Food-- We're not gonna starve, right?

Natalya Thakur

I sit to write this blog post in my humble abode of a blanket fort--with my stomach grumbling as I await dinner to be served. I feel like all my other blog posts have been more scientific/academic and serious. Today, I wanted to explore what our diet might be like when we visit the Pantanal this summer. So first off, since 80% of the economy is comprised of cattle ranching I can only imagine that beef would be a significant part of the peoples' diets, in addition to a lot of fish. The following are some yummy dishes that we can expect to see:

1) Caldo de Pirahna: spicy piranha soup-- mixed with chopped vegetables and spices! This isn't an uncommon dish because piranha's are so abundant in the Pantanal.

2) Picanha: Brazilian BBQ beef--barbequed with a layer of fat for flavor.

3) Moqueca de Pintado: spotted catfish dish-- deep fried in red palm oil with coconut cream and capsicum.

4) Chipa: cheese bread-- originally Paraguayan, similar to Brazilian pao de queijo (my personal favorite).

There is a spice called urucum that is used in many steak and fish dishes, and fun fact--it's also used for body paint and Brazilian tattoos.