Japanese-Peruvian Sushi

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. I’m not normally a ‘fusion’ man. But note the word normally. There are occasions when fusion food is incredible. And Japanese-Peruvian fusion is one of them.

Upon trying some of Edo Sushi Bar’s (http://www.edosushibar.com/, we went to the Miraflores branch, Berlin 601) creations, instead of analysing the food, the very first thing I thought was “damn, I’m gonna need to get this outside of Peru, somehow...”. After pondering that business venture the food thoughts kicked back in again.

My favourite was probably their Edo Maki, a prawn tempura maki roll topped with baby octopus sautéed in butter. Sushi doesn’t normally come with anything dairy related – but this Peruvian touch adds a rich element which, well, is best described as godly. The roll next to it, another winner, ‘Tartare Maki’, a panko-crusted prawn and avocado maki roll topped with a tuna and salmon tartar, laden with with eel and spicy sauces with crispy wonton strips to finish.

The maki roll with conchas (scallops) was also sublime...sweet, creamy, ridiculously fresh...

In the pic below, the roll at the top depicts their acevichado, an avocado and scallop maki, wrapped in tuna slices and topped with their classic ‘ceviche sauce’. Another example of Japanese-Peruvian fusion working its magic.

In short, another place you must eat at.

The Sea

Our last lunch Peru had to be a good one. Actually, it had to be knockout one, so having counted our remaining soles we decided had enough to go to one of Lima’s best cebicherias, La Mar (Avenida La Mar 770, Miraflores, Lima). It wasn’t hard to decide what to get, especially when we could choose their ‘degustacion ceviche’, which takes away that need to decide, allowing you to taste 5 of their ceviche portfolio. 

The clasico was, well, classically good (almost as good as the one at Punto Azul).  But the standout was undoubtedly their nikei ceviche de atun. Fresh tuna pieces marinated in a lime-soy-sesame oil dressing, whose balance of sour-salty-nutty flavours was right on the money. Stunningly good.

For mains, I went for the saltado pacifico, a dish with clear Chinese, Italian and Peruvian influences. Fresh sea bass, juicy prawns and sublimely sweet scallops, stir fried in a tangerine and chilli sauce, lathered generously on top of paper-thin ravioli stuffed with a creamy pumpkin filling. What really made this dish standout was the heat of the wok which imparted an addictive smokey aroma in the sauce. Genius.

Aji de Gallina

This dish is Peruvian comfort food at its very best. It’s basically a Peruvian chicken curry, only with some pretty luxurious ingredients.

Moist, juicy chicken breast is shredded and enveloped in a sauce comprising milk, evaporated milk, parmesan cheese, bread, pecans and aji Amarillo (yellow chilli), served with rice, hard boiled egg and olives. The flavours range from sweet to earthy, spicy to creamy, yet as a dish it somehow tastes so simple, as if it were somehow made of the simplest ingredients around. Inka Grill (www.cuscorestaurants.com on the Plaza de Armas)  in Cusco does a pretty good rendition of it.

More Cusconian quality

Cicciolina (www.cicciolinacuzco.com) is widely regarded as one of Cusco’s top restaurants. And rightly so. Let me cut straight to the chase – I went for their special of the day, a fresh tuna steak, chargrilled to perfection on the outside and deliciously rare in the middle, accompanied by a slightly sweet and spicy sauce no doubt infused with some form of aji. Not pictured is a classic ossabucco, also more than worthy of a try.

And for dessert, we had another dish to fuel our lucuma addiction. This time the stars of the dessert show were an intensely rich lucuma cream partnered by a dark chocolate mousse topped with sea salt.  Again, simply sublime, and needs no further description.

Guinea Pig aka cuy

If I had left Peru without trying our little friend the Guinea Pig my reputation as an open-to-try-everything foodie would have come into question. So, probably Peru’s most famous dish, cuy (guinea pig), had to be tasted.

We had it roasted at La Choza de Oscar (www.lachozadeoscar.com), and I must admit, even before trying it, I was wondering where the meat was... Ok so first bite was a lot of skin, but crispy, aromatic skin nonetheless, the type you’d expect on a confit duck. As for the meat, it was quite like chicken thigh, only darker, almost slightly gamey. All in all, worth a try, but para mi, it was nothing to write home about.

The Next Big Thing in World Cuisine

I had heard through the grapevine (amongst other sources) that Peruvian food was destined to be the next big thing in world cuisine – a cuisine that embodied fresh seafood, quality meats, unique fruits and grains, jungle cuisine, unique flavour combinations... it certainly got the juices going. So when Brujas de Cachiche (Bolognesi 472, Miraflores) was suggested as a great place for an introduction to Peru’s culinary prowess, I happily obliged.

Seeing the picture above in real, edible form was clearly going to make me a happy man, and indeed it did. Here you’ll see a seafood starter platter demonstrating the best of coastal cuisine; clockwise from bottom left: tiradito – raw slices of sole, marinated in local lime juice with chilli; deep fried prawns with a quinoa coating; anitchuchitas con pescado – fish kebabs, only better, I guess; conchitas  a la parmesana – baby scallops grilled with parmesan cheese; pulpo al olivo – octopus in a smooth olive sauce, and in the centre: causa de pulpa fresco de cangrejo – mashed potato cake stuffed with fresh crab meat (looks and tastes much better than my inadequate description). I could go on all day about each individual dish, but I won’t...

In the background of the picture you’ll see their ‘creole’ hors d’oeuvres, most notable of which was their rocoto relleno, a beef-mince stuffed bell pepper (with a kick), just delish.

Desserts, well, more new delicious things on show here, showcasing the best of Peru’s unique fruits. The yellow one in the bottom left depicts lucuma cream, the fruit responsible for a three week addiction which unfortunately had to end, the dark purple one in the top left depicts a chicha morada (fermented purple corn) dessert which you’ll normally find in drinkable form, and also of note was the chirimoya (aka custard apple, top right) blancmange (another creamy, sugary, moreish postre).

All of this goes well with a pisco sour or three.

Making the most of coastal cuisine

Having proceeded south down the coast from Lima, we arrived at Arequipa, Peru’s second city. This was our last chance to savour coastal cuisine before heading into the highlands, so it was imperative that we made the most of it. After a longer-than-necessary taxi journey with a driver who didn’t know where he was going, we arrived at El Tio Dario (Callejon del Cabildo 100, Yanahuara, Arequipa), a quaint little semi-alfresco restaurant with a stunning view of El Misti, a snow-capped volcano which provides the backdrop to this city. Add to this spectacular food and solid service and you have a must-go-to restaurant.

First up was their house special tiradito; melt in your mouth sole marinated in lime juice with a slightly creamy reduction as an accompaniment. Perhaps too sour for some but delectable to my tastebuds.

Second, their house special lomo saltado (a Chinese-Peruvian dish (chifa)) comprising beef tenderloin flambéed in red wine with soy, onions and red peppers. One of those dishes where you can taste the smokey heat of the wok. A must try.

The star of the show was undoubtedly their deep fried chita (a local Peruvian fish), partnered with a white wine, butter and garlic sauce and fried yuca chips (cassava). Crispy skin, moist flesh, rich yet somehow light sauce – no more description is needed – just come here and eat this.