Panama Food – Grocery Shopping
Yield: Cultural Immersion
Shopping in a large Panama grocery store is an education and an adventure. We are still learning the layout of the stores, how to buy meats, how to shop the vegetable department and what local brands are of good quality. Whether it’s Rey’s, Supper 99 or Riba Smith, the experience starts at the front door. The heavily armed guards greet everyone with a deeply penetrating look that says that we will all be on our best behavior. I’ve tried smiling back and laying down a big, friendly, “hola” – but, they have a job to do. However, I think it sets the stage. Stores are a genuine cultural experience and always an apprehensive step into our new world.
The #1 surprise of grocery shopping in Panama is not finding the eggs and milk in the cooler – WHAT!? We were dumbfounded. How could this be true? Well, this is not just “Third World”. In fact, all of Latin America, Europe and most countries in the world sell eggs and milk on the grocery aisle. It’s a question of how much cost is justified in the presumption of safety. With milk, It’s only a policy of pasturing at a higher temperature. Consider, though, poopy eggs. In the U.S.A., Australia, Scandinavia and Japan they are washed and refrigerated to protect consumers against salmonella poisoning. Panama protects its egg-eating consumers by inoculating the chickens against salmonella, then not washing off the hen’s natural protection against contaminants. This is proven safe and consequently saves on the retail cost of refrigeration. So, considering that the U.S. still has over 140,000 cases of salmonella poisoning a year from eating eggs and the high cost of eggs there, we haven’t given a second thought to the twisted reality of buying eggs or milk off the grocery aisle.
Like in the States, the meat department is at the back of the store. The familiar layout feels safe, but we found this department a little uncomfortable at first and it’s still intimidating. Lines are loose and informal in Panama, but I step up to the 1970’s era butcher case. Not to give the impression that I’m interested this trip, I try not to stare at the stock selections chicken feet, pig’s heads, beef lungs, etc. Nobody speaks English, the meat looks different, the butcher handles your food a little on the casual side and if it’s busy you have to assert yourself to get served. With a determined attitude, I catch the butcher’ attention, “Uno kilo de pechugas de pollo por favor”, and with the unassuming detachment that any professional might have, he plunges his hand into the mound of the chilled meat. Flopping them on the scale, the chicken breasts are not uniform in size, they still have bones and skin and have not been cleaned of silver skin, fat and chunks of untrimmed meat. At first I thought that this whole meat department protocol might be too Third World. However, at $1.60 a pound, we trim the chicken off the bones to make our own broth and the breasts are the best quality you will ever taste.
Along with chicken, we’ve tried solomillo de cerdo (pork loin), chuleta (chops), barriga de cedro (pork belly) and a couple cuts of red meat, including the ever popular carne molida (hamburger) from the scary butcher’s case. Located in the self-help cold case, with an eyebrow-raising huge selection of hot dogs and processed cheese, is the ham and bacon. All are easy to identify and we are learning their correct names. Beef, however is different in every way and is taking longer for us to know what we are bringing home. I’ll explain by saying the cuts look different and their Panamanian names do not translate. We have tried different cuts with different recipes but the beef in Panama is lean and tough with a more of a wild flavor than we like. We do not buy a lot of red meat but, as we learn how to cook it, we will learn how to shop for it, also.
The #1 suprise of grocery shopping in Panama is the reported inexpensive cost of food. Let’s be honest, Lisa and I moved here to live a retirement lifestyle that would be expensive in the United States. We discovered that perfect place in Bijao Panama. By being realistic in our planning, we have not been surprised by our expectations, except for one thing. We are not meeting our $400 a month grocery store budget. Even after stocking our house for the first time with food in the kitchen, cleaning supplies in the laundry, sundries in the bathrooms, cat food & litter, etc., our monthly grocery store expenses are still over $600. However, we now know our choices and we are learning how to shop within the budget we have set for ourselves.
Stores are the most expensive places to buy food but there are better alternatives. The many Farmer’s markets and roadside stands are the cheapest way to buy fruits and vegetables and, in the same way as the meat department, they can be an adventure. Budget wise, farm fresh produce also lasts much longer than store bought. So every Saturday we brave the grumpy merchants and make a buying trip to the busy market in El Valle. Then, by speaking a little Spanish, being assertive, making our own selections and being willing to try new things, we get superior vegetables at affordable prices. Cheese is very expensive to buy on every shopping trip. So, whenever we travel to Panama City we queue up in the long line at the local creamery, Quesos Chela for fresh dairy items at affordable prices. Like Tillamook you will find this brand in the grocery stores, but unlike Tillamook it’s inexpensive shopping at the creamery. Frozen fish is an affordable item in the grocery stores, but fresh fish is not. We live on the Pacific coast so, no surprise, a savvy shopper will go to a fish market for the freshest and least expensive seafood. We like the Mercantile by the Rio Hato airport but everyone has their favorite place. However, we still have to shop at the store and really, that’s where we have to make our budget work.
By being aware of the food choices that we make, we have our budget in sight. Items, like cheese, is a budget breaker and we don’t keep it stocked. Bacon is another sad example. At $15 a pound, it’s rarely on our shopping list, along with pork and red meat that have a gammy taste we don’t like. So, our diet has changed here in Panama and that helps but, the real savings can be discovered in every category by shopping the aisles like a local. Local store brands and packaging will regularly save us half, a third or more over our usual purchases. For example, we would ordinarily buy Hellmann’s mayo in a 32oz jar but it’s $7.29 here. By buying it in a 29oz bag it’s only $4.29. By buying the La Donna brand, the same size jar of mayo is $3.49 and $1.75 in the bag.
Every time we go grocery shopping it reminds us of our surprise when we first arrived in Panama. Our new home provided us with the crush of people at the airport, the insane snarl of traffic in Panama City, long delays behind the construction on Hwy 1, not knowing where we are at, traffic cops every 10 miles and not hearing a word of English. The brochure didn’t mention that. The beaches and golf course are nice but, grocery shopping is where we get our continuing education. Driving there past a battery of traffic cops and around giant pot holes then searching the bumper car parking lot for 10 minutes looking for an undersized space is life here. Under the scrutiny of armed guards we grab a cart, unfold our list and scan the horizon to begin our search. Finding our way around, discovering what we like, understanding what’s available, being patience, practicing our Spanish, is all stressful but going shopping is a cultural immersion that improves our survival skills. Maybe the brochures should also mention the grocery stores. Shopping certainly says, “Welcome to Panama.”