But what did they eat?!

One of the things I love best about traveling with J, is that we can have the exact same adventures, and yet have entirely different takeaways from the experience. For example, while he’s nerding out over the Incan terraces and trying to wrap his head around the legacy of the Spanish settling Peru, I’m thinking about our next meal.

I get this from my mom (hi, mom!). It’s a genetic trait that I wouldn’t trade for the world. I used to be embarrassed by the desire to eat (trauma from years of being recognized as ‘a good eater’ requires a lot of therapy and a separate post). But now, I am so grateful to enjoy food and get to experience other cultures through it when we travel. (Closing my rings every day and climbing up mountains deserves a reward, right?)

So, as our time in Peru draws to a close, it feels just right to wrap up our amazing time here with some amazing eats. Please enjoy these highlights and honourable mentions from our culinary tour of Peru… we sure did!

Our top 5 ‘Peruvian’ eats

1. Dinner at Le Bodega in Lima

There was no debate about this one. Of the many meals we ate in Lima (and maybe all of Peru), this remains the very best. We ordered classic Limanese dishes (pesto spaghetti and cheesy potatoes for me Lomito Saltado for J, and some Ceviche… obvs).

Everything was super fresh and delicious. (And we felt super validated in our selections when a server at another restaurant told us this place was his fave for O.G. Peruvian food, too). Winner, winner, Peruvian dinner.

2. Lunch at La Casa de Mama Yacchi in Corporaque

In our last few days, we took an overnight tour out to the Colca Canyon. The Condors were more limited than we exptected and the Canyon was far less grand than we’d imagined. Nonetheless, it was an awesome couple days full of wildlife sighting, and this lunch.

It started with Causa de Queso (Cheese soup, which we’ve already sourced a recipe for). My vegetarian main was a scramble of local, fresh veggies, eggs and squeaky cheese. Shockingly delicious. And the star was this OMG good Maracuya (soufflé? Flan?) desert. Maracuya (passion fruit) has become one of our favorite flavours here, and this might have been its finest execution.

Also, while we were eating, a volcano was busy erupting in the distance. I rushed outside to take pictures, no one else seemed to care. It might have been because it erupts 20-30 times per day. Or, because the food is so good no one could tear themselves away. Hard to say.

3. Dinner at Rucula, in Cusco

Neither Jay or I were feeling our best on this day. A combination of travellers digestion, altitude and general exhaustion were all at play as we dragged ourselves out to dinner, not wanting to miss out on an evening in Cusco, a city we were really fond of.

This restaurant was everything the reviews had promised and more. The food was delicious and it had the best vibes. There was a dog dining with its owners at the table next to us and a swinging soundtrack. Our server helped us shazaam a Ben Harper collab with Brazilian artist, which J has since been (understandably) obsessed with.

We wished we’d been feeling well enough to order more food. No doubt, it would have been amazing. Next time we’re in town…

4. The Pisco Sours we made ourselves

We’ve enjoyed a few Pisco Sours in our time here. (Less than you might expect though, early mornings and altitude are keeping us in check!). Our favorites (and the best, if we do say so!) are the ones we made ourselves at the Musee del Pisco.

The friendly bartender began the session by letting us choose our flavour. Classic for me, Maracuya (passion fruit) for J. It’s his go-to here. The recipe was otherwise the same: 3.5 oz of Pisco and 1 oz each of simple syrup, egg white, and lime juice (or 1.5 oz of Maracuya or another sweet flavour). Then came the hard part: 2 minutes of icy shaking. This felt like a looooong time, and the bartenders who make 150-200 of these a day during high season have our full respect! The last step was a double-strained pour into a chilled glass, and then the final touch of 3 drops of Angostura bitters on top, drawn into a heart.

Delicious! And whether that heart on top is truly standard or not, it’s how we’ll be making them at home. And we will be making them at home.

5. This Club Sandwich (actually!)

Hear me out on this one. I know, we eat our way through Peru and rate a Club sandwich among the best meals? #tourist #westerntourist #lamewesterntourist… but this was no ordinary Club Sandwich!

Firstly, there’s no shame in the occasional meal abroad that feels like home. For me, a bowl of quinoa and vegetables… (oh wait, Peruvian cuisine 😆), does the trick. For Jay it’s Pizza (often), and occasionally, a Club, but only if it’s exactly right. Questions are always involved. Does it have at least 3 layers? White bread? Bacon and real chicken? Can there be extra mayo on the side? It’s only if the answer is yes to all these questions that he’ll order it.

And so, when we stopped in for dinner at the fanciest hotel in the Sacred Valley, this is what he ordered. It delivered on the above checklist and had a bonus as well: birds nest fried egg in the top slice of bread. What?! Yep, you heard that right.

How had we not thought of this before? While it wasn’t the most exotic or culturally interesting thing we ate on this trip, it’s certainly a concept we’ll be taking home. Bird’s nest grilled cheese anyone?

Honourable mentions

While there just isn’t a place for everything on our top list, there are a few more edibles that played defining roles in our journey. We call these honourable mentions, and here they are.

Helado Queso

Did someone say ‘Cheese Ice Cream’? Yes, they did, but that’s not really what this is. Even though it’s called Helado Queso (which means Cheese Ice Cream), it’s just plain old ice cream, somehow made sweeter and creamier, and topped with cinnamon. It’s sold on every corner in the Arequipa area, and we tried a few. We particularly liked that it came in tiny cups that cost about $0.70 Canadian. The perfect treat.

All the paltas

Tiny, creamy, large, smoked and grilled – we ate them all! Avocados were so often the accidental star of the show. From the tiny ones we snacked on in Sacred Valley, to the best layer of the many Cuasas we ate, I’ve never loved avocado more than on this trip.

In fact, my first meal on this trip was an avocado toast that was seriously the best I’ve ever eaten, and I didn’t even think to take a picture of it. We had stopped at a cafe near our Airbnb while we waited for it to be ready, and I ordered whatever vegetarian thing they had. Avocado toast wasn’t the culinary highlight I was going for, but it felt like a safe place to start. And wow, did it surpass any expectations. It was smoked and grilled avocado, and I wish I had a photo, since I’m still thinking about the salty smoky flavour of it 2 weeks later. In place of that that treasured avocado memory, here are a couple more that I think of fondly.

So much corn! (But none for me)

Corn and I don’t agree – and I’m pretty sure it’s my fault. I spent many of my University and young adult years eating bags of microwave popcorn as meals. I believe it’s ruined my digestion where corn is concerned, and I generally avoid it like the plague. But here, it’s been so plentiful and diverse it’s been hard not to have a few bites.

Corn comes in many forms here: bar snack, street eat, ceviche side and beverage, to name just a few. It’s larger and more colourful than the corn in North America, and I tried just enough to know that it’s pretty tasty too. J also enjoyed a number of bags of ‘puffed corn’ – think GIANT puffed wheat, sweetened as a street snack.

Please enjoy this gallery of corn, since I really shouldn’t:

An ode to markets

It wouldn’t seem right not to devote a section of a blog all about food to markets. I love markets. That’s also something I get from my mom (hi again, mom!). Wandering through markets is one of my favorite things to do in another country. And we did a lot of it in Peru.

Whether it’s towers or fruit, some of the 3000 varieties of potatoes Peru grows, the freshest fish, the tackiest trinkets, or aisles of splayed and skinned animals with only the tufts of their tails in place, I love seeing how local people eat and purchase food. We ate some good snacks, took many a picture, and have spared you all the animal shots (and smells).

And that’s a wrap…

We had a great time in Peru and had so many highlights – both culinary and otherwise. Thanks for coming on this journey with us!

I’ll leave you all with a final taste of the pure joy of our culinary tour of Peru. We really took a bite out of this country, and look forward to making our way back someday.

In the meantime, we’re excited about part 2 of our trip: The Galapagos! Likely less culinary, but surely we find something else to blog about 🤣

Back at you again soon!

J loves cotton candy and was excited to try Morado flavour. Apparently a love of cotton candy is a Kogan thing. Still so much to learn about this fascinating people!