Regional Guide to the Drinks and Food of Peru
Perus Food Specialities From the Andes and Peru Rainforest
Nov 4, 2009
The food in Peru ranks amongst the southern hemisphere's tastiest, most varied and most unknown cuisine. National culinary characteristics include a presence of rice and corn in many dishes. The most dominant meat is chicken, along with wild guinea pig (cuy).
Peruvian Food Regions
The tastiness and variation of Peru cuisine comes from the different influences on the country over the centuries. The coastal desert, being more easily accessible, took heavy influences from the Spanish conquistadors and relied largely upon seafood for its culinary traditions. The Andean Mountains, meanwhile, still retain many dishes dating back to pre-colonial times and the ancient civilisations which ruled there before - the Inca for example. Crops that could survive the cold weather - potatoes and yucca (a chalky white or yellow root vegetable) dominated the cuisine. Further inland again, the Amazon region of Peru has a food tradition more in keeping with parts of Brazil. River fish are popular to incorporate in food dishes here, along with jungle plants.
Yet unlike in Argentina and Brazil where the top national food dishes have become more widely known, Peruvian foods have remained in relative obscurity. This has been mosty due to the fact that Peruvians have typically - either through choice or lack of means - not travelled or settled in other countries as much as Argentinians and Brazilians have. As a result Peru has some of South America's - if not the world's - food treasures. Peru cuisine is essentially simple, but the sheer variety of foods grown in the country give the food some incredible flavours.
Peru Desert and Coastal Strip
- Ceviche - Raw whitefish marinated in lime or lemon juice and served with red onion, coldsweet potato and corn. Occasionally avocado and peanuts are also added. So common is ceviche that in Peru whole bars and restaurants (cevicherias) are devoted to serving it. It is Peru's national dish.
- Tiraditos - Thanks to Peu's notorious former Japanese president, Fujimori, Peru has a strong Japanese influence which boils down to its cooking too. Traditos are the Japanese version of ceviche, without the onions and with a thinner cut to the fish.
- Choros a la Chalaca - Mussels in a corn a tomato salsa
- Chupe - A thick seafood or chicken broth, much like a chowder. Chupe de Camaones (shrimp broth) is the most popular version.
- Lomo Saltado - One of Peru's most popular dishes - strips of beef (lomo) served mixed with rice and grilled vegetables including peppers, onions and potatoes. It's an example of Creole (Criollo) food that is found across Lima. For more information on criollo food in Lima click here.
- Mazamorra Morada - Boiled purple corn desert, especially popular in Lima.
- Churros - Deep-fried doughnut strips that originated in Spain but have been popularised in Peru. Lima has plenty of churro bars where you can sit and dunk your churros in hot chocolate.
- Pisco - Grape brandy from the town of the same name south of Lima
- Peru wine - Peruvian wines are gaining recognition, particularly the whites made near the desert town of Ica such as Tacama and Ocucaje.
Andes Mountains and the Peru Altiplano (Highlands)
- Pachamanca - Meat (usually chicken) cooked the traditional Inca way in an oven of hot rocks with vegetables and potatoes.
- Papa a la Huancaina - The signature dish of Huancayo, the main city in the Highlands: potatoes served in a creamy cheese saucewith pepper and sliced egg.
- Papas Rellenas - Globes of mashed potato with a filling of spiced beef.
- Picante de Cuy - This is the most popular way of serving wild guina pig - roasted in a hot cayenne pepper sauce. Picante means "spicy"
- Chicharrones - Pork crackling, usually served with yucca and raw red onions.
- Quinua - a nutritious grain popular in soups and broths in the high Andes
- Chicha - popular across Peru but particularly in the Andes. It's fermented corn beer.
- Chirimoya - A sweet Andean fruit served on its own as a desert, with white flesh.
- Andean Hot Toddy - This drink goes by arying names depending upon the town you are in. It's spicy cinamon tea with fermented sugar cane liquor (aguardiente), usually served with fruit.
The Amazon Rainforest of Peru
- Juanes - Fish or chicken mixed with rice, steamed, and wrapped in a banana leaf.
- Cecina - Dried pork, usually a selection of cuts, served on a bed of pummelled banana
- Parrillada de la Selva - Babecued meat served in brazil nut sauce
- River ceviche - Ceviche made with river fish has a very different taste to that found on the coast.
- Paiche - The Amazon River's tastiest fish, formerly endangered but now making a comeback thanks to breeding programmes.
- Jungle Juice (jugo especial) - Available at markets across the Peruvian Amazon, made with exotic jungle fruits.
For further information on Peruvian food click here.
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