6 typical dishes of the Peruvian Andes

The Andes of Peru are a dream destination, not only for its Machu Picchu, its beautiful landscapes and its fascinating culture, but also for its pleasant gastronomy. A cuisine that stands out for bringing together a wide variety of dishes and desserts that include all kinds of native ingredients, and also for the use of ancient culinary techniques that are still alive today.

The secret of the dishes of the Peruvian Andes is in its roots, which date back to the time of the Inca civilization during the 13th century. Settling in a geographical area whose land provided abundant inputs of high nutritional value, the ancient inhabitants of Peru began to innovate preparation methods and created a wide variety of stews with all kinds of flavors, textures, and aromas.

Andean techniques and products merged with the Spanish, African, Chinese, Japanese and European influences that gradually arrived between the 16th and 20th centuries. The Peruvian Andes are a culinary pantry ready to be discovered and tasted. For this reason, we present to you some of the most representative dishes of the Peruvian Andes.

Trucha Frita

This stew had its origins on the shores of Lake Titicaca, in Puno. Its recipe consists of a mixture of browned or boiled potatoes and rice, and whose main ingredient is tasty trout, a valuable food for its high protein and mineral content. In general, it is accompanied with a vegetable salad or a creole sauce based on onion and lemon.

One of the most representative dishes of the Peruvian Andes of the Altiplano Puneño. However, it is also possible to try this delicacy in the departments of Cusco and Arequipa. Fried trout is an exquisite combination of animal protein, Andean carbohydrates, and high-quality vitamins and minerals found in its Andean salads.

Trucha frita

Papa a la Huancaina

Distinguished for its unique flavor, this dish is one of the most traditional and recognized of Peruvian food. It is usually served as a starter and is perfectly complemented by various main courses. His recipe consists of potatoes and boiled eggs that are bathed in a creamy sauce made from a yellow chili sauce, fresh cheese, milk, soda crackers, oil, and salt. It is served accompanied by a lettuce leaf and black olives.

The Papa a la Huancaina is one of the most tasted appetizer in Peru. This dish has a perfect combination of flavors, the Peruvian potato that is usually used in this dish is accompanied by the unique flavors of various autochthonous and introduced spices.

Papa a la huancaina

Pachamanca

This is one of the dishes of the Peruvian Andes, most consumed on special dates, such as: birthdays, baptisms, marriages and weddings. An emblematic and traditional dish that not only stands out for its exquisite combination of ingredients, but also for its preparation method, as ancestral as it is unique. Inherited from Inca gastronomy, its elaboration is underground: a ritual that demonstrates the close link that this civilization maintained with the land.

La Pachamanca has a selection of meats, including beef, chicken, pork, lamb and guinea pig, macerated in chicha de jora and herbs. These are cooked on hot stones together with broad beans, potatoes and humitas inside a hole that is covered with earth and corn leaves. The result: an aromatic concentrate worthy of the gods. Without a doubt one of the dishes of the Peruvian Andes that you have to try if or if you are in Arequipa, Cusco, Puno or even in Lima.

Pachamanca

Rocoto Relleno

For lovers of spicy, this Arequipa dish fascinates by its intense and particular flavor. Usually served as a starter, it is one of the most consumed and preferred not only by Arequipeños, but also by all Peruvians.

The main ingredient here is the rocoto -a reddish and bulging chili pepper, similar to a pepper-, stuffed with a tasty combination of ground beef, carrot and cabbage chopped and seasoned with chili peppers, covered with a sheet of melted cheese: a true delicacy .

The Stuffed Rocoto is one of the dishes of the Peruvian Andes, which you have to try if you are in Arequipa, this is the department where this dish was prepared for the first time.

Rocoto relleno

Cuy Chactado

Due to its exquisite flavor, this dish is one of the favorites in the Andean region. The guinea pig is served whole and accompanied by boiled potatoes, corn and salads. The crispy texture of the skin and the softness of this meat is a delight for all palates. Cuy chactado has become so popular in Peru that it is possible to find variants of the original dish in different parts of the country.

The guinea pig was the first animal domesticated in the Peruvian Andes and the main source of animal protein, due to that, it is one of the dishes of the Peruvian Andes, which has contributed the most to the development of the pre-Inca and Inca civilizations. This dish has a perfect combination of animal protein and good quality carbohydrates. DISHES OF THE PERUVIAN ANDES

Cuy chactado

Humintas are one of the most representative dishes of the Peruvian Andes

Classic at breakfast time and also as an accompaniment to suckling pig, Humitas conquer Peruvians for its texture and unique presentation. Its name comes from the Quechua word Huminta, which means “cornbread”, and it consists of a mass of ground corn mixed with meat, raisins, cheese and herbs, wrapped in corn cob husks called husks.

The humitas date from the time of the Incas, originally they had a sweet flavor: later, with the arrival of the Spanish, salty flavor variants appeared. The Huminta is one of the dishes of the Peruvian Andes that you can buy and taste in all the corners of the streets of Peru.

Huminta