The American philosopher Henry David Thoreau famously said “beware of all enterprises that require new clothes.” I have somewhat modified this bit of advice to better suit (sorry…) my own life: “beware of all enterprises that do not require new books.” As my trip to Peru this summer with Kolibri Expeditions is unquestionably a new enterprise for me, I immediately went and bought a new book to help me prepare for it.
As National Geographic‘s guide to Panama was so helpful in my preparations for my journey to Panama with Panama la Verde, I sought out and found a copy of National Geographic Traveler: Peru to help me get “up to speed” regarding the history and culture of that nation. Indeed, I was not mistaken in this choice of reading material, for among the many things I have already learned about Peru, including the antiquity of its indigenous cultures, its rapid development into a modern cosmopolitan society, and its highly varied terrain and climates, I have also had brought to my attention two of Peru’s most popular culinary delights: cerviche and cuy.
For those who might not be familiar with either of these delicacies, cerviche is a seafood dish that is included in the national cuisines of many Central and South American countries. The basic premise is simple: marinate raw shrimp or white fish (according to the local culinary custom; in Peru it appears to be different species of white saltwater fish although inland it may also be trout) in a mixture of lime citrus juice and peppers until it is effectively “cooked” by the acids of the marinade. As one who both relishes discovering new foods and eats sushi on a weekly basis, this sounds delightful and I can’t wait to try it. Cuy, on the other hand, might be a bit more of a challenge to my epicurean boundaries – nevertheless it is still something from which I shall not shy away should the opportunity for its consumption present itself.
Cuy is a dish of the Andes whose primary ingredient is the indigenous Cavia porcellus, better known to many English speakers as the guinea pig. Now, I will freely admit that I had to read the sentence that first brought this to my attention twice to be sure I understood it correctly. However once I did, I was able to put aside my North American prejudices about which animals are pets and which are supper, and see the pregmatism behind the origins of this dish.
While the wild ancestor to the domesticated C. porcellus has not been positively identified, it is widely assumed to have been a member of the Genus Cavia and native to Peru. Requiring minimal resources to raise in an area where resources are not easy to obtain, the domestication of C. porcellus as a food animal is quite like the domestication of rabbits as a food animal in Europe. Indeed, both are kept in both capacities within their respective societies. To be honest, I was quite pleased to learn from my reading that this traditional food has not been eliminated from Peruvian society, being replaced by more modern, and quite likely less healthy and more resource-intensive foods.
So as begins the old saying, “When in Rome…,” count me in for both cerviche and cuy. I’m told cerviche is fresh and “bright” in flavor. Cuy? Well, while some articles I have read about it have fallen back on the old saw that it tastes like chicken, I am actually expecting something more akin to rabbit in flavor. I’ll let you know.
