Peruvian cuisine is both familiar and unique at once, with the national dish of guinea pig appearing on menus beside the likes of ceviche, stews and stir fries, river prawn chowder and alpaca jerky. Desert is designed for the sweetest of tooths with fried donuts and sugarcane syrup some of the favourites, while a must-try drink is the coca tea claimed to cure altitude sickness. Check out our full list of what to eat on your tour of Peru!
National Dish:
Cuy – Guinea Pigs (yes Guinea Pigs),
Ceviche – fresh fish in lime juice and chillies
Mains:
Fusion cuisine
Pacha Mama cooked foods
Lomo Saltado beef stir fry
Salchipapas
Aji de Gallinha stew
Alpaca jerky
Anticuchos kebabs (‘organ food’)
River Prawn Chowder
Stuffed Peppers
Dessert:
Picarones fried donuts
Sweet Rice with Milk
Chancaca sugarcane syrup
Lúcuma fruit
Beverages:
Inca Colasoft drink (yellow!)
Coca Tea
Peruvian organic coffee
Beer:
Cusqueña, Cristal
Chichafermented corn beer
Chicha Morada (purple corn drink)
Spirits:
Pisco Sour (with lemon juice, sugar, egg white)
Piscogrape brandy
Courtney Gahan is a serial expat, traveller and freelance writer who has bartered with Moroccan marketeers, seen the sun rise at Angkor Wat and elbowed her way through crowds on NYE in NYC
