking him about it. He came up front and said no - "Lo siento, no."

So no sweet Mexican chocolate tonight. And I'm amazed that apparently there is a completely foreign world just blocks from me.

They didn't understand the word "chocolate"? It's pretty much the same in Spanish/Mexican. Sounds like something else was going on.

The Mexican chocolate I've had told me to stick with Lindt or Girardelli (sp?). It's much different than what we're accustomed to and not in a good way. It was OK, but just OK. FWIW, I got mine from the local organic foods market where they speak English, but even though the wrapper was in Mexican I could read the part I needed to read and it didn't require translating. How much do you need?

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=mexican+choc ... bcab15t4_e

It should be fairly easy to simulate what I bought. Take cacao nibs and put them in a blender and start blending. Add sweetener to taste. Add some cinnamon or hot pepper (seriously). The final product should be slightly gritty. use the bottom of a plastic container to pour it into and allow it to solidify into a hockey puck shape. You might need to add some cocoa butter but I don't know since I haven't followed my own advice, once was enough for me but it was worth trying.

Thanks for the link, Brian. I like the grittiness and spiciness of the Mexican chocolate in cooking (such as for mole), and I may not want to eat it by itself often, but I'd like to try it.

ShadowsDad wrote: ↑Wed Dec 18, 2019 10:20 am ... Add some cinnamon or hot pepper (seriously). ...

I believe it.
There used to be a local cafe that served gelato, made in their kitchen, and my favourite flavour was "Chili Chocolate".
Terrific on a hot summer day.

And here's another argument I can use with my wife for getting Mexican or Venezuelan chocolate:
https://nypost.com/2019/12/18/eating-ch ... ck-stroke/

John, you know "no hablamos ingés," "no hablo inglés" and "lo siento, no." You clearly know something of Spanish verb conjugation, so I suspect that you know some Spanish - at least enough to say "¿Chocolate mexicano?"

¿No?

- Murray

PS. Oh, all right! Next time I'm in town I'll go there with you.

CMur12 wrote: ↑Wed Dec 18, 2019 5:42 pm John, you know "no hablamos ingés," "no hablo inglés" and "lo siento, no." You clearly know something of Spanish verb conjugation, so I suspect that you know some Spanish - at least enough to say "¿Chocolate mexicano?"

¿No?

- Murray

PS. Oh, all right! Next time I'm in town I'll go there with you.

Ha. Murray, I know virtually no Spanish. I used Google translate to figure out those phrases. When I said to her, "Chocolato mexicano," she just looked at me. Maybe she didn't know what kind of chocolate I meant - or maybe it was my pronunciation.

Okay, John. You're off the hook.

(I forgot about Google Translate.)

- Murray