Search the Community

Embargo ? What embargo - show me your cash and take the chicken ... Food purchases from Cuba to the United States fall to the level of 2002 The most plausible explanation for the reduction in imports is the island's lack of liquidity in foreign currency. 14ymedio, Havana | February 19, 2021 https://www.14ymedio.com/cuba/compras-alimentos-Cuba-EEUU_0_3043495635.html Imports of food and medicine from the United States fell by 36.6% in Cuba last year compared to 2019. The island's food purchases from American companies, published the US-Cuba Economic and Commercial Council this February , indicate that they added just over 163 million dollars during 2020, when the previous year they were almost 258 million dollars. This represents the lowest trade between the two countries since 2002. This decrease in imports is reflected in a greater shortage in Cuban markets. The United States is the largest supplier of chicken to the island, a fact that the Cuban Government never publishes, which usually uses the "blockade" to justify the economic crisis and the shortage of supplies in the country. In fact, of all the foods that the northern country exports to Cuba, which include soybeans, corn, calcium phosphate and corn, frozen chicken accounts for 87%. Given that transactions with the United States must be paid in cash and in advance, something established in the Law of Reform of Trade Sanctions and Strengthening of Exports of 2000, the most plausible explanation for this reduction in imports is the lack of liquidity in currencies of the Cuban counterpart. The import of medicines from the US was $ 936,000 and humanitarian donations, just over four and a half million dollars. In the last 18 years, since December 2001, the Council records, exports of agricultural products and food from the United States to Cuba amount to more than 6,000 million dollars. The economist Pedro Monreal highlights that, according to statistics, "2019 was the record year." Despite the 2020 crisis, he points out, "US exports of tons of chicken in 2020 ranks fourth in the entire 2001-2020 period." In addition, he assures that between January and December 2020, chicken exports from the United States to Cuba "have fluctuated, but stabilized since July." It is a product that, given the shortage of other sources of protein such as pork, eggs or beef, has become essential for Cubans, who stand in long lines to get it. Another supplier of white meat is Brazil, which between March and May 2020 grew its sales to Cuba by 87%, according to official Brazilian data published last June. Monreal explained then that since February 2020 the purchase of the product in the international market had increased, but that it remained "at levels lower than those of mid-2019, which explains the current shortage." The lower availability of frozen chicken forced the authorities to ration the amount of the product that each customer can buy in the network of state stores in the released market. It was also a severe blow to the private sector, which had to reduce its supply of dishes in the absence of a supply of breast or whole chickens, since most of the state sale was of thighs and hindquarters. In mid-2016 the authorities decreed a slight reduction in the prices of various foods. Among the products that benefited at the time were frozen chicken pieces that are sold in boxes of between 10 and 23 kilograms, a measure that encouraged purchase, especially among small private businesses that offer chicken on their menu. However, it is no longer possible to buy complete boxes of the product that are only sold in this format in stores in freely convertible currency. The resale of the merchandise in the informal market can reach up to double the price. This week a 7.5 kilogram box of chicken breast cost in clandestine networks about 3,000 pesos, about 125 dollars.

After playing a game last night that involved making my kidneys and liver hate me I needed to make some real food and eat something good for me. Chicken it is. And if i'm going to eat chicken I'm going to smoke a whole chicken. Smoking a whole chicken is pretty much the easiest thing to smoke in my opinion. It's virtually impossible to screw it up. So what's a beer can chicken for the uninitiated? Basically you shove a can of beer up the opening of a chicken and then put said chicken on the grill. Does it work? Yes but it's subtle. In my experience each of the beer can chickens have been slightly more moist than the non-beer can ones I've smoked. You don't have to do this in order to smoke a chicken. But since I have this handy ceramix beer can chicken holder I may as well use it as often as I can. So I selected a 6 pound bird. I wanted a big one because I not only am I a huge fan of leftovers but I also wanted to have lunch meat for the next three days. Another thing with chicken is since it's so cheap, if you do screw it up, your not out much money at all. Not so with brisket lol. A whole bunch of paper towels later I've managed to dry up the chicken. The bird felt thawed but there were surprise ice chunks all over the inside of it that took a while to clean that off. Next up is to fill the beer can holder with beer (a 2 week old, slightly stale Summer Shandy). Don't use good beer here. Bad pisswater (bud, bud light, miller light) works plenty well here. Now you can add some herbs and whatnoit to the beer for some additional flavors but I've never done that. Then I lather the chicken up with some olive oil and hit it with my spice ribe. Black Pepper Kosher Salt Cayenne Peppr Paprika Garlic Poweder Onion Powder 3 through 6 are small amounts. Pepper and Salt make up 90% of my rub. I don a latex glove so I don't have to wash oily hands And then I shove the bird on the beer can holder. And off to the grill. I want 275 at the grates. Once the breast hits 165 the thighs should be 175. I will not pull the chicken until both of those temps are achieved. I have a drip pan below to lessen the mess and helps to absorp some of the heat coming off the grill. I'm using cherry wood. I love love love cherry wood and how well it pairs with poultry. I'm looking for a 3-4 hour smoke. I put the chicken on the grill when it hits 225. At 1 hour. Temp never got to 275,. Did maintain 245-250 which is good enough. At 3:15. Temp did creep up to 265 for the last 45 minutes of the cook. My wireless thermometer went off when the breast hit 165 degrees. Probed the other one and both thighs. Bang on with the temps. She's done. Off the grill and into a tray with foil over it. Placed in the oven set to warm for 50 minutes. You need to let it rest otherwise all the juices will run out of the meat and your left with dried out chicken. That is not good eats. While I wait for it to rest I started some rice in the rice cooker. When that is done I should be ready to tear this chicken apart. Now one thing I should point out. I don't try to crisp the chicken up. My friends swear by tossing it on a gas grill at 400 degrees for 10 minutes and it does the trick. As it stands the skin is rubbery and not edible, so I just pull it off and don't eat it. Then it's time to tear this chicken apart to get to the tasty bits! So here's the results and the waste.