A Cuban identified as Lucía Milagros published a 29-second video that went viral this week on TikTok, showcasing what she was able to put on the table with just $1.60 in Cuba.
In the clip, the young woman recounts that she bought one and a half pounds of chicken for approximately 1,050 Cuban pesos, equivalent to that amount at the informal exchange rate in effect that day: 668 pesos per dollar.
"Today, I bought a pound and a half of chicken for one thousand fifty pesos, approximately a dollar sixty at today's exchange rate," he explains in the video.
But what drew the most attention was the second part of his story: to accompany the chicken, he didn't have to spend an extra peso.
"The best part is that we didn't have to buy anything to accompany it: we went out to the patio and used our own planted bananas to make a delicious fufú," he/she said.
Fufú made of plantain —a mash of cooked and crushed plantains with garlic, onion, and fat— is a dish with African roots that has become integrated into traditional Cuban cuisine and is now re-emerging as a symbol of subsistence cooking.
"This is a simple meal made with what we have at home. I thank God for the dish of each day," concluded Lucía Milagros, whose video garnered over 54,700 views and 531 comments.
Lucía Milagros' video joins a viral trend on social media where Cubans document their grocery purchases to showcase the real purchasing power on the island.
"A real purchase and a meal made with a lot of creativity. What we grow at home is also a blessing," the young woman wrote in the description of her post.
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