Bolivian food is one of Latin America’s most hearty cuisines. It’s full of herbs and spices, fresh produce, and unique recipes from different altitudes.
Over the centuries, Spanish and European influence on native indigenous foods has created an intriguing cuisine, packed with textures and flavor. It’s very much a hidden gem of Latin American food.
So let’s take a closer look at nineteen of Bolivia’s most beloved foods, as we explore their tastes and textures under the expert guidance of a native Bolivian foodie.
Bolivian Foods To Try
Bolivia is a large landlocked country in South America that has a relatively small population of only around 10 million people.
Bolivia may not have access to the ocean, but its geography is impressive anyway. It stretches from the dry and cold Andes mountains in the west to the humid and hot Amazon rain forest in the east.
Bolivia was colonized by Spain just like most of their South American neighbors, yet still today almost 50% of the nation’s population is indigenous.
Bolivian cuisine combines native foods with ingredients long ago introduced by Spain and results in a delicious celebration of food.
1. Salteñas
Salteñas are the quintessential Bolivian brunch or late morning breakfast, regardless of which part of the country you visit. You cannot say you have experienced Bolivian cuisine if you have never eaten a salteña.
A salteña is a pocket of slightly sweetened dough stuffed with a hearty stew of tender meat, sliced onion, cubed potato, peas, and sometimes olives and even a piece of hard-boiled egg.
It is baked in the oven until the braid over the top of the pocket is a burnished black.
Salteñas can be ordered as either sweet chicken, sweet beef, spicy chicken, or spicy beef. More recently some vendors have started offering a vegetarian option as well.
What varies by region and by vendor is the dough of the salteña. Some regions make their crusts light and flaky, others make it whole wheat, and yet others make it thick and dense.
2. Llajwa
Llajwa (also sometimes spelled llajua) is an important condiment in Bolivian dining whether you’re eating a home-cooked meal, street food, or dining in a restaurant.
This spicy sauce compliments meats, yucca, and potatoes. It is also often added as a garnish in soups.
It is made fresh daily in kitchens all over. Every family has a little twist to make theirs unique but in its most traditional form, it has three main components: tomato, locoto, and quirquiña.
The tomatoes for this salsa are typically peeled and seeded. The locoto is a spicy pepper native to Bolivia, and it is usually seeded.
The quirquiña is an herb native to the western region of the country, and only its leaves are used for this salsa. Quirquiña has a distinct taste; its flavor profile is sort of peppery, bitter, and slightly reminiscent of cilantro.
Before blenders became a common kitchen appliance found in homes, llajwa was prepared by crushing the ingredients between two large stones called a batán. The batán lends a unique flavor to the llajwa but is used less and less in modern times.
You can also find llajwa in supermarkets sold ready-made, though these varieties are often missing the fresh flavor you get from the homemade one.
Llajwa hails from the Andes region and when it became integrated with Bolivian kitchens nationwide, the quirquiña wasn’t favored by many eastern Bolivians.
This means if you are eating llajwa prepared in a home by a family whose origins are from eastern Bolivia, it probably does not have the quirquiña, and they may call it ají instead of llajwa.
3. Sopa de Maní
Sopa de maní (peanut soup) is a favorite nationwide, and a source of pride for Bolivians because the dish has begun to gain international recognition.
It is very unique, and it beautifully showcases the peanut, which is actually native to Bolivia.
This soup is a textured, creamy yet hearty beef broth made from finely ground raw peanuts, diced tomato, diced onion, peas, cumin, and oregano.
It is served over a cut of calf or beef ribs with cubed boiled potatoes and topped with little crispy fries. This soup will bring the flavor of peanut to your life in an amazing new way.
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Reblogged this on Fan of Pequeña Sudamérica and commented:
The landlocked country of west-central South America, bordered to the north and east by Brazil, to the southeast by Paraguay, to the south by Argentina, to the southwest and west by Chile, and to the northwest by Peru, Bolivia does not only shares Lake Titicaca, the second largest lake in South America (after Lake Maracaibo), with Peru, it also wants to enjoy the richness of those South American countries their food culture.