Decades of U.S. sanctions have crippled Cuba's energy infrastructure, pushing families across the island to abandon modern kitchens and revive an age-old tradition: cooking with charcoal.
In Havana's Mariana neighborhood, 62-year-old Caridad Alvarez runs a small cafe with her husband. But as the energy crisis deepens, she has been forced to learn a skill she never expected to need, making fire with charcoal.
"I'm 62 years old, and for the first time in my life, I've had to cook with charcoal, because of the fuel shortage. We're going through a very difficult time. We've had no choice but to switch to charcoal, which was the way people cooked many years ago," she said.
The U.S. policy of "maximum pressure and economic strangulation" has directly targeted Cuba's energy system, with electricity shortages becoming increasingly severe. For families accustomed to electric cooking, unpredictable blackouts mean meals are delayed, or sometimes never cooked at all. So more and more households are reverting to charcoal.
"When the power goes out while I'm cooking, we switch to charcoal. Because the electricity is so unreliable, we've cut back to just two meals a day," she continued.
Lexer Brizuela has been making charcoal for over two decades. Now, he often runs three batches at once and still cannot keep up with demand. Though charcoal production is grueling work, the recent surge in demand means his hard work is finally paying off.
"I produce about 200 bags of charcoal a month. As soon as they're bagged, they're shipped out and they sell out in less than two days. The price of charcoal shot up overnight. Just like I said, it used to be 1,000 pesos (about 41 U.S. dollars). In less than a week, it jumped to 2,500 pesos. Now it's 3,000 pesos," said Brizuela.
The U.S. pressure campaign has not only choked electricity but also cut off fuel imports, paralyzing the transport and refilling of gas canisters. Even families who once relied on gas are now joining the search for charcoal.
"There's no gas, no electricity, so I have to cook with charcoal or firewood. That fills the house with smoke, so you can't even stay inside. This is how Cubans cook now," said Yudaimi, another resident.
US energy strangulation forces Cubans back to charcoal cooking
