Cookbook Shelf: The Everything Peruvian Cookbook

Peruvian food is said to be so diverse that you can feast upon a different dish each day of the year. A new cookbook, The Everything Peruvian Cookbook, dedicated exclusively to Peru’s varied cuisine serves up 300 of the Andean nation’s most flavorful recipes, making it easy for you to embark upon your own year-long culinary adventure. And who better to curate the selections than Morena Cuadra and Morena Escardó, the mother-and-daughter team who founded the foodie blog, Peru Delights.

“The book is a culmination of many years of work together with my daughter, and it was written with much love, dedication, and great joy,” says Morena Cuadra. “We want American readers to learn about the variety of Peruvian dishes, the influences, flavors, and ingredients that it comprises.”

Organized into 17 chapters covering appetizers to vegetarian dishes and even cocktails, recipes are presented in a simple, easy-to-read format suitable for novices and more experienced cooks alike. Each recipe features a concise introduction with tips or historical tidbits and most recipes include a brief paragraph with variations or factoids on everything from seafood in ancient Peru to the correct spelling of ceviche.

Among the highlights of the book is a chapter on the evolution of Peruvian cuisine. Readers will discover that the Inca diet was, for the most part, vegan, except during religious celebrations. It was the Spanish who introduced the use of eggs and dairy in everyday cooking. The engaging culinary history lesson continues with the contributions of other cultures. The Arab wives of the Spanish conquistadors popularized empanadas and the classic Peruvian desserts, mazamorra and suspiro de Limeña. Africans brought into the country as slaves created anticuchos (spicy beef heart kabobs) and picarones, sweet potato donuts served in a clove and cinnamon syrup.

Perhaps better known among Peruvian food aficionados is the influence of Japanese and Chinese immigrants, whose culinary traditions gave rise to two of Peru’s most popular dishes, ceviche and lomo saltado.

“We hope our audience discovers a new world, gastronomically speaking,” Cuadra says. As Peruvian food continues to captivate global gastronomes with its enticing flavors and exotic mix of cultural influences, The Everything Peruvian Cookbook can turn your next cooking experience into a culinary odyssey.

Start your journey with Cuadra and Escardó’s recipe for Peruvian Rice with Shrimp.

Peruvian Rice with Shrimp

• 1/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 4 garlic cloves, chopped
• 4 tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and chopped
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 teaspoon oregano
• 1 cup white wine
• 2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 cups shrimp stock

Get the full recipe and ingredient list.