When making ceviche, I strive to use a local white fish from a fishmonger I trust. And it’s important to take the time to wash and clean the fish before prepping and cooking with it. The acid in the lime juice will cook the ceviche, but in order to prevent from making the dish too acidic, you only need to use a small amount. As you add the lime juice, stop before the level of the juice in the bowl covers the ceviche. This dish will work well with different hot peppers, for example, you can try using a jalapeño instead of red fresno.

Nico Vera is a Peruvian chef and Pisco mixologist based in San Francisco, California, where he promotes Peruvian food and culture through pop-up dinners and cocktail classes. You can find his recipes and calendar of events on his blog, Pisco Trail.

Although I don’t know exactly when aji amarillo was first combined with kion (ginger), sillao (soy sauce), beef, french fries, onions, and tomatoes in a wok, I know that the result is one of Peru’s comfort foods and most traditional of dishes, the Lomo Saltado or Chinese-Peruvian beef stir-fry.

Nico Vera is a Peruvian chef and Pisco mixologist based in San Francisco, California, where he promotes Peruvian food and culture through pop-up dinners and cocktail classes. You can find his recipes and calendar of events on his blog, Pisco Trail.

One of the most unique Afro-Peruvian desserts is Frejol Colado, or black bean pudding. It may look like chocolate, but make no mistake, this dessert is made from a
black bean purée that is slow cooked with milk and sugar, and infused with the flavors of anise and cloves, until you can serve it topped with toasted sesame seeds. The only word that can describe it is manjar, which can be roughly translated as sweet delicacy or nectar, that is unlike anything you’ve ever tasted.

Nico Vera is a Peruvian chef and Pisco mixologist based in San Francisco, California, where he promotes Peruvian food and culture through pop-up dinners and cocktail classes. You can find his recipes and calendar of events on his blog, Pisco Trail.

Pisco may be the oldest distilled spirit in the Americas, but it wasn’t until 1920 that the National Drink of Peru, the Pisco Sour, was born in Lima by mixing two parts Pisco, one part simple syrup, one part lime juice, and egg whites, shaken with ice, and served strained with drops of Angostura bitters.

Today, Pisco is in the midst of a renaissance due to its versatility as a brandy born from a royal ban with a terroir that is as unique as the land where it came from.

Nico Vera is a Peruvian chef and Pisco mixologist based in San Francisco, California, where he promotes Peruvian food and culture through pop-up dinners and cocktail classes. You can find his recipes and calendar of events on his blog, Pisco Trail.

Take the aji amarillo, smoky, with a slow-burning fire that lingers, make it into a paste and blend it with cooked and mashed purple potatoes, add some olive oil, salt and lime juice, and you’ll have a Causa. Likely named after the Quechua word kausay, meaning sustenance or energy, causa is typically served in a casserole with a tuna salad filling or as small timbales topped with savory seafood. This Peruvian potato salad is creamy, cool, spicy, and nourishing, all at once, and a perfect dish to honor the earthiness of the potato, one of Peru’s gifts to the world.

Nico Vera is a Peruvian chef and Pisco mixologist based in San Francisco, California, where he promotes Peruvian food and culture through pop-up dinners and cocktail classes. You can find his recipes and calendar of events on his blog, Pisco Trail.