Mexico isn't exactly a vegetarian's nightmare, but it's close. Meat and carbohydrates are pretty much what you'll find at all the restaurants. Chicken, Beef, Pork. Rice, Beans, Corn. Green vegetables are an afterthought at best. And the further from the coast you are, the less likely you are to find seafood. Oaxaca is famous for its many varieties of mole sauces, but it seems whenever they are served in restaurants they already have some meat in them. We've gone to a couple of buffets where you just take a leap of faith that what you're putting on your plate doesn't have meat in it, but sometimes you just have no idea until you bite into it. I'm working on the assumption that most of the animals are less likely to be of the factory farm variety so I don't get too worked up about straying inadvertently. Besides, it all tastes pretty darn good.
In keeping with my philosophy that wild animals are generally okay to eat occasionally, I have tried the grasshoppers that are widely available here in Oaxaca. I don't know if they're baked or fried or what, but they're fairly crunchy, although a larger one I tried recently was a bit squishy inside. For some reason Deborah refused to kiss me afterward. She is considerably more agreeable about the Oaxacan chocolate, which sometimes makes its way into mole sauces, and often is combined with various spices including chilies or cinnamon. We like a tamer variety with vanilla that makes awesome hot chocolate. Fresh warm corn tortillas from the local tortillaria are also a real treat. The choice of breakfast cereals is somewhat limited but I've been eating Corn Pops, which are subtitled – and for some reason I find this quite funny – Maiz Inflado (inflated corn).
At the market - It looks even more appetizing with the flies hovering around.
Not that they don't have some very nice frut here. This is at the wholesale market.
Chilies, spices, and hibiscus flowers which are used in a flavored water drink called Jamaica.
A few oranges.
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