Peruvian Chifas

Is there anywhere in the world where you can't find Chinese (food)? Chifas are the Peruvian take on Chinese. Just like back home, it's inexpensive, tasty, and quick. Though one night, I couldn't make it out with the group to Chifa Internacional for Peruvian Chinese, folks kindly brought me back take out. What I ordered--chicken fried rice and stir-fried vegetables was satifyingly familiar but gotta say, what I really loved was the "to go" packaging--LOL!!!

Peru's National Treasure

From the time I landed in Lima, I knew I could not leave without eating at El Rincon Que No Conoces, which mildly translated means "The Corner Joint You've Never Heard Of."

Along with its whimsical name, the bits and pieces I knew about Chef Teresa Izquierdo Gonzales more than peaked my curiosity. However, was it my curiosity or my admiration for the 72 year-old female chef who had made this "joint" popular by cooking her family recipes for countless followers - many of the local musicians (including our beloved Pepe Villalobos) and celebrities from all over Peru for some 30 years?

So on my last day in Lima, Eva (my eating and touring partner for the day), and I got in a taxi and headed to El Rincon, located at the edge of Lima Centro - a rather non-touristy part of town. When we arrived, we were greeted by a man who stood post at the door. He handed us us a tiny slip of paper on which he had written the number "52" and told us that we had about a 35 minute wait. Clearly this was "the joint."

Once pulled from the small crowd waiting patiently outside its doors, Eva and I followed another gentleman who then led us through the downstairs seating area up the stairs to an airy roof-top dining room on the second landing.

From its extensive menu, Eva sampled a palta rellena stuffed with crabmeat and then followed that with asado a la tira (short ribs of beef) with white rice (which I devoured all by myself since Eva is a vegetarian). One of the waiters, insisted that we go with the house speciality dessert - a mini platter of fresh out the hot oil deep fried dough, shaped into rings. They sat beautifully in an amber colored pool of sweet syrup.

All this and an incredibly welcoming staff (that coincidentally included a young waiter who, told us that as a little boy he once lived in the states, Washington Heights (my neck of the woods back home), made for a wonderful last meal set in Lima Centro.

If Peru hasn't named Chef Teresa Iziuerdo as one of its national treasures, it ought to!

One of the first things I do whenever I travel abroad is head to a local food market. In Lima, Vivanda is sort of a Peruvian 24 hour Stop N Shop. Just a few blocks from our hotel in Miraflores, Vivanda is the neigborhood place to go for super fresh fish, meats, produce, speciality items, cheeses, "to go" meals, wines and spirits. Though, I have to say, nothing beats the sweet, ripe mangos, grapes, and bananas we got off a local stand a block down from this spiffy supermarket. Nice to see old and new existing nearly side by side!

What can I say, even the best of plans can get way-laid. However, let me assure you, we did go to Lima and we did all that I promised!!!! From the time we landed until the time we left, music, food, and local culture filled every minute of every day we spent in Lima. We were a group possessed to see all and taste all! And let me tell you, the site is going to be absolutely fantastic (out soon)! The students captured the essence of black and Criollo Peruvano music and chronicled the unsung artists of an indigenous music form that has had little recognition beyond the borders of Peru. Our hope is that this web-documentary will help change that.

As for the food blog portion of the trip - let's say I will do my best to recreate, through photos and brief descriptions, many of the memorable meals we had. Believe me, there is some incredible food to be had in Lima. Its culinary scene is exploding, as incredible self-taught chefs and professionally trained ones master their craft and turn out the most delectable meals using local ingredients.

So here's a shot of one of our first meals--Sunday dinner at the home of a giving hostess and musician who warmly welcomed 60 plus folks into her home for an afternoon of great music, dancing, and of course, food! And, let's not forget to mention the pisco sours!!!!

Well...

Before I get into the food finds in Lima, let me tell you of a brief warning I received soon after arriving. "Plan on getting a little sick from the food in Lima, everyone does." And with that, Gabriel, the faculty leader for our DRTC project shared plain and simple rules that visitors to Peru need to follow in order to minimize (notice I wrote minimize) one's chances of getting ill. In short, he advised us not to drink the tap water (obvious), not to have too much of any one thing (chances of any one kind of bacteria getting one sick is lessened) and not to eat ceviche after 4 pm! Rather sensible but telling advice I thought as I listened on as he told me of the proven healing powers of Fruitti Flex 50, a local electrolyte drink sold at most pharmacies.

So here's a picture Frutti Flex for our blog! Lord knows there was dozens of bottles available in my room for all who came a calling!! Get the picture?

After searching the Internet for what I hoped was a true Peruvian-styled ceviche recipe, I put my culinary skills to use and invited a some Peruvian jazz musicans, a local restauranteur, and a few NYU Steinhardt colleagues for a tasting held at the home of some really supportive friends.

With pisco sours and Peruvian sounds flowing, we drank, danced, and critiqued the dish. Days later, following a slight "adjusting" of the recipe, some 30 DRTC student travelers gathered in a professional kitchen to try their own hands at making Peru's national dish. Here's a shot of what DRTC 2011 Peru came up with!

Peru's National Dish DRTC Style