Our cook and host for the day was Imelda and she was supported by Nancy and Maritza.
The ladies had gone to a great deal of trouble to entertain us.
It was a simple yet delicious lunch with some of the ladies of Pedregal Alto, and their children and dogs. It was organised by Maritza, Nancy and Imelda. Imelda supplied all the food and it arrived by taxi in a huge plastic carry bag.
Marion, Nancy, Imelda and Maritza in the new community centre kitchen.The two dishes were Papa a la Huancaina (wah-kai-eena) and Huacatay (wah-car-tie).
Papa a la Huancaina is a Peruvian salad of boiled yellow potatoes in a spicy, creamy sauce called Huancaina sauce. It is typically served over lettuce leaves and garnished with black olives, white corn kernels and hard boiled egg quarters. The sauce is made of fresh white cheese, vegetable oil, yellow Peruvian pepper, evaporated milk and salt mixed in a blender. Some recipes call for garlic, onion and crushed saltines. This salad is served cold, as a starter.
The second, Huacatay, I had not tasted before and it was superb. Pan cooked chicken pieces covered in a green Huacatay salsa. This sauce is a blend of green Huacatay leaves, small onions, garlic, peanuts, yellow pepper, egg, black olives and local cheese. Huacatay is not too far removed from our mint in both flavour and colour.
This really was the last time that we would walk away from the people of Pedregal Alto and they waved us goodbye as we trudged down the hill to catch a motor taxi home. We promised them that we would visit sometime in the future but as they say ‘cuando no se’ – don’t know when.
We both wonder how different the area will be if we do come back to visit in a few years time. More than likely the growth areas would have climbed up the surrounding valleys.
