Is it safe to eat street food in Mexico and street food anywhere in the world? Not a simple answer but here it goes:
I am traveling by bus in Mexico and I am hungry. Several people come aboard to sell food and I have to decide if it is safe what they are offering.tacos de canasta, (steam tacos).
I ask the seller: what do you have? and the seller replies :
I ask: what is on the tacos?
he seller tells me: I have rajas con queso, nopales con huevo, chicharron con chile verde, mole, sopa de arroz y frijoles. (Translation: poblano peppers with cheese, cactus and egg, pork meat with green chilies, mole, fried rice, and beans).
I order Bean and rice tacos. Deme tacos de frijoles y arroz I tell the seller.
Here is how I decide if it is safe to eat the bean and rice tacos.
I apply those same rules as this example to decide if a particular street food is safe in any country.
Money and food can not be handled by same person, unless the seller uses a plastic glove for one or the other. Veggies have to be cooked.
Food that is cooked in front of you is better than food cooked previously.
For example: elotes cocidos and elotes asados. (boiled corn and roasted corn). this is a very common street food in Mexico.
Roasted corn is cooked in front of you under the charcoal. Do not put anything on the corn like chili sauce salt and lemon or sour cream and cheese. All those are options that can take away the sanitary condition of the freshly roasted corn.
Another example of a street food in Mexico is Churros. That is always safe as it is cooked in front of you in boiling oil and the ingredients are oil for frying and dough.
So my answer to Is street food safe Mexico ? I can say it depends but follow my
I am traveling by bus in Mexico and I am hungry. Several people come aboard to sell food and I have to decide if it is safe what they are offering.tacos de canasta, (steam tacos).
I ask: what is on the tacos?
he seller tells me: I have rajas con queso, nopales con huevo, chicharron con chile verde, mole, sopa de arroz y frijoles. (Translation: poblano peppers with cheese, cactus and egg, pork meat with green chilies, mole, fried rice, and beans).
I order Bean and rice tacos. Deme tacos de frijoles y arroz I tell the seller.
Here is how I decide if it is safe to eat the bean and rice tacos.
- Hygiene: Does the seller covers his hand with a plastic bag or plastic glove to handle the money? yes he does.
- When were those tacos made? I assume his wife makes them every morning and he goes out to sell them to the bus station. I ask the seller and he confirms it.
- Does the napkin covering the tacos appear to be clean?yes is clean.
- Is the sellers appearance cleanyes he is,
- What are the ingredients? Beans and rice seem safer than meat and chicken.I will not have any raw veggies or sauces on top of my tacos because it can have bacteria or parasites.
I apply those same rules as this example to decide if a particular street food is safe in any country.
Money and food can not be handled by same person, unless the seller uses a plastic glove for one or the other. Veggies have to be cooked.
Food that is cooked in front of you is better than food cooked previously.
For example: elotes cocidos and elotes asados. (boiled corn and roasted corn). this is a very common street food in Mexico.
Roasted corn is cooked in front of you under the charcoal. Do not put anything on the corn like chili sauce salt and lemon or sour cream and cheese. All those are options that can take away the sanitary condition of the freshly roasted corn.
Another example of a street food in Mexico is Churros. That is always safe as it is cooked in front of you in boiling oil and the ingredients are oil for frying and dough.
So my answer to Is street food safe Mexico ? I can say it depends but follow my
