Gastronomy in Cusco

The exquisite and varied gastronomy of Cusco is characterized not only by its flavor and the masterful combination of typical Andean products of the region, but for being one of the living and most representative expressions of the southern Andean culture in Peru. Is it true what many say, that the food of Cusco is pleasantly salty?

When a visitor asks about the typical food of Cusco, the answer is always the same: try the Chiri uchu; and it is not necessary to ask why, it is known that the Chiri uchu is a combination of delicious flavors and the emblematic dish of the region. However, for us Cusqueños there are other dishes and food that taste like tradition and family; delicacies offered by numerous typical food restaurants, located in different parts of the city, made by and for Cusqueños. Of the countless dishes between sweet, salty flavors and exquisite aromas; Cusco presents us with some spectacular places that you could visit to savor part of its spectacular gastronomy.

It is a stew of corn and guinea pig meat, seasoned with onion and aji panca bell pepper. After peeling it in boiled water, the entrails are removed from the guinea pig and it is cut into several pieces, which are dusted with corn flour to fry it in very hot oil. In another pot, prepare a dressing of onion, golden garlic and red chili bell pepper. The guinea pigs are seasoned and peanuts are added to taste. The avocado is served with rice and boiled sandy potatoes.

Delicious stew of Inca origin. It is a spicy broth made of potatoes, chuño, chickpeas, rice, and various meats. In a liter of broth, boil Serrano sausages, a handful of rice, green beans, and cut peeled potatoes. When everything is cooked, chuño flour dissolved in cold water is added. The mixture is stirred with a wooden spoon called wisla and it is left to cook until it is ready. This dish is eaten at any time of the year.

This dish is one of the fundamental dishes of Peruvian cuisine. It has two ingredients that are exclusively Peruvian: olluco, a type of potato that grows in the Andes, and charqui, dried llama or alpaca meat, both of which are Peruvian products.

It is a stew of ollucos and chopped dried meat. Nowadays it is served with rice. The ollucos are washed and cut into long thin strips. In a pot with oil, fry the garlic, ground aji panca, finely chopped charqui or beef, pepper, salt and cumin. Stir well and wait until everything is well cooked before adding the chopped olluco. Add broth and cover. When it is ready, add a little oil and when serving, add chopped fresh parsley.

It is a cold dish of fresh cheese, beans, onions, potatoes seasoned with milk and chili. It is the favorite dish of the last months of the year.

Beans are boiled in a pot. Separately, onions, garlic and oil are seasoned in a frying pan. Once the dressing is ready, add the beans, boiled potatoes, milk, red or yellow chili. It is served with rice.

In the Cuzco gastronomy there is a representative dish that is very well known called Chiri uchu, which means cold chili. It is a delicious stew that is served cold and is consumed during the Corpus Christi festivities, in the month of June, it is celebrated in Sacsayhuaman.

The food is cold, it is prepared with baked guinea pig, boiled chicken, Serrano sausage, fresh cheese, toasted cancha, rocoto, trout roe, Chinese onion, blood sausage, cochayuyo or seaweed, chorizo, chicken broth, charqui or chalona and a tortilla made of corn flour. Everything is boiled and served together in a single dish.

It is a typical dish of the carnival season. It is a stew that includes various meats, vegetables, legumes and more. A cow or lamb breast and bacon are boiled. When it is boiling, cabbage leaves, potatoes, chickpeas and rice, already prepared, are added. In another pot boil sweet potatoes, pears and yuccas. The broth is served separately.

The pork meat is cut into pieces and browned in its own fat. It is served at breakfast. The pork or pig is prepared in pieces with its bone in a pot. When boiling, the meat releases its fat, the liquid is consumed and it browns little by little. It is cut, salted and served with corn, potato or yucca. They also serve it as a snack in patron saint or religious festivities to share as the Qoyllur Riti for example. Nowadays it is served with bread.

It is a typical dish of Cusquenian and Arequipa gastronomy. The guinea pig is fried in abundant oil under a stone that serves as a lid. It is usually served with boiled potatoes, fried yucca, corn, creole sauce, etc.

It is a very nutritious dish and the dish is presented with the whole guinea pig. It is served with boiled potatoes and then browned in the pan and with huacatay chili. It is accompanied with chicha morada or chicha de jora. It is a special dish of the Peruvian Andean zones.

Roast suckling pig or pork is served as a snack. Pieces of pork with bone are chosen, washed, seasoned and macerated with salt, pepper, ground chili, vinegar, beer or sillao and ground aji panca chili. It is left to macerate for 24 to 48 hours. Then it is baked over low heat until it is ready. It is served with yuccas and mote. This dish can be found in several restaurants in Lima.

(yellow chicha), is an alcoholic beverage inherited from Inkan times, prepared from dried and germinated yellow corn that is ground and then boiled. The liquid is sifted in large baskets of "carrizo" reeds with "ichu" or straw, and fermented for three days in "rakis" or ceramic pots; at the end of the process this drink should have more or less 3% alcoholic content.

Its elaboration is very similar to that of the chicha de jora, with the difference that to this one is added liquefied strawberry (strawberry of the Sacred Valley) that gives it a special flavor.

These are refreshing, non-alcoholic beverages prepared from quinoa flour (Chenopodium quinoa) or kiwicha (Amaranthus caudatus) without fermentation.

Refreshing drink made from the liquid resulting from boiling purple corn cobs to which lemon juice is added, sweetened with sugar.

It is an infusion of natural coca leaves (Erythroxilon). It is preferred in the Andean villages for having recognized medicinal properties; it helps reduce the discomfort caused by altitude, such as dizziness, drowsiness, headaches, etc.. People also drink it to soothe their throat ailments and when they have stomach problems.

It is very popular in frigid areas, it consists of a cup of normal or oriental tea to which a few glasses of sugar cane brandy are added.

Originally from the district of Oropesa, a few minutes from the city of Cusco. Commonly called "pan chuta". For the Cusqueños living outside of Cusco, one of the things that they miss the most and make them nostalgic is the bread of Oropesa or "Chuta"; and not all cities in the world offer the luxury of being served a bread with regional ingredients, with a pleasant flavor and baked by hand.

Ideal when a Cusquenian wants to be indulgent at lunch time; accompanied by this sweet bread, spread with butter and with a hot coffee, it is a delicacy for the palate. They are sold in the city's markets.

The district of Oropesa boasts of having the best bread in Cusco and that is saying a lot. The place is full of artisan ovens and the whole town has acquired as very typical that smell of hot, freshly baked bread that makes your mouth water. The bread of Oropesa is not to be missed, no matter if it is the first or thousandth time you eat it.

Inca legacy and wealth, a privilege for the palate of the people of Cusco and the world; are the white and yellow corn, of different qualities, flavors and sizes, coming from the beautiful green fields of this spectacular Valley. Harvested from the farms between the months of January and February, it is the white corn in its various presentations. Commonly called "choclo" it is accompanied by a tasty piece of fresh Andean cheese and even the typical chili bell pepper or "uchucuta" of delicious flavor made at home with aji panca bell pepper of the region. Wherever you eat it, it will always be a pleasant taste and unforgettable experience.

If your route is the Sacred Valley of the Incas, nothing like enjoying a delicious corn with cheese from Cusco, cooked by the owners of the farms, in huge pots, on the roadside; a spectacular experience that will delight your palate enjoying a fresh corn harvested and cooked on the spot.

Do not confuse them with the tamales criollos; even though they are made in the three regions of Peru, coast, highlands and jungle, each one has its own particular way of elaboration with its own ingredients. The tamal cusqueño is a preparation of pleasant sweet or salty flavor, made with the pulp of ground corn, white and fresh, from the Sacred Valley of the Incas and other traditional inputs of the region.

The tamalitos are made by Cusco families with the same homemade recipe for more than 90 years. On the other hand, you can find them any day of the week in a spectacular little corner of Cusco called Portal del Belen, located a few meters from the Plaza de Armas of Cusco.

Exponents of this tradition are the "Tamales Josefina" street stall that is located precisely in the Portal of Bethlehem in downtown Cusco; Julia Huayllani de Caparó, who for more than 40 years has been dedicated to the preparation of this specialty of Cusco cuisine. It was her mother Doña Josefina Ramírez, who back in 1924 began to prepare exquisite tamalitos with her own recipe, the same one that today Doña Julia preserves with filial devotion.  She begins by selecting a good white corn from the Sacred Valley of the Incas in Urubamba, and then goes through a long process of preparation, but well worth it for the tasty result obtained.

In Andino Peru Tours we offer a tour where you will learn more about the Cusquenian Gastronomy.

Culinary Tour in cusco, half day