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Quality cuisine in Peru draws from a wide variety of unique products
that Peru has bequeathed to the world. The rich Peruvian fishing
grounds, the ancient agricultural techniques of the Andes
and the rivers and cloud forest of the Amazon produce an endless
variety of native ingredients which come together to create
the peerless flavor and aroma of Peru's cooking. The best-known
Peruvian products both at home and abroad are tubers and cereals.
Potatoes have been grown in Peru since the dawn of time, and
its 4,000 varieties have adapted to several different climates.
Peruvians are particularly fond of the papa amarilla, a potato
with a yellow interior not grown anywhere else on Earth. Other
popular tubers include the Peruvian camote (sweet potato)
which is used to garnish a variety of dishes, plus the yucca
(manioc), olluco and oca. Peru is also home to more varieties
of maize than anywhere else on Earth, some 35. Corn is cooked
in many ways in Peru: on the cob, ground with a mortar and
pestle, boiled, toasted, ground into the sweet mazamorra jelly
and fermented into the chicha beverage. Native Andean cereals
such as kiwicha (amaranth) and quinua are also highly regarded
abroad for their nutritional qualities. Another major contribution
of the Andes is the ají chili pepper. Some varieties
such as the rocoto are used in spicy sauces, while others
like the brightly-colored ají colorado are boiled and
gutted to soften the hot chili pepper taste for use as a mild
seasoning.
The Peruvian sea teems with over 700 fish species, from flounder
to Pacific Bonito, and 400 types of shellfish, including lobsters
and sea urchins. Highland lakes, meanwhile, offer superb trout
fishing, while the enormous paiche fish species abounds in
the jungle rivers.
Peru has also made a major contribution to the world's dessert
trolley with four extraordinary fruit varieties: chirimoya,
guanabana, granadilla and lucuma. |
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