As part of our menu development, we had a cook off between Chef 1 (“The Quiet Octopus”) and Chef 2 (“The Fighting Seabass”). The challenge posed to these two titans of Peruvian cuisine was tough: To cook three dishes in less than three hours for a demanding jury of experts. You could feel the tension in the air as both chefs sharpened their knives, getting ready for what would be a truly memorable and productive evening.
Now, I know what you’re thinking: “Where is the pesto?” “Is that a giant steak?” “Are those… potatoes?”. Don’t worry, there’s an explanation for everything. Italian migration to Peru has been constant since the early days of the Spanish conquest, but Italian dishes and customs remained untouched for a long time. Almost all pasta meals found in Peru remain unchanged and could easily be found elsewhere, it’s only recently that lasagne with yellow chilli sauce or Huancaina-flavoured ravioli have heralded a new wave of experimentation in Italo-Peruvian restaurants. This monstrous variation of pesto, however, is the exception to the rule, having been part of household menus for quite some time.
This is one example of a traditional dish that was exuberantly re-designed to suit Peruvian taste buds, and more importantly, fill Peruvian stomachs to the brim. Out of necessity and perhaps because of its humility, the modest pesto was turned into a dense green sauce with basil, spinach and milk. Some anonymous (and very hungry) individual decided that this just wasn’t enough and proceeded to place a massive steak (sometimes known as the ‘sabana’ or ‘sheet’) on top of it. Adding insult to injury, another mystery chef thought the mixture of beef and pasta could do with a bit more carb and served a couple of potatoes with it. And that’s how, for better or worse, the ‘tallarines verdes’ were born.
Not your typical Sunday breakfast. Adobo is a spicy Pork dish that was created in Spain and spread all over Latin America (and even the Philippines). The Peruvian version, popular throughout the Andes (but particularly revered in the white city of Arequipa) is more like a soup with an excessive amount of onions, marinated for almost a day, slowly cooked for five to eight hours and eaten on Sundays and special occasions. Or, to be more precise: a soup eaten AFTER special occasions.
You see, the idea of Adobo is intrinsically linked to hangovers, sleepless nights and heavy partying. What in Peru is called a ‘levanta muertos’ (literally: dead waker) - a category that includes soups such as Aguadito and Caldo de Gallina. Most people see Adobo as a delicious fuel, that warm, strong soup that will stop your head from feeling like it’s going to explode and keep you going for at least another night. This is why, if you ever spend New Years Eve in Arequipa, it would be impossible and a bit absurd to not engage in the traditional practice of having a massive bowl of Adobo at 5 a.m.
(picture by Jorge Gobbi)