Chicha Morada Mousse
In today’s edition of “Modern Peruvian” cuisine, Chicha Morada, a purple corn drink infused with cinnamon, cloves, and fruit peels, is transformed into a mousse using an emulsifier (methylcellulose) and a stabilizer (xanthan gum).
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Leche de Tigre Sea Foam
Leche de Tigre (Tiger’s Milk) n. the milky colored lime juice in a ceviche that is infused with the flavors of fish, salt, onions, and hot peppers
Leche de Tigre, or Tiger’s Milk, is the milky lime juice that is left in the bowl when you finish your ceviche. But you can also prepare leche de tigre in advance, drink it as a shot, or add it to your ceviche to enhance its flavor. Here, it’s made into a foam to pay homage to the sea. Presenting, leche de tigre sea foam.
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Pachamanca a la Olla
Pachamanca n. an ancient Inca dish from the Andes of Peru, where meat and potatoes are cooked with herbs in an underground earth oven, from the Quechua “pacha” for earth, and “manca” for oven
Of all the dishes from the Andes of Peru, the Pachamanca is perhaps the most important, as its preparation is an homage to the goddess Pachamama, or Mother Earth. Traditionally, stones are heated over a fire and then buried in the ground with layers of meat, potatoes, and herbs, which are covered with plantain leafs and dirt. Then, after several hours of slow cooking, a ritual offering is presented to Mother Earth before the food is unearthed and served.
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Cau Cau, Peruvian Tripe Stew
Cau Cau is one of many creole dishes popular in Afro-Peruvian kitchens, and is thought to have originated in Lima by cooks that out of necessity prepared offal recipes with tripe or beef heart. Today, Cau Cau is also prepared with chicken or fish, but here I present the traditional recipe with beef honeycomb tripe that my mom taught me how to cook.
Tallarin Saltado Chifa, Shrimp Stir Fry
salteado n. — from saltear v. to stir-fry, as in a wok for Chifa dishes
In Lima, Chinese-Peruvian cuisine, or Chifa, has become so popular in the past century, that today it is our comfort food. From home kitchens to restaurants, cooks all over the city call the ingredients in Chifa dishes by their Cantonese name instead of the proper Spanish. Ginger? Not gengibre, in Lima it’s kion. Soy sauce? Not soya, in Lima it’s siao. Snow peas? Not arvejas, in Lima it’s jolantao.
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