When my husband Sean lived in Buenos Aires – before we got married-, he used to bring back goodies from his native UK that weren’t available in Argentina. Every time I opened that special kitchen cabinet, wonderful aromas of faraway places wafted out.

Sean introduced me to things like Heinz baked beans, Marmite, Bovril, mango chutney and Indian curry. It was love at first bite with Branston pickles! He would cook his childhood staples for me: cottage pie, beans on toast (oh happiness!), cauliflower cheese or toad in the hole, as well as the curries he is famous for. I think knowing what he ate as a boy helped me know the man a little better.

I didn’t really have to cook typical Argentinean food for Sean since he had already adopted it. He became adept at manning the parrilla (grill,) probably by channelling his inner gaucho. Every year, my family looks forward to Christmas because they know my hubby will produce yummy baby back ribs, grilled flank steak or sirloin, or whatever takes his fancy at the time. Last year he cooked a whole suckling pig for the first time!

One of Sean’s favourite snacks is empanadas: sweet corn, ham and cheese, beef, cheese and onion… and the mouth-watering list goes on. Not long ago, he came up with a new idea for a filling, one which perfectly combines both of our cultures: chicken curry empanadas. How’s that for multiculturalism? By the way, these curry empanadas were a huge hit with some our British friends too.

Although we can get some British and Argentinean food in Dallas, Texas, where we’re living now, we still like to bring some stuff back with us whenever we visit either Argentina or the UK and have a little taste of home.

This is what our pantry looks like now:

Read more:
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About the author

Ana Astri-O’Reilly is from Argentina, where she lived until five years ago. She currently lives in Dallas, USA with her British husband, but they move a lot. Previously a translator and English and Spanish teacher, Ana first started writing to share her experiences and adventures with friends and family. She speaks Spanish, English and a smattering of Portuguese.