• About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms
  • Unsubscribe
No Result
View All Result
Live and Invest Overseas
FREE REPORT
BEST PLACES TO RETIRE
*No spam: We will NEVER give your email address to anyone else.
  • HOME
  • COUNTRIES
    • Top Destinations
      • Portugal
      • Panama
      • Belize
      • France
      • Colombia
      • Dominican Republic
      • Thailand
      • Mexico
      • Spain
      • Argentina
    • Browse All Countries
    • Best For
      • Retire Overseas Index
      • Health Care
      • Cost of Living
      • Investing in Real Estate
      • Editor’s Picks For Retirement
      • Establishing Residency
      • Starting an Online Business
      • Single Women
      • Playing Golf
  • BUDGETS
    • Super Cheap ($)
      • Cuenca, Ecuador
      • Chiang Mai, Thailand
      • The Philippines
      • Las Tablas, Panama
      • Granada, Nicaragua
    • Cheap ($$)
      • Algarve, Portugal
      • Medellin, Colombia
      • Boquete, Panama
      • Carcassone, France
      • Buenos Aires, Argentina
    • Affordable ($$$)
      • Abruzzo, Italy
      • Barcelona, Spain
      • Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic
      • Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
      • Costa de Oro, Uruguay
    • Luxury On A Budget ($$$$)
      • Ambergris Caye, Belize
      • Paris, France
      • Panama City Beach Area
  • Real Estate
  • ARCHIVES
    • Living & Retiring Overseas
    • Raising A Family Abroad
    • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
    • Offshore Diversification
    • Our Latest On Coronavirus ⚠️
  • Making Money
    • International Real Estate
    • Banking
    • Employment
    • Investing
  • CONFERENCES
  • BOOKSTORE
Live and Invest Overseas
  • HOME
  • COUNTRIES
    • Top Destinations
      • Portugal
      • Panama
      • Belize
      • France
      • Colombia
      • Dominican Republic
      • Thailand
      • Mexico
      • Spain
      • Argentina
    • Browse All Countries
    • Best For
      • Retire Overseas Index
      • Health Care
      • Cost of Living
      • Investing in Real Estate
      • Editor’s Picks For Retirement
      • Establishing Residency
      • Starting an Online Business
      • Single Women
      • Playing Golf
  • BUDGETS
    • Super Cheap ($)
      • Cuenca, Ecuador
      • Chiang Mai, Thailand
      • The Philippines
      • Las Tablas, Panama
      • Granada, Nicaragua
    • Cheap ($$)
      • Algarve, Portugal
      • Medellin, Colombia
      • Boquete, Panama
      • Carcassone, France
      • Buenos Aires, Argentina
    • Affordable ($$$)
      • Abruzzo, Italy
      • Barcelona, Spain
      • Las Terrenas, Dominican Republic
      • Puerto Vallarta, Mexico
      • Costa de Oro, Uruguay
    • Luxury On A Budget ($$$$)
      • Ambergris Caye, Belize
      • Paris, France
      • Panama City Beach Area
  • Real Estate
  • ARCHIVES
    • Living & Retiring Overseas
    • Raising A Family Abroad
    • Foreign Residency & Citizenship
    • Offshore Diversification
    • Our Latest On Coronavirus ⚠️
  • Making Money
    • International Real Estate
    • Banking
    • Employment
    • Investing
  • CONFERENCES
  • BOOKSTORE
No Result
View All Result
Live and Invest Overseas
No Result
View All Result
Home Countries Belize

Cooking With Coconuts And Living In Belize Long-Term

Think Outside The Coconut: Embracing Belize’s Quirky Cuisine

Noel Delacruz by Noel Delacruz
Nov 18, 2021
in Belize, In Focus: Belize
0
Coconut on a jetty

Adobe Stock/Roijoy

277
SHARES
3.7k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

I recently moved to Ambergris Caye, Belize, from Portland, Oregon…

While preparing for the move, I was told again and again that it wouldn’t work out… that I’d be returning back home to the United States before the year was up…

As I sit on my lanai, the gentle breeze wafting up from the ocean just steps away, I can’t help but wonder what would cause someone to pack up and move back home…

How could this paradise fail to deliver?

I have a hard time finding fault with paradise, especially Belize’s brand. The turquoise waters and wind-rustled palm fronds that are now my day-to-day life are hard to argue with.

Yes, there are hostile mosquitoes and Belizean bureaucracy, which can be a big headache.

Still, everything my partner and I loved about the Caribbean as tourists is still here now that we’re residents.

Locals hypothesize that too many expats try to recreate the lives they had in the States here in Belize.

“When they try to make their life here like it was there, they are miserable,” more than one Belizean has told me.

While I believe in tradition and maintaining one’s culture, I can see their point.

One thing people struggle with in the here-versus-there adjustment period is food. For most of us, living in Belize means adapting… cooking in a new way with new ingredients.

When I moved here, I promised myself I’d avoid American convenience food for cost and health reasons. Embracing Belizean food has required abandoning beloved recipes and long-trusted products. Instead, I improvise using what’s available.

Belizeans Love Coconut

Bowl with coconut oil on table
Adobe Stock/Pixel-Shot

Back in Oregon, the only coconut products I was familiar with were sweetened flakes, toasted chips, canned milk, and, more recently, bottled coconut water.

I’d eye the imported fuzzy husks and wonder how on Earth you work with them. I never pursued my curiosity, opting instead to pay for the convenience of machine-prepared coconuts.

On a recent shopping trip in Belize, I visited the roadside stands (consisting of folding tables and coolers) where you find the best local produce. These are the places where most locals eat, rather than in fancy sit-down restaurants.

Get ​Your Free ​Belize Report Today!

 Simply enter your email address below and we'll send you our ​FREE REPORT – ​​Discover Belize: Reef, Ruins, Rivers, And Rain Forest… Plus Easy Residency And Tax-Free Living

Meeting Maria And Learning To Cook With Coconuts

I met Maria, the self-appointed “Coconut Lady,” at one of these stands and quickly succumbed to her marketing efforts. I defy you not to do the same when her sales pitch and booming voice are propelled in your direction.

Maria is a fast-talking lover of all things coconut, even making her own fragrant coconut oil. She sold me a gallon of fresh coconut water and a handful of cooking tips to go along with it.

She also convinced me to buy a large bag of coconut flesh. It was about the same size as the gallon jug of water. To say it looked unappetizing would be an understatement. It looked like slimy fish flesh. Without knowing exactly what I’d do with it, I bought it.

This brings me to my first question for anyone thinking of moving to Belize (or any foreign country): How open are you to trying new things?

Coconut flesh is rather bland… I thought about adding it to my morning fruit plate, but a little would go a long way.

After some research, I learned I could make coconut milk from it easily once my food processor arrived. (My things that didn’t fit in a suitcase are currently on a cargo ship somewhere between Florida and Belize.)

From there I could make coconut yogurt… and I’m totally excited to try these new recipes out.

For now, I’ve been dehydrating the coconut flesh into chips. My condo smells amazing, and I have a novel snack that visitors love. I plan to save some of the flesh for a while, too. Maria said it should keep in the refrigerator for seven days.

Organic Roasted Coconut Chips
Adobe Stock/Brent Hofacker

I also have a new fish stand that a local introduced me to, and Maria says wrapping the fish in the coconut flesh is delicious. Her advice for coconut rice was off the charts, so I’m eager to try her next suggestion.

In just a few weeks in Belize, I’ve already learned a valuable lesson…

Without getting over my qualms about trying something new, I wouldn’t have this glorious scent filling my apartment and a unique bag of homemade treats on my counter.

These were the benefits of overcoming the fear of the unfamiliar and embracing being taught something completely new by someone I didn’t know.

A lot of us battle between the desire for everything to stay the same and the desire for novelty and newness…

One of the keys to success here in Belize is embracing the novel.

Leave as much of your previous life behind as possible, including familiar foods. You never know what new source of comfort and enjoyment you’ll discover.

Noel Delacruz
Belize Insider

Tags: 'Belize'coconutscooking in belizecooking with coconutsexpatsexpats lifelive in BelizeMove to Belizeretire in belize
Share122Tweet65
Previous Post

El Pilar: The World’s First Sustainable City, Built By The Maya

Next Post

The Top Places To Travel To From Paris By Train

Noel Delacruz

Noel Delacruz

Noel delaCruz is a freelance writer from Oregon who, after raising her children, decided to give island life a try. She and her partner are now living on Ambergris Caye full time, and she plans on learning everything she can about Belize’s history and culture while here… as well as learning how to slow down to enjoy the pace of island living.

Related Posts

Louise, Carmelita Gardens’ architectural designer
Belize

Moving To Carmelita Gardens After One Phone Call

by Louise Cooper
May 18, 2022
0

A year ago, asking if I wanted to join the Carmelita Gardens team as the architectural designer… What started as...

Read more
A beautiful tree with white flowers with a house with solar panels in Carmelita Gardens, Belize

Carmelita Gardens In Cayo: Finding The Hippie Paradise

May 9, 2022
A pink truck in Belize

Buying Your Vehicle in Belize vs. Shipping Your Car To Belize

May 4, 2022
Beautiful Caribbean sight with turquoise water in Caye Caulker, Belize.

The Simple Joys That Drew Me To Move To Belize

April 20, 2022
Beautiful Caribbean sight with turquoise water in Caye Caulker, Belize.

19 Ways To Earn Some Extra Income In Belize

April 6, 2022
Small tropical island at Barrier Reef with paradise beach in Belize

Our Experts Answer Questions On All Things Belize

March 23, 2022
View from the shore of clear blue caribbean waters. Tropical plants and a palm tree in the foreground and some fluffy white clouds in the sky

6 Cheapest Places To Live In The Caribbean

March 17, 2022
Next Post
Pond in front of the Royal residence at Versailles near Paris

The Top Places To Travel To From Paris By Train

A world full of fun, adventure, and profit awaits! Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and we'll send you a FREE report on the 10 Best Places To Retire In Style Overseas Today.

Start Your New Life Today, Overseas

Get ​Your Free ​Belize Report Today!
 

​Simply enter your email address below and we'll send you our ​FREE REPORT – ​​Discover Belize: Reef, Ruins, Rivers, And Rain Forest… Plus Easy Residency And Tax-Free Living
 

LIOS Resources


  • New To LIOS
  • Ask An Expert
  • Media Center
  • Contact Us
  • FAQs

Quick Links


  • Best Places To Live
  • Best Places To Retire
  • Finding A Job Overseas
  • Real Estate

Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and get your FREE report: The 10 Best Places To Retire Overseas In 2022

  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms
  • Unsubscribe

© 2008-2021 - Live and Invest Overseas - All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Countries
  • Budgets
  • Archives
  • News
  • Events
  • Bookstore
  • Newsletters
  • About Us
  • Members Area
  • Contact Us

© 2008-2021 - Live and Invest Overseas - All Rights Reserved.

The World’s Best Places To Be In 2022?

Discover Them Here…

WANT TO RETIRE OVERSEAS?

Sign up for our free daily e-letter, Overseas Opportunity Letter, and we’ll immediately send you a free report on the 10 BEST PLACES TO RETIRE in style overseas. Each day you’ll learn about the best opportunities for international living, retiring overseas, offshore diversification and asset protection, and investing in real estate around the world.

Get Your Free ​​Belize Report Today!
 

​​Learn more about ​​BELIZE and other countries in our free, daily Overseas Opportunity Letter​​, as well as our ​In Focus: Belize ​newsletter​​​​​​. Simply enter your email address below and we’ll send you our FREE REPORT – ​​Discover Belize: Reef, Ruins, Rivers, And Rain Forest… Plus Easy Residency And Tax-Free Living