Eating our way through Peru

When we were planning our trip to Peru I was so excited because I knew Draper (and I for that matter) would be exposed to some interesting local Peruvian food. I knew this trip would help us knock off some foods on our 100 Foods before One journey and help her expand her palette even further. I had every intention to document her trying all the new foods.... but once vacation mode hit I got side tracked and didn't always have my phone with me (shocker I know) and forgot to film her.

Peru is home to dishes and flavours that you cannot find anywhere else. Honestly the food there is simply amazing! We were spoiled with fresh seafood for dinner and delicious fruit at breakfast. All the flavours were so unique and fresh. I personally loved the cuisine because it was really healthy. We ate a lot of veggies and protein (meat, chicken and fish) vs. heavy and greasy American food. The best part was we had a maid to cook all our meals and clean up after. That meant freshly squeezed juice in the morning when we woke up and true Peruvian dishes for dinner. We ate like the locals do but at the same time felt like queens. I'm not going to lie it was AMAZING and I feel so lucky to have had that experience.

Here's a little recap of the Peruvian foods she tried, how they were prepared and her reaction.

#81 Lime (Ceviche)

Ceviche is Peru's national dish. You can find it at pretty much every restaurant or it's super simple to make at home. Once you try it you will immediately become obsessed! Though other countries may claim their own variations with shrimp, octopus, scallops, tomatoes, and even tostada chips, Peru started this cold-"cooked" fish craze with only five simple ingredients: sea bass (corvina) marinated for just minutes in lime juice, onion, salt and, of course, hot chiles (aji). The tenderness of super-fresh fish is heightened by crisp onion, and sides of starchy boiled corn (choclo) and creamy sweet potato (camote) to balance out the texture of the dish. Dry-roasted corn kernels (cancha) are sprinkled around add a pleasing crunch.

Draper has tried white fish before but since the majority of the flavour in this dish comes from limes (the fish cooks in lime juice) I'm marking limes as her 81st food. Surprisingly Draper quite enjoyed the ceviche. The first bite shocked her with the strong taste of sour lime but eventually she got use to it. And because the fish was very tender and easy to chew she gobbled it up.

#82 Cherimoya

Native to the Andean highlands, the word chirimoya is derived from the Quechua word meaning “cold seeds” because it can grow at high altitudes, up to 2,600 meters (8,530 feet). The fruit is heart-shaped, and its green skin looks similar to what a dragon egg would look like. Chirimoya has a unique flavor; imagine every exotic flavor mixed into one (you really just have to try it to understand).

The texture is soft. You cut the fruit into slices like you would an orange, remove the seeds and bite. Personally I found it very sweet. It didn't compare to the mango, pineapple and papaya but was still fun to try.

Draper loved it. I gave her it in small pieces and she would shovel it in her mouth.

#83 Lucuma

Lucuma is grown in the Amazon and is the creamy nectar of the gods. Its outside is green, resembling an avocado, and is orange on the inside. Peruvians don’t usually eat it by itself, but instead add it to smoothies, juices, desserts, and ice cream. I swear you can find lucuma flavoured everything! It is known as the “last gold of the Incas.” It is super nutritious as it contains beta carotene, iron, zinc, vitamin B3, calcium, and protein. In my opinion it has a sweet maple-like and pumpkin taste.

Draper seemed indifferent to this fruit. I wouldn't say she loved it but she did try it. Maybe she would have preferred it in a powder? I guess we'll never know.

#84 Passion fruit/Maracuya

Maracuyá, also known as the “Passion Fruit”, is a citrus fruit, rich in vitamin C and antioxidants that protect the health of cells. It's best to slice the fruit open and eat it with a spoon. In our case I would pre-load a spoon and give it to Draper to feed herself. I find maracuya to be very sour! It almost tastes like a blend of mango and orange. They have a fragrantly sweet taste with a pleasantly tart tang and are very juicy. Also the seeds are edible but a bit crunchy.

Draper immediately spit this one out. Let's just say she did not like it. I think it was the tanginess and texture. Personally I think it makes for much better juice.

#85 Aguaymanto

Called the Peruvian cherry or Inca berry, aguaymanto resembles an unripe, grape-sized tomato. Sold either still in their leafy shell or without it, these make delicious snacks. Fun fact the Incas used to eat it.

We just removed the berry from its leafy shell and cut it in half like you would a cherry tomato. It's an explosion of taste, sweet and sour at the same time, along with lots of tiny and edible seeds.

Draper was also not a fan of this fruit. When she tasted it, she immediately spit it out. I think it was just too sour for her little taste buds.

#86 Purple Sweet Potato

Very similar to a normal orange sweet potato. But the inside is beautiful with its light purple and juicy flesh in complete contrast to its dull brown exterior. The deep color of purple sweet potatoes comes from anthocyanins, the same pigment that gives cherries, strawberries, purple carrots, and other vegetables their color. Purple sweet potatoes have a rich, almost winey flavor but are denser and drier than regular sweet potatoes. When cooking, they will take longer than regular sweet potatoes.

Purple sweet potatoes can be boiled, baked or steamed. We boiled and sliced them before serving them to Draper. Just like regular sweet potato she loved them. Plus they are kind of pretty to look at too! :)

#87 Yuca

The starchy flesh of the yuca root is a light white and has a grainy texture similar to potatoes. The meaty flesh is often described as having a mild, sweet, somewhat nutty taste. Personally I think it tastes best fried (doesn't everything?) But you can prepare it in the same way you would a baked potato, though it’s important to remove the skin first. I loved the yuca fries and you could find them on most menus so it was a staple on our trip.

Draper being my daughter also LOVED yuca. We gave them to her both fried and baked and both times she ate them right up as she would a normal potato.

#88 Octopus

The last different food she tried was octopus. We went out for a really nice dinner to celebrate Coco & Grandpa Ger's 40th wedding anniversary and ordered the grilled octopus as an appetizer. Oh my gad was it delicious. It was so tender and flavourful (smokey and charred) that we decided to give some to Draper to try. I don't think many 11 month olds have been given the chance to try fresh octopus caught from the sea that day.

I was impressed by her reaction. She seemed to be intrigued by the octopus. She sucked on the piece for quite awhile extracting all the juices and flavours. Then before we knew it she chewed and swallowed it up. We only gave her a couple of small pieces because selfishly we wanted the rest to ourselves but it was fun to see her enjoy such a unique food.

BONUS FOOD: ice cream

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ICE CREAM!!!

Call me a bad mom if you want but when on vacation all rules go out the door right? There is one thing you need to know about Peru. They LOVE their ice cream. You cannot go 100 meters without seeing one of these ice cream men on a little bicycle. Probably because its always so hot there the people need a quick treat to cool them down.

Drapers cousins (Avery 7 and Mia 5) are little ice cream monsters. They had at least one ice cream a day and Draper would watch them lick the cones until they disappeared. She would get up on her knees and reach for the cones as if she wanted to have some too. So finally I gave in. I've never given Draper food with artificial sugar before but I figure she is almost 1 so a little taste can hurt. (Pictures to come as they are on the good camera, not my phone).

Obviously she LOVED it. She liked the cone again and again. And if I pulled the cone away, she would grab my hand to bring it back to her mouth. She just couldn't get enough. She would have probably eaten the whole thing if I let her. I'm not going to count this in our list of 100 foods because it's not a pure whole food but it was still fun to try!

Well that sums up our Peruvian food adventures! There are 16 days left before Draper turns one and we have 12 more foods to get through to reach 100. It will be a mad rush to the finish line but we can do it! If you want to read more about our 100 Foods before One journey click here or visit us on instagram @made_to_mama.

xoxo

LDT