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Peruvian NuevoAndean Cuisine on Luxury Trek (and recipes!)
Kurt Kutay
Now you can trek like Inca Royalty and experience all the rave of Peru's NuevoAndean cuisine at 12,000 in the Andes on Wildland Adventures new Machu Picchu Mountain Lodges Trek. This 4-day luxury trek is a physical, cultural, and spiritual journey traversing ancient footpaths through the high Andes en route to the legendary ruins of Machu Picchu. Trekking from lodge to lodge, you'll enjoy the eclectic mix of Spanish, Arabic, African, Japanese and Chinese influences that give rise to delicious Peruvian gastronomy paired with Peruvian, Chilean and Argentine wines.
Peru boasts one of the finest cuisines in Latin America derived from ancient tradition, wide-ranging international ethnic influences, and a rich ecological and climactic diversity providing a wealth of fresh, local ingredients. Peru is home to 84 of the 104 eco-systems existing on Earth and has given rise to a major supply of fresh produce, especially including hundreds of endemic varieties of potato, corn and olives. The rich Peruvian waters abound in fish and shellfish species, the heart of the succulent coastal gastronomy; rice, fowl and goat, meanwhile, are the key ingredients of Peru's north coastal cooking. In the Andes, delicious ingredients such as the potato and sweet corn in all its varieties, plus cuy (guinea pig) and aj chili pepper are the basis of highland cooking throughout the country. The jungle adds its own influences including fried banana, manioc root (yucca) and many exotic local fruits such as chirimoya (custard apple) and lucuma.
Another major reason for Peru's worldly cuisine is the rich mix of Western and Eastern cultural traditions. Over the course of centuries, Peru has felt the influence of Spain in stews and soups, Arab sweets and desserts, African contributions to Creole cooking, Italian pastas, Japanese preparations of fish and shellfish, and the Chinese culinary methods of a large Asian population have given birth to one of the most popular gastronomic traditions in Peru, chifa. But the originality of Peru's cuisine does not stem just from its traditional cooking -rather, it continues to incorporate new, global influences, preparing exquisite and impeccable international dishes that have been dubbed the New Peruvian Cuisine.
If youre not up for trekking to 12,000 on our Mountain Lodges Inca Trail Trek to Machu Picchu, you can enjoy the best of Peru's fare at gourmet restaurants in Lima and Cusco.
Aji de Gallina (Yellow Pepper Chicken)
From: Welcome to Socrates
Preparation Time: 40 minutes
Start to Finish Time: 75 minutes
Ingredients:
4 slices white bread, crust removed
1/2-1 cup milk
4 pounds chicken
1 onion, roughly chopped
water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 large onion, diced
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
6 chilies, pureed
salt & pepper to taste
1/2 pound walnuts, finely chopped
4 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated
12 ounce can evaporated milk
6 red potatoes, cooked & halved
hard boiled eggs, shelled & sliced
black olives, chopped
Recipe:
Let the bread soak in the milk.
Boil chicken in salted water with the onion.
Strain, reserve broth, discard onion and de-bone chicken and cut into bite size pieces.
Heat oil in a saucepan.
Saut onion with garlic and chili peppers until lightly browned.
Season with salt and pepper.
Add bread mixture.
Cook over low heat 10 minutes.
Add the nuts, grated cheese, and chopped chicken.
Add evaporated milk and cook until heated through.
Place on a serving platter.
Garnish with potato halves, hard-boiled eggs, and olives.
Fried Yuca with Huancaina Sauce
From: Yankee Magazine
Preparation Time: 25 minutes
Start to Finish Time: 50 minutes
Yield: about 30 pieces.
Hot and crisp on the outside, tender and slightly sweet inside, yuca (a.k.a. yucca or cassava) makes for a fun twist on French fries.
1 3-pound package peeled, frozen yuca (Goya brand)
Vegetable oil
Kosher or sea salt
Huancaina Sauce
In a large saucepan, boil yuca tubers about 30 minutes or until softened but still holding their shape. Drain and cool to room temperature. Slice into 1/2-inch-thick batons (shapes will be irregular). Remove any tough fibers in the center.
Warm about 1/4 inch oil in a medium-size pan over high heat. Fry yuca on both sides until light brown, about 2 minutes per side. (Don't overcook.) Drain on paper towels and season with salt. Serve hot, with Huancaina Sauce to taste.
Huancaina Sauce
24 ounces cottage cheese
8 ounces queso fresco
3 teaspoons aji puree
1/2 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
Juice of 3 lemons
Place all ingredients in a food processor or blender and puree. Yield: 3 cups
