Given the fact that there are literally thousands of varieties of potatoes here in Peru, it seems only appropriate that an entire day is dedicated to celebrate them. Every May 30th, the Peruvian potato has it’s spotlight and we are reminded of favorite potato recipes that feature different potatoes.

The bottom basket in my kitchen has no fewer than 4 varieties of potatoes at nearly all times.  Because certain ones are used for certain dishes, I am always grabbing just “one more kind” at the grocery store. Most commonly, I have papa negra, papa canchan, papa cocktail and papa amarilla. Here are 5 of my favorite potato recipes for Peruvian Potato Day:

Carapulcra Chinchana

Carapulcra Chinchana is a delicious Peruvian Potato Stew seasoned with flavorful chile peppers, interesting spices and finished off with peanut butter!

Papa a la Huancaina

The origins of Huancaina Sauce are thought to be from Huancayo, Peru. They are famous for their potatoes, both in variety and in quantity. This sauce is most commonly served covering potatoes, but has been known to appear on it’s own to accompany delicious dishes such as Tallarines Verdes and Arroz con Pollo.

Papa con Mani // Peruvian Peanut Potatoes

Peruvian Peanut Potatoes combines some of my very favorite foods — potatoes and peanut butter — to make a delicious dish.

Guiso de Pollo y Papa // Peruvian Chicken Potato Stew

Peruvian Chicken Potato Stew combines chicken and potatoes with a flavorful, but simple sauce.

Papa con Ocopa

Potato with Ocopa Sauce is one of the most creative blends of flavors using chile peppers, unique spices, peanuts and animal crackers!

Find out more ways to use potatoes in your meals in other favorite potato recipes on Provecho Peru.

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What is happening in the culinary world in Peru? Great question! Here at Provecho Peru, we keep you up to date on Peru Food News – both news about food in Peru and Peruvian food around the world.

The Sancochado Festival has returned to the Hotel Crown Plaza Lima every Wednesday until the end of the year. Sancochado gives you the opportunity to taste a variety of meats, such as chicken, pork, beef, lamb, chorizo, bacon, and more. It is accompanied by other vegetables like native potatoes, garbanzo beans, fava beans, corn, potatoes, sweet potatoes, yucca root and cabbage as well as a selection of more than 20 sauces. A bowl of Sancochado to warm you in as the winter of Lima begins will cost you S/. 69 or about $26.50. 

Don’t forget to tune into CNN this weekend (Sunday, June 2, at 9 p.m. ET) to see Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown feature Peruvian Food! The show will include a trip to the Mercado Modelo market in Chiclayo and a number of popular Limeñan restaurants, including Chez Wong, Anticuchería Doña Pochita, and Canta Rana.

Peruvian Potato Day is upon us with some special potato activities for you to enjoy. The day will be celebrated with a ceremony, parade and dances in the Plaza Mayor of Lima on May 30th from 9am to 11:30am. At the same time, a potato festival will take place at the Santa Anita market. The Fourth Annual Native Potato Festival will gather potato producers from 10 regions to share their roots in the Parque de la Exposición from May 30th to June 2nd. Additionally, 75 restaurants will be featuring creative dishes made from potatoes.

Dulce Peru and the City of Magdalena are joining together to celebrate the Day of the Potato by hosting a festival where desserts made from Peruvian potatoes will be presented. You can expect to find (and eat!!) things like caramelized potatoes, potato creme brulee, potato donuts, potato chocolate candies among others. The festival will be held from Thursday, May 30th through Sunday, June 2nd at the Túpac Amaru plaza.

Peruvian food will be the star at the Peru Mucho Gusto festival, from May 27 to June 6th in Dubai. Two Peruvian chefs will be making and presenting a variety of dishes for festival-goers to taste their way through Peru. Some of the dishes to be featured are Ceviche, crispy chicken, duck rice and desserts like Suspiro a la Limeña.

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One of the best parts of the annual gastronomic event of Mistura is the Gran Mercado which gathers small farmers and their products in one place so that the visitors to Mistura can see, taste and buy things that they do not typically find on the shelves of their local grocery store. As part of the months leading up to Mistura in September 2013, Peruvian Society of Gastronomy (Apega) has worked with the City of Magdalena to offer a miniature Gran Mercado on a weekly basis.

The Mistura Market opens it’s doors for the first time this Sunday, May 19th. The initiative was created by the Peruvian Society of Gastronomy (Apega) in order to connect small farmers directly with the public.

More than 50 farmers will be on site offering agricultural products from the various regions of Peru. You will find fruits like custard apples, granadillas, and apples; native potatoes and other tubers; andean grains and cheeses that are not typically available in stores.

The Mistura Market will be held every Sunday from 9 am – 2 pm on Avenida Brasil, on blocks 30-32.

Adapted from El Comercio.

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What is happening in the culinary world in Peru? Great question! Here at Provecho Peru, we keep you up to date on Peru Food News – both news about food in Peru and Peruvian food around the world.

Peru’s Export and Tourism Promotion Board, or Promperu, will showcase the best of Peruvian cuisine at the 2013 National Restaurant Association (NRA) Show on May 18-21 in Chicago, Illinois. Promperu stressed the importance of its participation in the annual event because it will help position Peru as a culinary destination, with an emphasis on the capital Lima.

The Second Annual Bread Festival organized by the Unión de los Franceses en el Extranjero (UFE Perú) is being held this weekend. There will be more than 750 varieties of bread, including creations using yucca root, chile peppers, squash, and salted pork. The goal of the event is to merge and extend baking traditions between France and Peru. Don’t miss the Bread Festival May 18 & 19 at the Estadio Niño Héroe Manuel Bonilla (13th block of Avenida Ejercito) between 10am – 10pm; entrance free.

The city of Trujillo will host over 100 chefs from 24 nations at the II Festival de Confraternidad Gastronómica being held May 23-26. The event will host 14 Peruvian and 7 international gastronomy schools and will include master classes, visits to organizations around the Trujillo area as well as other activities.

Peru, Mucho Gusto will be held May 31 – June 2 at the Parque Peru in Tacna. The festival expects over 35,000 tourists and will offer food from 9 regions of Southern Peru. Onsite, there will be 40 restaurants as well as master classes by recognized chefs like Giacomo Bocchio (Manifiesto) and José del Castillo (La Red). Entrance fee is $1.75 and food prices range between $2-4 dollars.

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What is happening in the culinary world in Peru? Great question! Here at Provecho Peru, we keep you up to date on Peru Food News – both news about food in Peru and Peruvian food around the world.

The World Economic Forum was held in Lima, Peru recently and the Huaca Pucllana Ruins were chosen as a destination at a Cocktail Hour for the Forum participants. They enjoyed the silver exhibit, beautiful music, creative presentations and delicious food.

Agraria.pe reported that the Peruvian delegation that attended the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) in Boston last month was awarded international financial credits of $40 million. Gonzalo Lam Chiang, Manager of Operations at Agriconsult Perú noted that the money demonstrates the confidence the global market has in Peruvian coffee.

Cordon Bleu Perú and the Programa Mundial de Alimentos de las Naciones Unidas (PMA) presented a 28 recipe cookbook containing innovative and nutritious recipes using quinoa and other Peruvian products. It includes appetizers, main dishes and desserts and will be translated into English and French. Download your FREE copy here!

The Unica Peruvian Tourist Gastronomic Fair will be held on July 13 & 14 in New York. This will be an opportunity for fairgoers to “enjoy the unique and delicious Peruvian food that is conquering the world, with the participation of top Peruvian chefs in the USA.”

The first meeting took place for the 2nd Annual Cook-Farmer Alliance Festival and gathered over 100 recognized restaurants. The festival seeks to benefit farmers by connecting them directly with chefs and agricultural producers without commercial intermediaries. This years festival will 4 types of Peruvian Native potatoes: Puka Duraznillo, Qeqorani, Allqa Imilla y Huayro Macho.

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I had grand plans with Dorie’s Upside Down Cake. I was going to use it to show off a delicious and interesting fruit from Peru. While it may have looked royal, the cake itself left me wanting. Funny thing is, this is not the first upside-down cake in the Baking book that has come out leaving me wanting.

The first time I baked this Dorie’s Upside Down Cake, I made a large cake instead of the baby cakes. She said we could do that, but suggested a slightly larger springform pan. The cake fell flat and compacted into a “slab” cake instead of a light, fluffy buttery cake. I thought that it must have been because of the pan. As I pondered it, I realized that I had never before made an upside down cake in a springform – it had always been in a glass baking dish. So…I decided to bake it again.

The second time, I used a smaller glass baking dish with half the batter. It seemed to be the perfect looking cake and I was very pleased with the difference. Until…this Dorie’s Upside Down Cake fell flat too. Mind you, the flavor is okay (not great) but the texture just isn’t that of real CAKE.

My plan? I will make this again with my own recipe. And if there is another upside down cake in our Baking with Julia future, I just may pass. Did you have success with yours? What is your secret for the Dorie’s Upside Down Cake?

Fresh Rhubarb Upside-Down Baby Cakes were hosted by Erin of When in Doubt…Leave it at 350 for Tuesdays With Dorie - Baking With Julia.

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Lemon Yogurt Scones are a delicious breakfast treat – the perfect blend of cake and tart to make your morning memorable.

I confess that one of my food weaknesses happens to be baked goods for breakfast. Muffins, quick breads, scones and biscuits…these are some of my favorite things. There is something about sitting with a delicious baked good fresh from the oven with my cup of steaming tea first thing in the morning.

Lemon Display at Wong grocery store – from my Instagram

The other day, my local grocery store had a bin of Limones Americanos (“American Limes”) or what we affectionately call LEMONS! Imagine my delight! Yes, I pondered the fact that the last time I saw, bought and used lemons here in Peru I was less than pleased. I think I have grown too accustomed to the Peruvian lime to really enjoy lemons anymore. But…who can resist those bright yellow fruits? Not me.

I came home with nearly a kilo and grand plans to bake up cakes, cupcakes, and more over the weekend. Given that the weekend starts with breakfast, I knew the lemons had to go into something appropriate for the early morning hour. I love scones (yes, even more than muffins) and decided I just HAD to get these lemons into a batch of scones. My plan was so well worth it because these Lemon Yogurt Scones were just delicious!

I would highly recommend these delicious Lemon Yogurt Scones for Mother’s Day, a springtime brunch or any other day of the week.

A couple things to note about this recipe. This makes 6 large Lemon Yogurt Scones…very large. You could always make 2 discs, each cut into 6 wedges in order to make smaller versions. (Then you can eat more than one without any guilt!) I use the “drinkable Peruvian yogurt” that we have here. You can substitute this with buttermilk, plain yogurt, greek yogurt, etc. With the thicker texture of American yogurts, you may add an extra tablespoon of lemon juice to thin it out a bit.

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Sopa Seca is a traditional dish found in Chincha, Ica. The name of the dish literally means “dry soup” which doesn’t sound very appetizing. However, the dish is actually a delicious pasta dish made with dry noodles, chicken, vegetables and spices. You will almost never find it served alone – it is the complimentary dish to Carapulcra Chinchana.

The Italians reached the Peruvian shores in 1840 as they were trying to escape the poverty brought on by Napoleon’s conquest of Italy. They came with the hope of striking it rich from the guano and arrived to the estates of Chincha. With them came pasta, minestrone, empanadas, pastel de acelga, and panettone bread. Chincha, Ica is a province located south of Lima which is characterized by the large number of black descendants, but in actuality combines many different cultures of the world like Spanish, Indians, blacks, coolies and Italians, giving well a wide range of flavors and influences in the meals from the area.

The union of Carapulcra Chinchana and Sopa Seca is similar to marriage between two people from different neighborhoods. One specializes in Carapulcra, one in Sopa Seca and the combination of the two on one plate is what brings about perfection.

Believe me, the idea of eating a potato stew along with pasta seemed like a crazy idea to me too. But somehow this just works. I quite like the pasta dish on it’s own and even though it is said to “always” be eaten together…I confess that here, I think both dishes are equally good and can fill a plate all on their own.

Sopa Seca is part of the 101 Reasons to Eat in Peru series.

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What is happening in the culinary world in Peru? Great question! Here at Provecho Peru, we keep you up to date on Peru Food News – both news about food in Peru and Peruvian food around the world.

Gastón Acurio announced that he and Virgilio Martínez, chefs recently announced to have 2 of the best 50 restaurants in the world, will be opening a “Peruvian Gastronomy Embassy” in London, England. The idea, as described to Efe, will be two locations — a larger, more casual gathering place where visitors can taste dishes from all over Peru and a more exclusive location with only 12 tables where guests will taste the creativity of the Haute Cuisine from Peru.

More than 500 varieties of potatoes were presented at the 16th Annual Yellow Potato Festival in Huánuco, Peru. The festival began on April 24th and drew over 200 potato farmers. There were potatoes such as papa canchán, tumbay, huayro, culebra blanca, negra, peruanita, ambarito, chirimoya, mantequilla, pucajanco, palteada y otras.

Peruvian Dessert Day was celebrated with a dessert & food fair hosted by Dulce Peru over the last weekend of April in Pueblo Libre. The fair featured desserts such as suspiro limeño, alfajores, picarones and queso helado as well as foods typical to Peru.

ARMAP & D’Gallia are the organizers for the 5th Annual celebration for National Ceviche Day. Seafood restaurants from all over Lima will gather and offer a food fair of Peru’s regional dishes with costs ranging from $2 to $6. The celebration will take place in Plaza Lima Norte from June 26-30 and entrance is free.

Javier Vargas, President of ARMAP, announced that he will be releasing a book called “El Seviche” where the history of ceviche will be presented, along with the varieties from the Coast, Mountains and Jungle of Peru.

Planning for the 2nd Annual Cook-Farmer Alliance Festival will begin this month in time for a group of chefs to be present for the start of the Peruvian Native Potato harvest on May 18th. Four types of native potatoes will be promoted this year: Puka Duraznillo, Qeqorani, Allqa Imilla y Huayro Macho.

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Carapulcra Chinchana is a delicious Peruvian Potato Stew seasoned with flavorful chile peppers, interesting spices and finished off with peanut butter!

The City of Chincha Alta is located 200 kilometers south of Lima. People began to inhabit the Chincha area in the ninth century and their culture was centered around fishing and shell gathering. A warlike culture moved into the Chincha area and developed systems of architecture, agriculture and irrigation. The people worshipped a jaguar god and believed that they themselves had come from jaguars, the source of their warring abilities. The name “Chincha” is derived from the word “Jaguar.” The Chincha people fertilized their fields with dead birds and guano. In the 15th century the Chincha people were conquered by the Incan Empire, who greatly valued both the Chincha’s agricultural knowledge and the military skills. This same region was later conquered by the Spanish, who brought over Africans. The current Chincha culture was born from the blending of the Chincha, Incan, Spanish and African cultures.

The traditional Carapulcra is made with papa seca, freeze dried potatoes. But those in Chincha have made this dish their own by using fresh potatoes instead of freeze dried ones and they added beef broth. Carapulcra Chinchana is traditionally eaten in combination with Sopa Seca.

Carapulcra Chinchana is part of the 101 Reasons to Eat in Peru series.

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