Abstract: Peruvian cuisine is at the heart of the country’s identity. Looking back at two archaeological sites where humans lived thousands of years ago, we gain perspective on the diet of natives in Peru and how those signature foods still exist today. Now an international gastronomical hub, Peru has since taken global influences on its cuisine, yet its culinary roots have stayed consistent with its pre-Hispanic roots.
Peru's geography, with the Amazon rainforest in the north, the Andes in the east, and the Pacific coast on the west, provides unique and diverse grains, plants, wild game, livestock, and fish. Unsurprisingly, a rich gastronomic culture has taken root in Peru. Over the last 500 years, the country has faced significant international influence, the stories of which are imprinted in the country’s most famous and world-renowned dishes.
Native cuisine in pre-Hispanic Peru
Thousands of years before the arrival of Europeans in what we understand today as Peru, native people lived all over the country, domesticating and developing deep-rooted relationships with the land and its nutritional offerings. The study of two archaeological sites from pre-Hispanic Peru––Gramalote in the northern coast of Peru and Cerro de Gentil along the southern coast––shows insight into the diverse diet and cultural practices regarding cuisine for Peruvians in the thousands of years predating colonization.
Gramalote
The site of Gramalote tells the story of a fishing settlement in the north of Peru that existed for roughly 300 years, from 1500 to 1200 cal BC. The settlement is placed just off the Pacific coast, sitting on a bluff that overlooks the shore. They were surrounded by marshlands, vegetation, and a mixture of rocky and sandy beaches (Staller, 25). The conditions were perfect for a marine-focused community.
Consequently, the archaeological findings at the site of Gramalote indicates a strong diet of seafood. At the site, “More than twenty-one thousand fish remains comprised on thirty-two species were recovered.” (Staller, 29) The fish remains found belonged mostly to species of sharks, rays, drums, and croakers. The rich availability of seafood along the Peruvian coast is still famous to this day. Members of the Gramalote settlement relied heavily on this seafood, specifically small sharks and rays, for sustenance. Remains of other food staples, such as sea lion and domesticated grains also made up a large part of the diet at Gramalote.
At the same site, fragments of ceramic bottles revealed the use of chicha, or maiz beer, as an alcoholic beverage that was consumed regularly in Gramalote. Archaeologists say this beer was “common to rituals, rites, and often left as offerings at huacas or sacred places throughout the Andes.” (Staller, 47) Analyzing the use and role of alcohol in pre-Hispanic Peru introduces other roles food plays in the society and economy of settlements like Gramalote.
Cerro de Gentil
About 1000 years later along the southern coast of Peru, remains of the Paracas culture reveal another side of pre-Hispanic Peruvian cuisine. Coming just before the famous Nazca people of the same area, the Paracas archaeological site shows culturally complex uses for different food groups within societal classes. The Cerro de Gentil site tells the story of a sunken court, once used for Paracas culturally significant rituals and feasts. Among the remains are thousands of plant species, including beans, corn, guayaba, and yuca. There were also remains of llamas, guinea pigs, sea lions, and some dogs. The discovery of these animal remains indicates these were staple foods for the Paracas people. The guinea pig, or cuy, as it’s known in Peru, is one of the country’s most famous dishes even today. In pre-Hispanic Peru, and even after, the guinea pig was used for ritual and nutritional practices. The guinea pigs, similar to the chicha, were used as offerings to sacred places and the dead. There was also evidence of guinea pigs buried with the dead as an offering for the afterlife. The guinea pigs, alongside llamas and other animals, were raised and eaten as a staple food in the Paracas society, although the elite class had much more access to these meats. That being said, compared to the meat-heavy diet of the Spanish who would arrive just over a thousand years late, livestock consisted of a small portion of the Paracas diet. (Staller)
Caption: Chicha Morada is a famous drink in Peru. It can be made alcoholically or non-alcoholically.
Cuy and other Peruvian Cuisine today
Thousands of years later, in the year 2023, the pre-Hispanic food staples of the Andes people still remain in some part at the center of the internationally recognized Peruvian cuisine. The thousands of years that led to Peru’s gastronomical excellence are paved with the imposition of European, African, Asian cultures on the cuisine. The combination of these peoples in Peru finds common footing in the modern Peruvian cuisine, which has developed branches with deep roots in global cuisine, but ultimately staying loyal to staple foods and customs from its pre-Hispanic days.
The arrival of Spaniards in Peru radically changed cultural practices and staple foods in the region. A key example of this shift is the way Spaniards would refuse to eat guinea pig as a reflection of their attempts to erase indigenous customs. As part of this attempt, “Spaniards encouraged Native peoples to raise Eurasian animals, and by the second half of the sixteenth century some communities were required to provide chickens and pigs as part of their tribute requirements.” (deFrance) Spaniards would not eat cuy because they considered it as a sign of the Native Andean customs, something they were trying to erase. Spaniards in fact rebranded the guinea pig as a pet. The long-term ramifications of this cultural change was the suppression of guinea pig as a ritual food in public and the rise of subversive and private ritual uses of it. As Spaniards imposed Christianity on the native people, Andean artist depicted the famous Last Supper painting with a cuy as the main plate, subverting the notion that Andean food was inferior and reclaiming its symbol for religious sacrifice. At the same time, European artists depicted the guinea pig as a friendly and cute pet that is not considered food.
Today, public perceptions of the dish of the cuy might side more to the European mindset of seeing it as a non-food. However, guinea pigs are still raised, eaten, and sacrificed in Peru and abroad. The plate has even found a place among Peru’s high-end international cuisine. The rise of Peruvian cuisine brings with it key pre-Hispanic staples such as cuy, llama, alpaca, and even chicha! However, “The elevation of Peruvian cuisines to haute cuisine has made traditional dishes at many high-end restaurants unaffordable to the average Peruvian.” (Staller, 109) Ironically, the traditional dishes of Peru thrive today in spaces most Peruvians cannot afford. That being said, the infamous Peruvian cuisine no doubt maintains its roots by promoting their pre-Hispanic nutritional practices, albeit adapted for the modern, global culinary market.
The Last Supper as painted by Marcos Zapata in 1753. The painting is hanging in the central cathedral in Cuzco, Peru.
Works Cited:
Staller, J. E. (Ed.). (2020). Andean foodways : Pre-columbian, colonial, and contemporary food and culture. Springer International Publishing AG.
deFrance, S.D. Guinea Pigs in the Spanish Colonial Andes: Culinary and Ritual
Transformations. Int J Histor Archaeol 25, 116–143 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10761-020-00548-6
Images:
Comments