Peru tourist information

Peruvian cuisine is considered one of the most diverse in the world. In January,2004, The Economist said that "Peru can lay claim to one of the world's dozen or so great cuisines", while at the Fourth International Summit of Gastronomy Madrid Fusion 2006, regarded as the world's most important gastronomic forum, held in Spain between January 17 and 19, Lima was declared the "Gastronomic Capital of the Americas".

Thanks to its pre-Incas and Inca heritage and to Spanish, Basque, African, Sino-Cantonese, Japanese and finally Italian, French and British immigration (mainly throughout the 19th century), Peruvian cuisine combines the flavors of four continents. With the eclectic variety of traditional dishes, the Peruvian culinary arts are in constant evolution, and impossible to list in their entirety. Suffice it to mention that along the Peruvian coast alone there are more than two thousand different types of soups, and that there are more than 250 traditional desserts.

Peru is a country that holds not just a variety of ethnic mixes since times ranging from the Inca Empire, the Viceroyalty and the Republic, but also a climatic variety that sometimes is not believed by outsiders: 28 of a possible 32 world climates. The mixing of cultures and the variety of climates differ from city to city so geography, climate, culture and ethnic mix determine the variety of local cuisine.

The cuisine of the Coast
The cuisine of the coast can be said to have four strong influences: the Moorish, the African, the Chinese and the local native. The Pacific Ocean is the principal source of aquatic resources for Peru. Peru is one of the world's top two producers and exporters of unusually high-protein fishmeal for use in livestock/aquaculture feed. Its richness in fish and other aquatic life is enormous, and many oceanic plant and animal species can only be found in Peru. As important as the Pacific is to Peru's biodiversity, freshwater biomes such as the Amazon River and Lake Titicaca also play a large role in the ecological make-up of the country.

Every coastal region, being distinct in flora and fauna populations, adapts its cuisine in accordance to the resources available in its waters. Ceviche, with its many different variations (pure, combination, or mixed with fish and shellfish) is a good example of this regional adaptation. Ceviche is found in almost all Peruvian restaurants specialized in this country's world renowned fish and seafood. Lima alone holds thousands of them, from the simple to very fancy ones.

Typically served with camote, or sweet potato. The chupe de camarones (shrimp cioppino) is one of the most popular dishes of Peruvian coastal cuisine. It is made from a thick freshwater shrimp (crayfish) stock soup, potatoes, milk and chili pepper. Regarded as typical from Arequipa, Chupe de Camarones is regularly found in Peruvian restaurants specialized in Arequipan cuisine.

The cuisine of Lima and Central Coast
Creole cuisine is the most widespread in this cosmopolitan city. Some international cuisines with a large presence include Chinese (known locally as Chifa) and Italian. The city's ubiquitous bakeries are another culinary treasure, where you may find just out of the oven bread from 6 to 9 am and from 4 to 6pm. Few coastal cities bakeries produce "bollos", which are loaves of stone and wood-oven baked bread from the Andes, the great Peruvian mountains.

Anticuchos are brochettes made from a beef heart marinated in a various Peruvian spices and grilled, often sided with boiled potatoes and corn. They are commonly sold by street vendors and served shish kabob-style, but you may find them in creole food restaurants. Also frequently sold by street vendors are tamales: boiled corn with meat or cheese and wrapped in a banana leaf. They are similar to humitas, which consist of corn mixed with spices, sugar, onions, filled with pork and olives and finally wrapped in the leaves of corn husks. Tamales are a common breakfast food, often served with lima and/or "Salsa Criolla."

Another favorite food to be found in many restaurants is Papas a la huancaina (Huancayo-style potatoes), a dish consisting of sliced boiled potatoes, served on a bed of lettuce with a slightly spicy cheese sauce with olives. Even if the name says that it is from Huancayo, it is actually from Chosica, in Lima, made by a "Huancaina" (a person from huancayo)

Ceviche, often spelled "cebiche" in Peru, is the flagship dish of coastal cuisine, and one of Peru's favorites. It is the quintessence of fusion: Andean chili peppers, onions and acidic aromatic lime, of a species imported by the Spanish, though with origins in Northern Africa ("limon" in Spanish). A spicy dish, it consists generally of bite-size pieces of white fish (such as corvina or white sea bass), marinated raw in lime or lemon juice mixed with chilis.

Ceviche is served with raw onions, boiled sweet potatoes (camote), toasted corn (cancha), and sometimes a local green seaweed yuyo. Leche de tigre (tiger's milk), is the Peruvian colloquial name for the juice produced from the ingredients of ceviche. It has a light spicy flavor and serves as a good reconstituent. Local custom recommends ceviche as a breakfast for sleepwalkers, a hangover cure and as an aphrodisiac. Unlike ceviche from Mexico and Ecuador, it does not have tomatoes, and unlike that of Tahiti it does not use coconut milk, though both are abundant in Peru. A variation available in Callao replaces mango for fish.

Tiradito is the younger brother of ceviche, and shows more clearly the influence that Japanese cooks have had in Peru's seafood cuisine (though some suggest that it's closer to Italian carpaccio, popularized by Genovese immigrants). The fish is sliced in fine strips (about 6 cm by 2 cm) that are similar to sashimi, and then marinated in a mix of lime juice, ginger and aji limo. Unlike ceviche, tiradito lacks onions, which translates into a subtler taste.

Papa rellena (stuffed potato): mashed potatoes stuffed with ground (minced) meat, eggs, olives and various spices and then deep fried. Sancochado: A hearty beef and vegetable stew which includes yuca (cassava) and camotes (sweet potatoes). A local staple found in many cheaper, as well as more up-market, restaurants is lomo saltado, sliced beef (if made from the tenderloin it is "lomo fino") stir fried with onion, tomato, soy sauce, vinegar, chili (aji) and served or mixed with French fried potatoes (aka "chips"), and accompanied with rice.

Lima has an abundance of Peruvian-style Chinese restaurants or "chifas" as they are known locally; indeed, arroz chaufa or Chinese style rice is one of the frequently sampled dishes that has found its way into Peruvian cuisine. Arroz con pollo, or rice with chicken, is enjoyed for its rich-flavored rice combined with chicken. Chupe de pescado or fish cioppino is popular in Lima and along the coast.

Lima butter bean (pallares) salad: a salad made with (obviously) Peruvian Lima butter beans (called pallares in Peru), boiled (but still whole) and mixed (when cooled) with a "salsa" of onions, slices of tomatoes, and green aji (chili), marinated in green Peruvian lime juice, oil, salt, and vinegar. Lima butter beans (pallares) have been part of the Peruvian cuisine for at least 6,000 years.

Butifarras: a sandwich in a hamburger-type bread roll and consisting of Peruvian ham with a special spicy sauce consisting of sliced onions, sliced chili peppers , lime (or lemon) and sat pepper and oilb. Causa in its basic form is a mashed yellow potato dumpling mixed with lemon, onion, chili and oil. Varieties can have avocado, chicken, tuna (typically canned) or even shellfish added to the mixture. Also Causa is very popular in Lima which distinguishes this dish by saying Causa Limena Causa is usually served cold with hard boiled eggs and olives.

Carapulcra is an appetizing stewed dish of pork and chicken, dried potatoes, red chilis, peanuts and cumin. The version from the Afro-Peruvian Ica region uses fresh potatoes. Empanadas peruanas (Peruvian pastries/meat pies. These are not to be confused with the meat pies found in many northern Western countries. They can be filled either with chicken, beef, cheese or be strictly vegetarian. They have a unique taste due to the addition of olives and sometimes hard boiled eggs and raisins). Aji de gallina (chili chicken) is thin strips of chicken served with a creamy yellow and spicy sauce, made basically with aji amarillo (yellow chilis), cheese, milk, bread, and walnuts. Traditionally from non-laying hens, but today almost exclusvely made from more tender chickens.

Escabeche criollo (pickled fish): "Escabeche" when the word is used alone normally refers to escabeche of fish. Other varieties can use duck or chicken. The escabeche dishes rely in the cooking on the heavy use of vinegar and onions together with other spices and chili.

Cau cau is a meal consisting of mondongo or tripe stew and accompanied by rice. There are a number of versions of Cau-Cau. In general cau-cau is a style of cooking being there seafood cau-cau, shellfish cau-cau, etc. Two noteworthy styles are the creole style simply called Tripe Cau-Cau, and the Italo-Peruvian style. The creole is made with strips of previously cooked tripe, seasoned by a mixture of sauteed onions, garlic, yellow aji, a pinch of turmeric, salt and pepper and chunks of boiled potatoes. The mixed is allowed to cook together to blend the tastes and acquire consistency. It is then sprinkled with spearmint or mint.

The other common version is the "Italian" style. It consists of strips of precooked tripe sauteed with a mixture of red onions, peeled tomatoes, tomato paste and dried mushrooms (Porcini). After the flavors blend is is seasoned with parsley and mixed with fried potato strips just prior to serving. Some chefs add a few tablespoons of wine or pisco following the sautee step. These recipes may have African and Chinese influence as well as Italian.

Chicharrones: a dish consisting of deep-fried (in its own fat) and heavily salted pork. There are at least two kinds of chicharrones: pork skins, and country style ribs first boiled until dried and until they render their own fat where the continue the browning process required for them to be called chicharrones. There are other types of chicharrones including deep fried squid, and other seafoods. They can be served at breakfast or any time of day.

The cuisine of the Northern Coast
The cuisine of the northern coast offers a difference in style from the central and southern varieties. This is not only due to the coastal native Indian influence (less Andean), the Moorish and Spanish influence, the African and the Gypsy influence (Hindustani); but also to the warmer coastal seas, hotter climate and immense geographical latitude variety. The widely different climates between Tumbes, Piura, Lambayeque, La Libertad, Cajamarca and San Martin contributes to the variety of dishes in these areas.

Shambar - Considered the most traditional meal in Trujillo 's gastronomy, shambar is a soup that blends many ingredients, tastes, and seasonings from Spanish, Criollo and Andean cultures. It is made of wheat grains, fava beans, green peas, chickpeas and dry beans. It must have three kinds of meat, including chicken, ham, beef, and pork skin, ears or tail. The seasoning is done with a blend of garlic, black pepper, cumin, purple chilli pepper (aji panca), yellow chilli pepper (aji mirasol), parsley and vegetable oil. The dish is highly appreciated for its variety of flavours originating from the spices and meats, and peculiar texture rendered by the mixture of legumes. It is eaten normally on Mondays or on very especial occasions.

Seco de Cabrito (goat stew, but goat is often substituted by lamb, chicken, or beef) is ed in a pot after marinating with chicha de jora or beer and other spices including fresh coriander leaves (cilantro) and garlic. This is most popular in the northern coast especially in Cajamarca and Lambayeque.

Seco de Chavelo (typically from Catacaos - Piura is a type of seco that is made of cecina stewed and dried meat that has been clotted and dried along with bananas, yuca, aji panca and the addition of Clarito (from Chicha de Jora the Piurano style).

Cebiche de Conchas Negras (ceviche with black shells) is a dish of Piura and Tumbes is also popular along the southern coast of Ecuador due to Peruvian influence. In this version of ceviche, the seafood used in the dish should be black clams accompanied toasted corn.

The cuisine of the Andes
In the valleys and plains of the Andes, the locals' diet continues to be based on corn (maize), potatoes, and an assortment of tubers as it has been for many hundreds of years. Meat comes from indigenous animals like alpacas and guinea pigs, but also from imported livestock like sheep and swine.

As with many rural cultures, most of the more elaborate dishes were reserved for festivities, while daily meals were simple affairs. Nowadays, the festive dishes are consumed every day, although they tend to be on the heavy side and demand a large appetite. The pachamanca is a very special banquet in and of itself. Cooked all over the Andean region of Peru, is made from a variety of meats (including pork and beef), herbs and a variety of vegetables that are slowly cooked underground on a bed of heated stones. It demands skillful cooks to create and a large number of guests to consume. Because of its tedious preparation it is normally only done for celebrations or festivals in the Andes, though recent years have seen the appearance of many "campestre" restaurants outside Lima where urban families can escape to spend an afternoon in the fresh air eating pachamanca. Such as in Cieneguilla.Places for Pachamanca in Lima Surroundings.

Andean cooking's main freshwater fish is the trout, raised in fisheries in the region. Currently, ostrich meat is being raised from farms in Arequipa, although its consumption is not widespread and limited to urban areas. Cuy chactado: A dish more popular in the highlands is this meal of fried guinea pig. Often the indigenous women of the Peruvian Andes will raise the guinea pigs in their huts where they run around loose on the floors of the dwellings. Prior to consumption they can reach a surprisingly large size. Besides the use of guinea pigs as separate meals, they are often cooked in a Pachamanca with other meats and vegetables.

Olluquito con charqui is another typical Andean dish. Olluco is a yellowish tuber (Ullucus tuberosus) domesticated by pre-Inca populations, and is visually similar to colorful small Andean potatoes, but with a distinct crunchy texture when cooked. Charqui is the technique employed in the Andean highlands to cure meat by salting, then dehydration. Incidentally the word "jerky" in English is derived from this Andean (Qechuan) word. The dish is a stew of finely diced ollucos with charqui pieces (traditionally alpacea, or less frequently llama meat, though today it is also very commonly made from sheep), served with white rice.

Rocoto relleno: Arequipa dish made from stuffed rocoto chilis. Rocotos are one of the very hot (spicy) chilis of Peru. In this dish they are stuffed with spiced beef or pork, onions, olives, egg white and then cooked in the oven with potatoes covered with cheese and milk.

Alcoholic Drinks
Pisco, a kind of brandy, is the national drink of Peru. This distilled beverage made from grapes is produced in various regions of the country. Pisco Sour is a cocktail made from pisco combined with lemon juice, the white of an egg and sugar. Wines come from many different regions of the country, most notably from the Ica Region.

Beer as in many countries, is popular in all levels of society. Local brands include Pilsen and Cristal. A couple of regional beers are Arequipena and Cuzquena (Cusquena), from Arequipa and Cuzco, respectively; though Cuzquena is popular nationwide and is exported worldwide. A common beer drinking ritual among many Peruvian men involves a group sharing one glass. The party holding the bottle waits for the prior person to drink from the glass before receiving that glass, filling it and passing the bottle on to the next in line. While this custom is more common among men of lower echelons of society, people of higher social status, particularly youth and occasionally women, take part in this custom.

Chicha or Chicha de Jora is another well-known drink, based on different varieties of fermented maize and different aromatic herbs, depending on the region of the country. Its consumption is mostly limited to the Andes area.