My duty as a blooger, requires that I tell you about Mexican Japanese peanuts, despite my ennui.
The first thing you need to know is that if you ever want to buy Mexican Japanese peanuts, there is only one brand that does the trick, and no other.The original Nishikawa brand, in the cellophane bag with blue lettering and the bust of a Geisha that hasn't changed since the sixties (except for the nutritional info label). The others just don't cut the mustard.
Now, Mexican Japanese peanuts are a mystery to me. Apparently there were Japanese and Chinese inmigrants to Mexico in the early 20th century that brought some stuff with them that has become a Mexican snack staple. One is the peanuts and the other is Chamoy, which is the Mexican version of preserved plums.
The peanuts are simply coated with a hard crunchy coat of wheat flour and soy. Mexican kids open the bag, sprinkle some chili powder or sauce and then smother them with squeezed lime juice. Shake the bag and eat. When you finish the peanuts, you suck the remaining lime and chili juice out of the bag, then you lick the inner part of the bag. Yes.
Chamoy, now also known as Miguelito, comes in two main varieties, wet and dry. Also in little plastic pouches. Wet it is made of dried, preserved apricot or plum with salt, sugar and citric acid and it's very red and people other than Mexicans find it unfathomable. Dry, it is the powder I described above, which you pour into the palm of your hand and you lick, or pour directly into your mouth, or pour on top of everything that goes well with lime and chili, such as potato chips, jicama or other cut fruits and vegetables (carrots, cucumbers,mango, pineapple).
Together with the shipment of the peanuts I got, from the Estimable Ruth Munguia (gracias, mana!) a big bottle (new packaging!) of powdered Miguelito, which alas, has egregious spelling errors both in English and Spanish.
Consider this community service on my part. Even though I rotated the images in my photo application, for some stubborn reason they will not rotate when I upload them, but it's just as well. It's the nature of the beast.
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