Peruvian Food-A Plethora of Culinary Choices

Loma Saltado

     An old co-worker of mine, David requested recently that I write about Peruvian food.  It should be that he should be writing since he comes from Peruvian roots.  I will try to do justice to this cuisine.

     Peru is a nation in Western South America whose border is the Pacific Ocean on the west and is home to the Andes Mountains and part of the tropical Amazon Basin.  While Spanish is the predominant language, Peru has a long history and large population of indigenous groups and immigrants. 
     What I find fascinating about Peruvian Cuisine, is the influence of other countries cultures and traditions, which the Peruvian people have adopted as their own.  From the native Quechua and Aymara peoples to Europeans, Africans, and Asians, the unique ethnic make-up of Peru has resulted in a wide variety of cultural and culinary traditions that are all recognized as inherently “Peruvian.”

     Like the country of Peru, its cuisine it a large and vast as the high Andes Mountain range that travels the length of the country from north to south.  For example, there is a large Asian (particularly Japanese and Chinese), influence on food in Lima, the capital of the country and along the Pacific Coast.

Ceviche Mixto

     Cuisine that can be found along the Pacific Coast is rich in seafood and the most popular dish along the coastal region (and actually throughout the country) is Ceviche.  Ceviche is a combination of raw seafood and what type of seafood isn’t written in stone. For example, there is Ceviche de Camarones (shrimp), Ceviche de Pescado (fish) and Ceviche de Mixto (shrimp, fish calamari and octopus).  It also contains corn and sweet potatoes laced with different kinds of spicy sauces.  It is not uncommon for many dishes to be prepared in the Chinese genre of cuisine.  In fact, Peruvians tend to have celebratory dinners in the Chinese tradition.      Other very popular dished in the coastal region are,

Chupe: A creamy chili-seasoned stew-like soup full of fish, shrimp, crab and anything else the cook wants to throw in the pot.

Pescado a la Macha: A fish fillet smothered with a creamy aji-rocoto pepper and shellfish sauce.

Seafood Chaufa: Peruvian Chinese fried rice infused with ginger and spices.  It will be loaded with fresh seafood.

Parihuela: A kind of Peruvian style bouillabaisse that is tomato based spiced with hot pepper

Panhuela

     The Northern coast of Peru varies further with strong influences from the cooking of coastal indigenous groups.  Dishes characteristic of this region often feature stewed meats and are known as “secos.”

     Andean cuisine is very labor intensive and is generally reserved for special holidays. As of late Peruvian tourism has increased greatly and restaurants in the northern region have relented to creating these more laborious creations for the visiting tourist.  The most used vegetable that is used in the preparation of Peruvian food is the potato.  
     Potatoes are in at least 75% of all Peruvian dishes.   Recently, I visited a Peruvian restaurant here in Providence, Macchu Picchu and ordered Loma Saltado, which is sautéed steak and onions, tomatoes, French fries, and rice.  Unusual? Yes.  Tasty?  Yes!  My friend that was with me, ordered Milanesa de Pollo which is battered fried chicken and rice.   It was delicious!  While most Peruvian fare tends to be fairly straight forward, there are a few items that might give me pause before I would try them.  A few of them would be,

Pancita: Cow Stomach marinated with aji-panca pepper

Anticuchos:  Beef heart shish kabob

Bistek, Anticucho, Pancita, Chorizo, Choclo Y Papa: Steak, beef heart shish kabob, Pancita sausage with Peruvian Corn and boiled potato

These were interesting selections, to say the least.

        Well, I hope this gives you some insight into Peruvian Cusine.  If you should be in the Providence area, check out Machu Picchu Restaurant, located at 651 Admiral Street in Providence.  If you live elsewhere,  look up a local Peruvian Restaurant in your area and give it a try.  I’m sure you won't be disappointed.

Here is an easy Peruvian recipe for you to try on your own!

Causa Rellena

Causa refers to the yellow potato (papa Amarilla), and rellena refers to the stuffing. Feel free to get clever with the recipe – and presentation. But try this simple and tasty Latin American comfort food for yourself…

 Causa (potato) - 8 yellow potatoes* (boiled, peeled and mashed) - 3 yellow peppers - Juice from 3 limes - 2 tbsp. vegetable oil - 2 cloves of garlic - salt and pepper to taste

 *yellow spuds are the only way to go

Rellena (stuffing) - ½ cup mayonnaise - ½ chopped med. onion - 1 tsp. mustard - 2 hard-boiled eggs (chopped) - 1 avocado (cut into slices) - black olives (chopped) to your preference - For a little extra protein, add cooked chicken breast or tuna to your stuffing

1. Saute yellow peppers and garlic in vegetable oil until soft. Place in blender with mashed potatoes, lime juice, and salt and pepper. Process until smooth.

 2. Mix all stuffing ingredients (mayonnaise, onion, mustard, boiled eggs, avocado, olives and optional chicken/tuna) in a bowl. Season with salt and pepper to taste

So there you have it!  Peruvian Cuisine 101!  

        This Blog was requested by one of my readers.  If you have a suggestion or request,  please click here to send me an e-mail!

All the best to you and those you hold dear, and only the best on your table! Until next time, I remain yours, Bobby.