La Cocina de Mary

Cerdo (pork), con tajadas, arroz de ajo (garlic rice), y ensalada

I loved where I lived in Los Almendros for many reasons, one of which being the delicious meals that my host mom Mary cooked. A couple days each week she cooked and sold lunches to her tenants and neighbors, and every single plate that I ate was delicious. They came in really handy on my busy days when I didn’t have time, ingredients, or the energy to cook for myself, and in this way I had the opportunity to try a handful of home-cooked traditional Costeño dishes during my grant. When I initially moved into the house and learned that Mary was really into cooking, I planned to watch and learn how to cook different dishes alongside her. I did this to a degree, but I definitely ate more than I cooked while living in her house! Keep reading to hear the story of May’s kitchen and to feast your eyes on some photos of her food.

Mojarra negra frita, arroz de coco, ensalada, y platano con queso

When I asked about how she became the chef that she is, Mary told me that in the past she never really liked to cook. This was shocking to me, having seen her skills in the kitchen, but I could relate when she explained that she never liked cooking because she hated having to wash a million dishes afterwards! She remembers seeing her mother-in-law cook dishes that she described as spectacular, but she explained to me that despite that “no me llamó la atención”, cooking didn’t catch her attention. However, when she started working again after having her children, she found herself in the kitchen.

Rollitos de pollo con arroz, verduras, platano con queso, salsa de ciruela, y jugo de maracuyá

Prior to what she does now, Mary used to work at Éxito, the big supermarket/department store chain found throughout Colombia, and she worked in the food department preparing asados (grilled/barbecued meats). Cooking still really wasn’t her thing, but while she worked, she noticed another area in the store called la charcutería (the delicatessen) where her co-workers prepared salads, desserts, tutti frutti (a drink that consists of soda poured over finely chopped watermelon, papaya, melon, apple, banana, and other fruits) and more. This caught her interest, and one day she approached to ask if they would teach her how to make some of the desserts that they prepared. They obliged, and on her breaks, Mary went to learn. After that she tried her hand at the panadería (bakery) department to learn to make bread, and later sweets with the repostería (pastry shop). She learned a lot there, hopping between the different departments in Éxito.

Mote de queso con arroz de ajo y banano (a lot of people eat their lunch with a banana in Colombia!)

Mary continued to work, learn about desserts during her breaks, and she also began to study in SENA (Servicio Nacional de Aprendizaje), the Colombian public vocational training organization that has schools throughout the country. She took night courses in International Foods and Colombian Gastronomy, accumulating knowledge and developing many different recipes. Mary continued to make desserts, and she also made carne asados that she sold on the weekends, and small lunches that she sold at work. 

Chuleta con arroz de espinaca, ensalada, y tajadas

Life events prompted Mary to move to Santa Marta, another city on the Caribbean coast, and there she started an asado de pollo (roast chicken) business. She also began to sell her famous lunches more formally; the works complete with soup and rice. After all of her experiences with asados, charcutería, repostería, panadería, international and Colombian cuisine, she finally realized she had quite a knack for the kitchen. Mary continued to learn from watching tutorials online, developed a knack for improvising, adapting, and substituting things in her recipes, and became quite health-conscious, committing to only using fresh spices and seasonings instead of condiments and flavorings.

Pollo guisado con arroz, ensalada, papas, lentejas y jugo de lulo

Chuleta con arroz de ajo, tajadas, y ensalada

In her new city Mary now had the opportunity to cook for large events, preparing huge sancochos and other dishes to feed hundreds of people. In Decembers she became dedicated to preparing her widely loved cenas especiales (special dinners), and this is how her amor de la cocina grew; by preparing her platos especiales, and by learning, improvising, and inventing in the kitchen. 

Sopa con arroz de fideo y banano

Mojarra negra frita con arroz blanco y ensalada

Mary started cooking to support her children as a single mom and para salir adelante, to move forward in life. She once paid her own rent this way, selling breakfasts, lunches, and dinners to her customers but is now busy with her home and the folks who rent rooms out from her. These days she still sells lunches but nothing like how she did before. After learning her story, it made a lot more sense to me how she very easily turns just a few ingredients into something spectacular with ease and in no time at all, and this was very inspiring for me to watch as someone who also loves cooking. Mary continues to cook, but on her own time and in her home rather than for the masses, with her tenants and neighbors as her loyal customers. She prefers it this way, making spectacular inventions in the kitchen whenever a burst of creativity hits. She charges 9.000 COP per plate, and its sooo worth it.

Gracias Mary por cuidarme, por enseñarme cosas de la cocina, y por hacerme tantos platos deliciosos (y todos esos caldos cuando estaba enferma)!

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