These past two months have been a learning experience, to say the least and learning how to shop is not as simple as I'd thought it would be.
I have learned that if you don't know which is the best bread to buy, watch what the local woman are putting on their trays at the bakery. Shampoo? Whichever brand there is the least of on the shelf, must be the best (it is). Meat is another story. That's hit or miss but always flavorful. Fabric softener...not so easy.
And then there are eggs. Could not for the life of me find eggs. I looked and looked and finally asked, "donde es los huevos"? Well I can tell you where they're not. In the refrigerated section and that's because Mexico doesn't muck up what nature intended.
When chickens lay eggs there is a natural cover that encases the egg. A waxy cuticle called a bloom. This is what protects those little chickadees from bateria while they incubate.
Since eggs have approximate 7,500 pores on the shell, there's a good chance some major cooties could invade the porous surface, but here in Mexico, they leave well enough alone. That bloom does the job.
Mexico City 1900
Photo by Alfred Iles
In the United States, we have to screw around with everything it seems. Chickens are confined and once the eggs are laid, they are scrubbed, rinsed with detergent and sprayed with a chlorine wash...and then bathed in mineral oil.
Mexico along with most other nations has known for a long time that you don't fool with Mother Nature.
Next time you're traveling through Mexico and are wondering why your breakfast tastes so damn good you'll understand why sometimes the simplest meal is the best meal.
You'll find the eggs right where they should be.
