The Guinea Pig, an ancestral delicacy

Remember that before the Spaniards arrival the majority of the people from the Andes have their own animals to eat.

For example in Peru, there were no cow, no lamb, no pork, no chicken, but they had fish, sea food in the Coast and on the highlands; they had ducks, camelids and the guinea pig…yummi!

This cute and tasty mammal has been used as main dish in different areas of Peru. Most of the people around the world see it as a cute pet, but for Peru is a delicious appetizer or main dish.

They to prepare it id deep fried, called in Peru, Cuy chactado, in the process the meat of the animal has been died for near 3 hours before proceed to cook it. It is seasoned with the paste of white corn, garlic, cumin and pepper which has been grounded using stones, passed through the sieved cornmeal. The oil is then heated and the meat is fried and once golden on both sides it is placed on paper to absorb the excess oil.

For many tourist try this exotic food is really a challenge, especially for its presentation; on your main dish you see the feet, hands and head with all the teeth looking at you when you are eating it. But that is the adventure of traveling right?… and actually they soon realized that even is the look is not the best the taste is awesome.

What’s more eat this animal has a Great nutritional value and the diverse benefits that it contains

against diabetes, cancer and other health problems. It contains protein and high biological value (21%), and is also very low in fat (7%).

In addition, it has a large amount of collagen, vitamins and minerals, as well as a high presence of

essential fatty acids for humans such as AA (arachidonic) and DHA (docosahexaenoic). Both substances help the development of neurons and cell membranes, which are important for the brain development of children up to 5 years. ( source http://diariocorreo.pe/gastronomia/conoce-los- beneficios-de- comer-cuy-para- prev-29174/).

Amazing !

So next time you travel to Peru try our Cuy chactado, you can find easily in many restaurants in the

highlands (Cuzco and Arequipa) and also in Lima.