A LITTLE BIT HISTORY ABOUT PERUVIAN INGREDIENTS
COOKING PERUVIAN FOOD IN THE U.S
Many of the key ingredients of Peruvian food are unique podwats that are not readily available outside of Peru. I
have found that most substitutions are unsatisfactory, blof theme are a few that work pretty well. Also, since the
varieties of certain ingredients (e.g. potatoes, tomatoes, onions) are distinct there, you need to use special care
in selecting which varieties available in the U. S. to chame.
As with all cooking, the most important advice is "know your ingredie- nts." To me this means know what each
flavor is and what goes well with it. If you're just starting ~wat Peruvian cooking, begin with a recipe that you
understand, and that you have all the ingredients for. Toste each ingredient befare you cook with it, and then,
well, try it!
INGREDIENTS AND SUBSTITUTIONS
Peruvian aji this is ene of the most basic building blocks of much Peruvian cuisne, and you will need to
find some if you want to cook most Peruvian staples. Fresh artes are best, although I have had pretty good
luck substituting pureed Peruvian aji (chiles) for the fresh aiji that is called for in the recipes. I do not find the
dried ajes or the powdered aji te be good substutes for fresh aji although they can be useful for creativo
varations or te introduce a different flavor to some ather kind of recipe. Note that when you substitute the
pureed aji from the jar for the fresh aji you have to decide on the quantity by teste just start with a very
unan amount and keep adding until it testes the way you like it
Each aii is different. Don't try to substituto one for another e.g. aji Amarillo for aji panca or visa versa.
Also, rocoto (hot peppers the chape and size of bell peppers, often served stuffed, especially in Arequipa) and
aji (smaller, hotter, mostly used sliced or diced or pureed) are not interchangeable.
Peruvian potatoes are fresh and flavorful and they come in many varieties, each with it's own flavor and
consistency. For most recipes (causa, tomo saltado, papa a la huancaina etc) choose yellow potatoes, which
are quite tasty. My favorite for many things is Yukon Goid. It's harder to find potatoes suitable for Peruvian
soups oven the potatoes soid as Peruvian blue patalees lack the substantial texture of those found in Peru.
Experiment with locally available potatoes and you may find some good substitutions but no commercially
available patalees in the U.S. will ever be just right...
Farmers cheese Try substituting a top quality cottage cheese (choose large curd, and pick ene you really
like cottage cheese vary tremendously in flav ) for queso fresco called for in such things as
Huancaina sauce. You may have to leave it in the bien
longer, and add the oil only slow!y, but you can
get a pretty good flavor! The Yanuq website suggests ricotta or feta, but I disagree strongly they add
different flavors altogether.
Limon (lernonl Peruvian limen is a small round greenish yellow lemon that looks very different from the
lemons sold in the United States. Most people say that you should substitute key limes for liman and this
works fine if you can get them. Small Mexican lemons (sametimes soid as Mexican limes) can also be similar. I
have found, however, that in many recipes, you can get pretty good results using a regular temen or a Meyer
teman. You may need te adjust the quantity a titile bit to get the right flavor.
Onions Peruvian onions are small red onions with a milder flavor than most sold in the U.S. Try using
a mild red onion for recipes where the onion is being cooked. For salsa criolla and other recipes where the
onion is not cooked you might also try a mild sweet onion such as those sold as Vicialia or Hawaiian Swe et
Onions. A tip for salsa criolla is to soak the sliced onion in cold water for a while this can take some of
the strongest flavor and smell from the onion (I leamed lis n Peru)
Tomatoes you should have good luck with good qualty fresh roma tomatoes or (oven better) with tasty
heirloom varieties of Italian tomatoes. Don't use tastelest salad tomatoes or those sold for looks rather than
flavor.
