Culture Shock! Chile - A Survival Guide to Customs and Etiquette

140 CultureShock! Chile

Salads

For those gringos who expect iceberg lettuce with a variety

of dressings every time the word salad is mentioned, Chile

is a shock. Laura finds it consoling to remember that the

word ensalada (and salad in English) has its roots in Latin,

meaning in salt. That is a pretty broad description, and such

are salads in Chile. A typical salad is cold vegetables dressed

in lemon, vegetable oil and salt. The most common salads

are ensalada chilena (chopped, peeled tomatoes with sliced

onions and cilantro), ensalada de porotos (bean salad) and

an avocado and celery salad. Palmitos (hearts of palm) are

also incorporated into a number of salads. Ensalada rusa is

a mixture of cold boiled potatoes and mayonnaise.

Breads

In many areas of Chile, the tradition of eating bread,

bought fresh every morning from the local panadería, is

still honoured. Some bread sellers even deliver bread to

their regular customers’ homes every day, although this is

becoming less common. Supermarkets normally feature

a bakery. Bread is sold by the kilogramme and is never

refrigerated. Chileans would consider that an insult. Chapalele

is a typical bread from Chiloé made from potatoes and wheat

flour and boiled. Milcao is also made from potatoes and

originated in Chiloé. Sopaipilla is an unbaked bread made

from zapallo or Chilean pumpkin. When they are served with

a warm caramel sauce they are called sopaipillas pasadas.

This is usually only eaten in winter when it is cold and rainy

because they are supposed to warm you up!

Hallullas, marraquetas and pan amasado are the most

popular varieties of bread found in Chile. Hallullas

are round, flat pieces of white

bread. The marraqueta is a small,

dense, French type of white

bread. Actually, most bread in

Chile is somewhat dense. Pan

amasado, a very traditional

bread, is cooked without yeast

and therefore is very flat and

If you are looking for something
to top your bread try quesillo, a
light cheese with the consistency
of tofu. It is very popular and is
served frequently at breakfast
and once. If you prefer something
sweet, dulce de membrillo,
is sweet quince and has the
consistency of hardened jam.