Uruguayan Food and Drink

When Lewis the Lion first crossed the border into Uruguay, he was greeted by a picture of a cow. This was an indication of what lay in store for him in Uruguay! In Uruguay they are big meat eaters and enjoy big, juicy steaks. Two of the more popular types that can be found in ‘parillas’ – ‘steak houses’ are ‘asado de tira’ – ‘spare ribs’ and ‘bife de chorizo’ – tenderloin steak.

If you are a vegetarian you might worry with there being so much meat on offer but luckily, thanks to the Italian immigrants of the late nineteenth century, there are plenty pizzerias serving pizza and pasta. Seafood is also in plentiful supply in Uruguay.

Perhaps the dish that Lewis the Lion enjoyed the most during his time in Uruguay was a lunch time snack: a special sandwich called a ‘ chivito’ which is a national institution. This is usually a mixture of meat, cheese and salad.

As for desserts – ‘postres,’ you can almost guarantee one ingredient: ‘dulce de leche’ – a type of caramel paste with the same consistency of nutella. It is very sweet and sticky and finds its way into most sweets and desserts. (This is also popular in other South American countries, like Argentina). Generally desserts are very sweet as Lewis the Lion discovered when he ordered a chocolate filled pancake. Not only was he given two but practically a whole bag of sugar was poured on the top before it was then flamed to caramelise it! Lewis the Lion made sure that he brushed his teeth thoroughly after that!

Traditional ice-cream sellers are also apparent in Uruguay, again, probably due to the Italian influence in the culture.

The most obvious drinking ritual to be observed by Lewis the Lion in Uruguay, was that of maté. It is as much of a social activity as a drink in itself. Yerba maté is a type of green tea which is placed into a pot with sugar and hot water (which is why people carry thermal flasks to top it up). It is then drank through a metal straw and when the drinker has had sufficient, it is passed onto the next drinker in a circle. (Lewis will describe more about the etiquette of maté drinking when he visits Argentina).

However, you can still get all of the regular soft drinks like water, tea, coffee, fruit juices and fizzy drinks.

Lewis the Lion also discovered that there some familiar American fast-food restaurants which had adapted their products to cater for the local market. See in the photo above that there is a special breakfast promotion with croissants and coffee.

Which of these Uruguayan foods and drinks would you most like to try? Have you ever tasted any of these foods and drinks already? How would you describe them?

Finally, the thing that also interested Lewis the Lion was the time that people would sit down to eat their lunch and dinner: generally, it was much later than in the UK. For instance most people would not eat in the evening till at least 9 o’clock at night!

Would you like to eat your dinner that late at night? Why or why not?

About Helen Molloy

Helen Molloy has been a Primary Learning and Teaching Consultant, leading on the introduction of Primary Languages in the City of Stoke-on-Trent for the past 5 and a half years. She is passionate about language learning and inspiring children into developing a curiosity and awareness of other people's languages and cultures.
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