On the advice of EF, I got some Pancho Villa tortilla chips and salsa from
Migros today. The verdict is FAIL. I can't even call this thing salsa. Pancho
would be rolling in his grave if he knew that his name is on a jar of salsa.
Let alone this so-called salsa.

I'm going to have to make my own salsa from fresh ingredients if I want
to live in Zürich for a few years.

For you old timers here that live a long way from home, is the game plan
to lose 10-15 pounds before going home? And once you're back home,
stuff yourselves with all the food that were not available in CH?

I'm thinking of doing that already and I have only been here for two months!
I have a weakness for good Mexican or Tex-Mex food.

DavidSJC

I make my own (tortillas, chips, salsa, etc.), in fact made 22 corn tortillas yesterday (for beef and fish tacos for dinner).

Ingredients at www.elmaiz.ch

Tom

i also made the mistake of buying that salsa once. i had to spit it out as soon as i tasted it. was revolting.

The best chips are Coop's naturaplan bio Tortilla Chips which come in a package similar to the picture

(only found a pic of the regular chips)



If you don't see them the next best (also from Coop) are Tortilla Chips Nature



As far as salsa goes.. it's all horrible here.

I've also gotten good natural (but salted) chips at Manor, and on some occasions at Denner.

Tom

I agree, the Migros tortilla chips and salsa are not good at all.

The Coop Bio tortilla chips are good.

The best salsa I found here was from the Bioladen (Chornlade at Limmatplatz). It was a small jar, and rather expensive, but it tasted good!

I also prefer to make fresh salsa myself.

If you didn't like the Pancho Villa stuff, you will want to stay FAR away from the Chio "salsa" ... it tastes like the "taco sauce" (glorified weird ketchup really) they used to give us at my high school.

When in Rome.......

I agree mex. food supplies from the supermarkets are really poor.

In he UK i used to use old el paso tortillas and salsa but we loved the discovery fajita seasoning mix. that was the dry mix you rub over the chicken in advance then fry. I mean it smokey when cooked but gave the best flavour.

So disappointed with both pancho and el paso fajita mix I went hunting on the internet and found this.

http://busycooks.about.com/od/homema...aseasonmix.htm

now although I haven't tried it yet, I do plan on it (I am moving into a new flat soon and I am currently running the supplies on this flat down).

The spices can be picked in indian and asian suppermarkets. I will post how I get on, but at the moment I have reservations about the chicken bullion cube and crushed chilli flakes.

I think that if you like spicy salsa and are accustomed to the offerings available in the US, it is probably best to make salsa from scratch, as the available options here are generally quite mild and as Peg A said, seem to be more like taco sauce or are ketchup-based. Plus, no use in paying for full jars of multiple types of salsa off the shelf here then finding you need to throw them away because you don't care for them. Invest that money in a mini chopper and spend some time on the internet Googling for recipe options!

I find that the Pancho Villa natural chips themselves are not that bad when paired with a decent salsa or guacamole!

Hi David,
As far as Mexican food goes, get the ingredients and make it yourself at home. Otherwise, you will be utterly disappointed.

As mentioned, you can get the ingredients at El Maiz. They have pretty good chips that are as close as you come. Also, they have a very extensive range of salsas from medium spicy to Oh my God spicy.

I was born and raised in S. California (great Mexican food aplenty) and had no idea how slim the pickings would be once we moved to Zürich. So glad to have discovered El Maiz and agree with folks that you're better off making salsa/guac/chips from scratch. El Maiz also happens to have delicious albeit frozen tamales and the shop owners recommend the following restaurant for authentic Mexican food:

http://www.hotel-blume.ch/index.php?...mid=72&lang=de

Unfortunately, it's in Interlaken. I would travel for good Mexican food.

Salsa is always better made at home, even in the US

It irks me to pay near 4 CHF for a can of refried beans but chips aren't bad from Coop - the Bio variety

Gotta learn how to make the beans from scratch but chips are pretty fun to try at home...esp flour ones