Food and Life, isn’t it a Beautiful Thing?

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This is “Pachamanca”, it included chicken, beef, pork, corn, beans and a tamale, but it was sweet like a dessert.
This trio from left to right is ‘causa’, ‘ceviche’, and ‘arroz con mariscos’.
This is a ‘paella’ I made in my class. It contains chicken, pork, shrimp, calamari, squid and mussels.ย  I used Arborio rice and red peppers, onions and green beans.

We all love food, and other than being a basic necessity in our lives we enjoy it to the max.ย  This study abroad is a connection I am making to get closer to the root of different gastronomy.ย  I am learning the diversity of the food in Peru and other cultures that fuse with it.ย  Peruvian cuisine is much more than we know, and the depth behind the flavors gathers many cultures into one.ย  This includes, Chinese culture, French, Spanish, Italian and many more.ย  The only way to experience the this food exploration is to go around to different spots.

I’m learning the gastronomy inside a classroom and out in my own experiences.ย  There are so many different places to eat, but at the same time there are many to be aware of.ย  During the time I have been here I have eaten in distinct places, and some were really good and some have not.ย  The only way to find out what places are the best is to interact directly with people, and ask for their number one choices.ย  I travelled over two hours to experience and taste something called “Pachamanca”, which is food that they cook underground.ย  The food is then placed into clay pots and served, and the flavors are amazing!ย  I was able to see the process and watch how the placed the food and covered it with hot rocks/coal to cook it.

Another food experience I had was when I went to the center of Lima.ย  As I walked around admiring the architecture I spoke to locals and they all mentioned the same spot to eat.ย  I decided to take up the offers and I went to the locale.ย  I ate a trio of their three traditional dishes, “causa, ceviche and arroz con mariscos”.ย  At the end of this dish I treated myself to a “Marciano”, which is a dessert of blended fruit. ย ย  This dish took the trophy for being the best thing I have eaten on the trip so far, and I want to go back to eat it again.

My other great food experience has been in class, and it’s been prepared by non other than me.ย  I am taking international cuisine and in the latest classes I’ve been making dishes from different countries of the world.ย  Some of the countries include Peru, Spain and Italy.ย  The dishes I recreated have made me realize the grand difference in how we use an ingredient can affect the whole outcome of the dish.ย  The flavors from each of the cultures is so different from what my palette is accustom to that it has fallen in love with them.