Unpaved South America » Midweek Snack

Midweek Snack: Raspadillas Dante

Robert Kittilson — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 20:46:58 +0000

Perfection is what I desire, so when we stumbled across these, I knew I needed nothing more in life. The snow-cup, you might call it, comes with your choice of flavors: Strawberry (fresa), Mango, Tamerind, Guanábana, Mint, Piña, Limón (Lime). Forget about those High Fructose corn syrup mixed with some kind of chemical snow cones of your past, Dante’s has only fresh squeezed freshly pureed freshly sugared tastiness.

We met Dante for the first time near the beach when contemplating the ice cream in the ice cream shop across the street. I said, “Jessie, we should stop eating all of this ice cream, it is bad for our health.” So, we called on Dante and a Woman (who seemed to be running the show) to fulfill our needs. Dante did the scoopin’ and She did the pourin’. Jessie remembered seeing their cart being painted and fixed in the street near our appartment, and then so did I. They seemed busy, so I ordered a Fresa solo and Jessie experimented with a Mango and Coconut, telling ourselves that we must return and maybe write about it.

Yesterday, I snuck out under the pretext of “Internet cafe/photo upload” and sampled their goods again, Mango with Coco. And it was good.

Today we stopped by their permanent location across from the city Municipality. Dante was working solo, but there always seems to be a good group of people hanging out whenever we walk by. It quickly became obvious that Dante’s spot was the spot for locals and expats alike to re-fresh in a very fresh-fruit way. He told us his Mother has been doing this same thing for 40 Years. 40 Years, that is a lot to think about for a traveler. Back to the Solo Fresa for me and a Mango Coco for Jessie and just for fun a Limón (Lime) and Coconut for us (me.) They were great. And so is the sugar high.

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Midweek Snack: Peruvian Sauces

Robert Kittilson — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 16:55:30 +0000

Everywhere we went in Peru we were offered a pepper sauce that was different every time and often hot as hell. So, nearing the end of our 2009/2010 trip we wanted to get the recipes for a few different sauces that we have encountered, so we asked Scott of Tambopacaya to help us out. The first was the before mentioned Salsa de Aji (Pepper sauce), but no one calls it Sauce of the Pepper, they just call it Aji (Pepper). Very confusing, but most restaurateurs should know what your talking about. The second was a sauce we were introduced to in Huanchaco at our favorite Burger joint El Generoso, Generous Sandwich, called Chimichurri. Chimichurri has many incarnations just as the Pepper Sauce does. So, if you have different or extra stuff to put in any of these sauces, well, just do it.

Salsa de Aji – Local Pepper Sauce

As I said before this sauce changes from town to town and from restaurant to restaurant. But, the core of this tasty and spicy dipping or pouring sauce is simple. Garlic and Peppers are the main ingredients, so I would get lots of each. We bought two types of pepper to mix it up and one of them was really hot, so be careful or take chances. We chose to mash all of it up with a round stone and a cutting board in a traditional style adding Salt and Lime a few times along the way, but you can use a blender if you like. Done. Pepper sauce.

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Chimichurri

Chimichurri is generally a mix of diced raw garlic, chopped cilantro (or any other herb) and olive oil (or any other oil). Mix it all up and you got it. Add salt and pepper to taste. Try the blender to really make a mess.

Guacamole

Because, why not. If you already have garlic, peppers, cilantro, lime and motivation, why not get some avocados and tomatoes and make some yummy guacamole. Mostly avocado with a half tomato, chopped cilantro, bits of pepper, lime, salt & pepper and love will create a great guac for any social gathering that is in person and not on the computer.

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Thanks and enjoy food!

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Midweek Snack: Chicharron de Pescado

Robert Kittilson — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 16:51:43 +0000

I thought I would start this weeks Midweek Snack with a photo…

We have enjoyed this plate at El Anzuel (730 Av. Victor Larco, Huanchaco Peru) a few times now and have lusted for it since the first taste. Other restaurants, almost all, serve this dish, but no one else in Peru can stand up to the Heavenly pillows of deep fried goodness that are produced here in Huanchaco.

I followed this dish from beginning to end in an attempt, as always, to get the secrets about a dish and then make it myself. This dish is relatively simple, but oooooooh so good.

Yucca is a staple in peru and comes as a compliment on many dishes. However it is poisonous unless you boil the stuffing out of it. So if you try this at home, please be thorough.

First, Pour a bunch of oil into a big pan and heat it up and fry the Yucca. While you are doing this you can watch excerpts of X-Files or you can bread the fish. I suggest breading the fish so you can eat it sooner, but that is just my stomach typing. The fish El Anzuel uses are cut in chunks that measure 5×3x3 centimeters.

Once breaded, fry that fish buddy. The cook fried the fish for five to seven minutes until the batter had become Bien Dorado (Well Golden).

I had a hard time keeping control of my urge to dive in to the hot, still sizzling, chunks of delight. Looking through the lens offers a slight detachment that probably saved me from burning my mouth.

Serve over a nice bed of Yucca and some veggies, for color, and very soon your belly will be full and your addiction satisfied, for a minute of two at least. Yum.

The Chicharron de Pescado here at El Anzuel cost S/.18 or about Seven dollars. Dishes ranged from S/.16 to S/.38 with most around twenty soles. Based on this, I would say that it is the quality and quantity of each dish that makes it a bit more pricy, not just the beach front location.

We spoke with the owners mother, Hayde Bracamonte Flores, and she was a very kind and helpful person with the stern look of a hardened book keeper.

After a quick food coma we headed out for a bit of Ice cream to kick off the second half of the day. Cheers!

Originally posted on KnK Explore

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Midweek Snack: Comida Ariquepeña

Jessie Kwak — Wed, 10 Feb 2010 17:11:54 +0000

Arequipeños are rightfully proud of their local cuisine. Many of Peru’s local dishes can get a bit repetitious (fried meat, rice, slice of tomato) but in Arequipa the sheer variety of local specialties can be overwhelming, in a very good way. We attempted to sample as many of these dishes as possible for your edification…. Buen Provecho!

Entradas (Appetizers)

Rocoto Rellena: a mildly spicy pepper stuffed with ground beef and spices (including peanuts), topped with a slice of cheese and baked. The peppers are soaked in water with salt and sugar overnight to remove the heat of them, but they can still have a feisty bite to them.

Pastel de Papas: very similar to a Spanish tortilla, with potatoes layered with eggs and cheese, baked golden on the top with a scattering of anis seeds in the top layer. Often served as a combo appetizer with a Rocoto Rellena (see photo above).

Soltero de Queso: A delicious cold salad of squares of fresh cheese, onions, tomatoes, lima beans, choclo (corn) and cilantro. Dressed with olive oil and a dash of vinegar; by far the healthiest thing on the “comida tipica” menu, but don’t let that scare you off!

Platos (Entrees)

Chicharron de Cerdo: Coming from Chicharron de Pescado on the coast, we were expecting little fluffy nuggets of deep fried pork. The Chicharron de Cerdo is actually large squares of fatty porky goodness, deep fried of course. So delicious. (Go for a run afterwords.)

Malaya Dorada: Ribs—golden fried and tough, but well-seasoned. I didn’t get a good knife, and I resorted to an unladylike tearing with my teeth. I recommend you to bring floss.

Chupe de Camarones: We didn’t get a chance to try this, but how can you really go wrong with shrimp soup?

Bebidas (Beverages)

Anis Najar: This anis-flavored liqueur comes in three styles, seco, semi-seco, and crema especial. Crema especial is sweeter and smoother, and I wish that I’d tried it in hot chocolate. A local digestif, Anis Najar is sometimes served with black tea in a hot drink known as Té Piteada.

Kola Escocesa: This local soda has faint flavor of cherry cough syrup, but for a Peruvian beverage it’s not too sweet. The bottle also has a charmingly classic feel to it.

Arequipeña: Local beer made by the beer giant Baccus. It tastes slightly different that the other beers sold by the giant. This beer tasted better when cold, really cold.

Postre (Dessert)

Toffees blandas: These delightful soft caramels come in a seemingly endless supply of flavors, including coconut, orange, chocolate, coffee, vanilla, almond and pecan. The coconut ones are divine, but they’re highly recommended in all their forms. The little shops that sell them also sell another dozen or so typical treats, from cookies to pastries.

Queso Helado: The name literally means “frozen cheese,” but this icy treat is more like a light ice cream. As far as I could make out, it’s made of milk, sugar and vanilla, frozen and blended. Great on a hot day, or really whenever.

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Looking for recipes? Arequipa Linda (Lovely Arequipa) has a great collection (in Spanish).

Still hungry? Head on over to Wanderfood Wednesday for some more delicious food posts!

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