Encyclopedia of World Food Cultures entry: Colombian Cuisine

By Richard Foss

OVERVIEW

Among the cuisines of South America, Colombia is second only

to Peru for combining the culinary traditions of the native

populations with those of the Europeans who arrived in the

1500’s. The country’s long coastline and historic trade routes

have also fostered a strong Afro-Caribbean influence. That

hybridization, along with the varied produce of a country with

several distinct climactic regions, makes Colombian cuisine

particularly interesting to study.

The volcanic Andes mountains divide into three roughly

parallel ranges as they enter Colombia, so that broad plateaus

and valleys of high fertility occupy the center of the country.

Those valleys, called the tierra templada, comprise only six

percent of the land area but support over a quarter of the

country’s population. Along the Pacific coast are the world’s

rainiest tropical jungles, a sparsely populated area broken up by

slow-moving rivers. The Caribbean coast is more dry and

hospitable, and includes relatively temperate zones, vast marshy

lowlands, and a desert peninsula. The Andean foothills extend to

this area, and the majority of the country’s population is in

this region where the central highlands slope to the Caribbean.

Colombia also has sovereignty over a Caribbean archipelago that

has an Anglo-African culture with no Spanish roots.

The natural flora of most of the country is thick jungle

that provided abundant fruit and game to hunter-gatherers, and

there are still tribes that live the same way as their Neolithic

ancestors. The principal pre-Conquest tribes of Colombia were the

Tairona (or Tayrona) along the Caribbean coast and the Muisca in

the highlands to the South. Both Muisca and Tairona developed

urban centers, and a Spanish chronicler of 1538 noted extensive

plantings of potatoes, maize, and cassava in the highlands. The

natives also raised beans, chili peppers, arracacha and malanga

roots, and squashes. The coastal Tairona ate seafood, tortoises,

manatee, tapir, and iguanas and raised cassava. Their diet

included fruits such as tamarillo, papaya, guava, guanabana

(soursop), and passion fruit, but whether these were actively

cultivated before the arrival of Europeans is open to question.

Lake and river fish were caught, insects, including snails and

ant queens, were eaten, and they may have raised animals to

supplement the birds and game that they hunted. There was some

commercial activity in food and spices; coastal Taironas

developed a salt trade with the interior tribes, though not with

the Muisca, who had their own mines in the highlands.

About the only cooked item in modern Colombian cuisine that

we can be certain is the same as a Mesoamerican dish is the

arepa. This corn pancake probably gets its name from a word for

corn in the Chibcha language, which was spoken by the Muisca and

other tribes. (It is hard to tell because speaking Chibcha was

illegal from 1770 until 1991.) In its most basic form an arepa

is a thick fried cake made of ground corn, water, and salt, but

modern arepas are often stuffed with cheese or topped with salad.

A relative of the arepa, called the casabe and made from cassava

root, is native to the area around the Colombian/Venezuelan

border. Though it is now associated with Venezuela, it was

probably eaten all along the south Caribbean seaboard.

The natives also brewed a kind of corn beer, and in the

highlands made both alcoholic and non-alcoholic versions of

chicha, a beverage incorporating corn and fruit. The latter caught

on with the Spanish, who added citrus; in 1627, when Fray Pedro

Simon first recorded it, he noted that the Spanish had “made it

cleaner, more curious and gifted.”

The Colonial era brought Spanish techniques and ingredients

that became integral to Colombian cuisine. The tierra templada of

Colombia was the only part of northern South America suited to

large-scale cattle ranching, and the importance of this industry

led to the establishment of the Viceroyalty of New Granada,

centered at Santa Fe de Bogotá, in 1739. The administrators in

Bogotá were primarily from the Spanish regions of Andalusia,

Aragon, and Valencia, and they brought a taste for paella and

blood pudding that survives to this day. Though they initially

tried to keep their culture and cuisine as Spanish as possible,

in time native foods became part of their diet and a cuisine

called criolla was born. This used Spanish foods such as pork,

beef, chicken, and cheese along with imports from other parts of

the Empire such as plantains, rice, carrots, and sweet potatoes.

Bogota’s rival for cultural precedence was Cartagena, the

gateway to the Caribbean, which had the advantage of being the

port of call for the Spanish galleons and the disadvantage of

frequent raids by pirates and enemy forces. Cartagena developed a

distinctive seafood-heavy cuisine that uses the locally popular

sabalo fish as well as shrimp, sea bream, carp, and the tiny local

oysters. Among the signatures of Cartagena-style food is

abundant use of cocoanut milk and rice. Plantains, originally

imported by Portuguese missionaries from Southeast Asia, are

eaten in many ways, including the delightfully named “kitten’s

head,” in which they are baked and mashed with fried pork and

pork skin.

The exceptional example of Afro-Caribbean cuisine in

Colombia is the Raizal cuisine of the San Andres and Providencia

islands, which are owned by Colombia even though they are far

closer to Nicaragua. The typical dish here is rondon, consisting

of fish, sea snails, breadfruit, and yucca root boiled in

cocoanut milk.

VIGNETTE

Santiago and Carolina live in a high-rise building on the

edge of Bogota, and wake up every workday at 6 AM when the radio

plays the national anthem. Like most of the inhabitants (who

refer to themselves as Santafereñas), they enjoy a breakfast of

changua, soup made from eggs poached in milk with scallions,

cilantro, and bread. This they wash down with locally grown

coffee, strong and black. They feed their children Alvaro,

Ernesto, and Maria the same breakfast before sending them to

school, though instead of coffee, the children drink fruit juice.

It isn’t necessary to pack a lunch for them, because like many

schools there is a lunchroom that serves healthy meals. The

children would rather run to a nearby stand that sells perro

caliente Colombiano – the Colombian hot dogs that are topped with

cole slaw, pineapple, ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, and potato

chips – but Carolina does not approve of junk food.

Santiago drives to his job in the accounting department for

a coffee broker while Carolina takes a bus to the hospital where

she is an administrator. Her mother is old-fashioned and would

prefer that she stay at home, but like almost half the women in

the country, she prefers to work. She doesn’t expect to rise to

executive level, or to join the men who are at that level for

social occasions, but she takes her morning snack, known as a

medias nueves, with coworkers at a similar level in the hierarchy.

The medias nueves is likely to be a roll with coffee or a glass

of aguapanela, a drink made from sugar cane and water.

Santiago and Carolina have their main meal of the day around

one in the afternoon, both dining with their coworkers. Since

Carolina works for a hospital, her place of business does not

close, but like most of Colombia, Santiago’s department closes

for lunch. She eats at the hospital’s canteen, he dines at a fine

restaurant, but both have similar meals; they start with a bowl

of sancocho, meat or fish stewed with yucca, plantain, and

vegetables. The second course, called el seco or the dry dish, is

usually a grilled fish or meat, and it is followed by a glass of

juice and coffee. After lunch, anyone who can fit it into their

schedule takes a brief nap, the siesta, awakening refreshed by 3

PM to go back to work.

Both Santiago and Carolina are home by 7 PM and help the

children with their homework while drinking glasses of passion

fruit or mango juice. Carolina doesn’t start to make dinner

until after 8 – they won’t be eating until 10 PM. When they do,

it is a light meal; arepas or empanadas, fried green plantains

called patacones, and a small portion of the soup called ajiaco,

made with chicken, several kinds of potatoes, and the aromatic

herb called guasca. Santiago prefers his patacones with a

spoonful of aji picante, the vinegary hot sauce made with habañero

peppers, but the rest of the family likes them plain or with a

dusting of cheese. The adults have coffee; the children hot

chocolate, and after dinner Santiago enjoys a glass of rum mixed

with water, lime, sugar, and cinnamon.

On weekends the family invites friends over for an afternoon

meal of empanadas, savory little corn-flour turnovers, followed

by parrilada, the traditional barbecued mixed grill. This is served

with grilled or boiled corn on the cob, yuca or potatoes, and

spicy green garlic sauce. Afterward, while the children play, the

adults enjoy glasses of fermented chicha, the corn-based fruit

punch that turns mildly alcoholic after a night in the

refrigerator. They have to drink it all that day, since it turns

sour quickly, but the sweet, fruity taste is so enjoyable that

there is rarely any left.

When Santiago and Carolina can get an aunt to watch their

children, they enjoy going out to dine, usually at restaurants

featuring food from Colombia rather than other parts of the

world. They enjoy the food of their own country, and don’t see a

reason to go beyond its culinary borders.

MAJOR FOODSTUFFS

Though the climate and altitude variations in Colombia are

extreme, an extensive road system has made it so that produce

from all areas of the country is available in the cities. This

has been true even during period of insurgency and civil unrest;

it was dangerous for the drivers and transport workers, but fresh

ocean fish was available in the highlands and beef went from the

plateaus to the lowlands.

This is especially impressive because Colombia’s largest

crops, bananas and coffee, are both grown more for export than

local consumption. Colombians prefer green plantains to the

yellow bananas that are popular overseas, and though they are

voracious coffee drinkers, the greater part of the crop is grown

with overseas sale in mind. In fact, though the coffee business

employs fully one-fourth of the country’s agricultural labor and

is the country’s largest cash crop, the coffee served in cafes in

Colombia is often not very good, since the best beans are

exported. Lower value beans stay at home and are often over-

roasted.

Colombia’s lowlands produce sugar cane for both export and

local consumption, but the sugar that stays in the country is not

mixed into coffee – most Colombians drink theirs black and

bitter. The sugar is refined into panela, a solid mass of

fructose and sucrose sugars that is used in drinks and desserts,

and the leftover molasses is made into local rum and aguardiente.

Other major lowland crops are rice, plantain, cassava, cocoa

beans, tobacco, and fruit for both export and local consumption.

The most popular in Colombia are cocoanut, guava, passionfruit,

orange, guanabana (soursop), mamey, mango, and varieties of

guava, though starfruit, tamarillo, lime, cherimoya, and others are

eaten widely or made into juice drinks. Avocado is widely grown

and used in soups and beverages, and tomatoes are a minor crop.

As the land rises from the Caribbean coast into the

foothills of the Andes, family farms of corn, beans, yuca, and

squashes and cattle ranches take over. Colombia exports beef and

some cheese, but the country makes few aged cheeses; instead,

there are soft farmer’s cheeses, cottage cheese, and the crumbly,

slightly acidic queso fresco. Milk is drunk by both adults and

children, usually mixed with juices or cinnamon and other spices.

In the highlands, the staple is the potato – or rather, many

different varieties of potatoes, each suited to different

climates, altitudes, and purposes. Potatoes in Colombia come in

colors from almost pure white and yellow to red and deep purple,

and vary in size from tiny spheres to large and irregular.

Fish, mussels, shrimp, and lobster from both the Caribbean

and Pacific coasts are popular throughout the country, and the

mojarra (tilapia) is offered in almost every restaurant. The tuna

fishery on the west coast has long been important, but concerns

about sustainability have led to restrictions and decline.

Freshwater fish from the tributaries of the Amazon are also

widely available. There are over 800 known species of freshwater

fish in Colombia, but the most popular is catfish, which

sometimes reach colossal size. The bocachico fish used to be eaten

widely, but the construction of a dam almost wiped out the

species, causing concern about how ongoing water projects affect

the sustainability of freshwater fisheries.

Pigs and chickens are raised and eaten everywhere, and in

the mountains barbecued cuy, a breed of guinea pig, is regarded

as a delicacy. Wild tapir are eaten by natives of the Amazon but

are not raised commercially, and their numbers have been falling

due to over-hunting.

Colombian cuisine is not highly spiced as a rule, though

chili peppers and garlic are used in moderation in many dishes.

The most distinctive native Colombian herb is guasca, which is

slightly similar to basil. Other commonly used spices are

cilantro, chives, cumin, onion, and achiote (annato seed).

COOKING

Colombian cuisine is simple, and Colombian kitchens are

comparatively free of the special gadgetry that is popular in

many countries. Daily meals are rich in soups, and most kitchens

will have many well-used large pots. In rural areas and in old-

fashioned families, or among gourmets who have embraced

traditional ideas, cooks will use “Tolima” clay pots of the type

made by the Chamba people of the Magdalena river basin. This

pearl-gray cookware has become a prestige item and is often

displayed where guests may see it. Like all well-made clay

cookware, it is naturally non-stick, holds heat, and heats food

evenly. Since Chamba cookware has been discovered by outsiders

and praised by modern cooking gurus such as Paula Wolfert in her

book “Clay Pot Cooking,” the price of the best clay pots has

risen to the point where many Colombians can’t afford them.

Many Colombians believe that even soups and other items that

never touch a fire will taste better when cooked over wood, so

woodstoves are popular even where gas and electricity are

available. Until the early 1990’s, when tax laws designed to keep

out imported items changed, electric kitchen appliances were very

expensive. Their popularity has grown slowly but steadily, and

one particular item has taken off – the electric arepa maker.

Traditionalists scoff at these contraptions, which are similar to

waffle irons, and claim superior flavor for old-fashioned arepas

made in a cast iron skillet or using a special perforated grill

that is set on a wood fire.

There will be a variety of skillets in any household,

including a very large one that is used for fritanga, fried

assorted meats. Most homes will also have an outdoor grill for

making parrillada, grilled meats. Large households may have a

firepit with a spit or a vertical roasting rack for this purpose,

TYPICAL MEALS

Though there are regional differences between the Afro-

Caribbean influenced northeast and the Andean influenced

Southwest, some things about any Colombian meal are universal:

there will be soup, there will be corn or rice, and fruit or

fruit juice will make an appearance somewhere. This is not a

society with a profound difference between the meals of rich and

poor; the wealthy will have better quality ingredients, eaten

from nicer dishes and in more formal circumstances, but except

among the very poorest or the tribes who are subsistence farmers

or hunter-gatherers, the general pattern will be the same.

Poor people live like their remote ancestors on a diet of

beans and rice supplemented with vegetables, small amounts of

meat, and the fruit that grows wild and abundant in the jungles.

The national bean of Colombia is the cargamanto, a large red bean

with white flecks, which nutritious and high in protein. Kidney,

pinto, or cranberry beans can substitute for cargamentos, as in

this recipe for traditional Sopa de Frijoles Canarios:

Ingredients

(6-8 Servings)

1 pound canary beans soaked overnight

2 pounds pork ribs, cut into pieces

14 cups water

2 cups grated carrots

½ tablespoon ground cumin

1 garlic clove

¼ cup onion, chopped

¼ cup red bell pepper, chopped

¼ cup green pepper, chopped

1 scallion, chopped

½ tablespoon sazon preperado with saffron

1 large potato, peeled and diced

1 chicken bouillon tablet

Salt and pepper

½ cup chopped cilantro

Directions

1. In a food processor, add garlic, onion, red bell pepper, green

pepper and scallion.

2. In a large pot over medium heat, add the beans, water,

processed vegetables, chicken bouillon, carrots and pork ribs.

Slightly cover and simmer for 1 ½ hour.

3. Add the ground cumin, sazon preparado, cilantro and potatoes.

Simmer for 30 to 40 minutes more, or until the beans are tender.

4. Season with salt and pepper. Serve with white rice and hot

sauce on the side.

Note: Sazon preparado is a popular seasoning mix throughout the

Caribbean. Goya brand is most popular in Colombia, but contains

more MSG than many other versions.

The red bean is not the only one used in Colombia; black beans

are fried and served with rice in a style similar to the Cuban

dish “Christians and Moors,” and white canary beans are boiled

with onions and served as a side dish or used in soups.

Even simple meals may begin with appetizers of empanadas.

Though savory turnovers called empanadas are found from Mexico

all the way to Argentina, Colombian empanadas are different.

First, they are usually fried rather than baked, and second, they

are made with a mixture of corn and wheat flour. Colombian

empanadas are usually filled with a mixture of minced chicken and

onion, but may also be filled with beef or cheese. In the

Caribbean region you might also have carimañolas, yuca fritters

stuffed with meat or cheese and served with garlicky hot sauce.

Plantains feature throughout Colombian meals and may be served

as an appetizer, either cut into pieces and fried, sliced

lengthwise and baked with cinnamon, or mashed, salted and fried

(called patacones).

The first main course is almost always soup, of which there is

a great variety. The most popular nationwide is sancocho,

originally from the Tolima region. The iconic version is made

with a whole disjointed hen, sliced green plantains, yucca, corn,

and potatoes. It is seasoned with salt, black pepper, cilantro,

and a seasoning paste called aliños that is made from green and

red bell pepper, onion, scallions, cumin, garlic, and saffron.

Aliños is used as a soup base throughout Colombia, and every

family has their own recipe.

There are other bases as well, such as mazamorra, ground corn

soaked in fern ash or lye (similar to American hominy grits, and

also known as peto). This features in mazamorra chiquita, a soup

made of beef ribs, tripe, onions, green peas, lima beans,

carrots, several types of potatoes, garlic, pepper and cumin.

The Caribbean coast is home to the spiciest food in

Colombia, which in practice often means the soups contain a

larger amount of aliños. On both the long Caribbean coastline and

the shorter and sparsely populated Pacific coast, soups with

cocoanut milk, rice, and fish are popular. The most exceptional

example of this type of soup is from the San Andres and

Providencia Islands, which are owned by Colombia but are actually

far closer to Honduras. The people and cuisine here are called

Raizal, and their signature dish is rondon, made from fish, sea

snails, breadfruit, yuca, and plantain simmered in cocoanut milk.

In a Colombian meal, following the soup is the seco, the dry

dish. In coastal regions this will usually be fried or grilled

seafood with cocoanut fried rice on the side. Inland, roasted

chicken or beef are extremely popular. As with coffee, much of

the best Colombian beef is exported, but the cuisine is rich in

techniques for making the most of tougher cuts.

A specialty of Bogota is sobrebarriga, flank steak simmered in

beer until it is extremely tender, then rolled in breadcrumbs and

baked. It is then served half-submerged in the beer broth, a

steak served in soup.

Sobrebarriga Bogota Recipe

Ingredients:

2 lbs. flank steak, fat trimmed

2 medium tomatoes, chopped

1 white onion, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

1 Tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 Tablespoon prepared mustard

1 Tablespoon lime juice

1 bottle dark beer

Beef stock or water

1 cup breadcrumbs

2 Tablespoons melted butter

Preparing the Roll (Prep time: 15 minutes. Marinating Time: 24 hours)

1. Lay out your flank steak on a cutting board and trim off

excess fat.

2. In a bowl mix together tomatoes, onion, carrot, garlic,

Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and lime juice.

3. Spread the mixture out onto the steak and roll along the

grain so that when you slice it will be cutting across the

grain.

4. Secure the steak with butcher's twine. The easiest way is to

tie a slip knot once every couple of inches.

5. Place the steak in a large freezer bag, pour over any

filling that has leaked out, and allow to sit in the

refrigerator for at least a day.

Cooking the Steak (Cooking time: 2 hours 15 minutes)

1. Place your steak in a large saucepan and cover with beer.

Fill the pot with enough beef stock or water to fully

submerge the steak.

2. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to low and allow to

simmer for 2 hours.

3. Preheat your broiler 15 minutes before steak is ready.

4. Pull steak out of the cooking liquid and increase heat to

reduce to a sauce while you broil steak.

5. Place the steak on a cooking sheet and drizzle melted butter

over the top of the steak, then sprinkle with breadcrumbs.

Place under the broiler under the breadcrumbs have browned.

About 10 minutes.

6. Remove from the broiler, remove twine, allow to sit for 10

minutes, and slice across the grain.

7. Skim any particles from the top of the cooking liquid and

pour into a gravy bowl.

Among the non-traditional but popular methods of cooking beef

are marinades using Coca-Cola; the citric acid helps tenderize

meat and also adds a touch of sweetness. Beef in Colombia is

usually sliced very thin and served medium-well – a Colombian

steak covers a plate but is still a modest portion compared to an

English or American portion of roast beef or prime rib.

The quintessential celebration dinner is parrilada, a mixed

grill that might be composed of beef, pork, tripe, morcilla (a

blood sausage similar to boudin), sweet pork longaniza sausage,

chorizo sausage heavily flavored with coriander, and other meat,

served with corn and potatoes. If this same assemblage of meat is

served fried instead of barbecued, it is called fritanga. By any

name, it is an imposing spread that makes as siesta afterward

seem like a wonderful idea.

Another dish with an impressive variety of meats is bandeja

paisa, a combination of meats and vegetables from the region

around Medellin in the Northwest. This is a mixed grill

distinguished by its accompaniments – the thinly sliced steak,

pork skin with attached meat, and sausage are always accompanied

by rice, beans, avocado, sweet fried plantains, arepas, and a

fried egg.

To finish, Colombians enjoy simple desserts that are often

based on milk, cocoanut milk, or fruits. Among baked sweets is

flan (custard), either plain or mixed with guava, pear, or other

fruits. Fruit desserts include preserved uchuva (a type of

gooseberry), tree-tomato juice, chopped fruit mixed in soda or

orange juice, and fruit stuffed crepes. Finally, there are simple

sweet breads topped with arequipe caramel (the local version of

dulce de leche), or ice cream.

An unusual after-dinner sweet is candied hormigas, the

queens of the world’s largest species of ant. While the Guane

Indians eat these ants fried as a savory, city dwellers prefer

them enrobed in caramel or chocolate.

To drink, Colombians of all ages enjoy fruit juices either

straight or mixed with milk, or aguapanela, sugar cane juice mixed

with water. The other homemade soft drink is chicha morada, the

traditional Andean fruit punch with corn and cinnamon. Chicha is

usually homemade, but despite problems with a short shelf life,

bottled versions have entered the market in the last decade.

Colombians also enjoy sweet carbonated sodas, the most popular of

which, Cola-Champaña, has been made by the Postobón company since

1904. Other popular bottled soft drinks are Pony Malta, a sweet

non-alcoholic beer, and Kola Roman, a very sweet fruity drink

popular in the Caribbean region. Colombiana, a tart soda made

with tamarind, is also popular along the coast.

In the mornings or on cool evenings, Colombians enjoy hot

chocolate. In Bogotá this frequently has cheese melted into it

and is called santafereño.

Among alcoholic drinks, the alcoholic version of Chicha is

popular but there are no commercial producers due to the very

short shelf life of the alcoholic version. Alcoholic chicha is

drinkable for only about a week after it has finished fermenting

– after that it turns very sharp and sour. Multiple attempts have

been made to stabilize and commercialize chicha, but as of this

writing none have been successful.

As might be expected in a hot country, beer is popular, with

light lagers dominating the market. Rum drinks are popular,

especially those that use local fruits, but it is also drunk with

Coca-cola or on the rocks. The other popular strong drink is

aguardiente, a strongly flavored variant of rum that often

contains anise. There is some regional market segmentation, with

aguardiente most popular inland and rum drunk mainly along the

coast.

Finally, there is coffee, the country’s national beverage

that is drunk from morning to night by almost every adult. As

might be expected, alcoholic coffee drinks involving rum or

aguardiente and milk or cream are very popular as a nightcap.

DINING OUT

While Colombians enjoy dining out, they are not generally

adventurous, and the overwhelming majority of restaurants serve

regional Colombian cuisine. The exception is at the high end,

where the most expensive places boast their fidelity to

traditional Spanish cuisine. In the last decade other European

cuisines have achieved a foothold in major cities, but they are

still struggling to find a market beyond business dinners and the

most sophisticated younger people.

Restaurants are patronized at all times of day, with cafes

specializing in breakfast called desayunerias opening very early.

The slang word for restaurants serving home-style food is

corrientazo, literally meaning a place to get energy. Whether a

simple corrientazo or a top-notch restaurant, the evening pattern

is similar – they open for dinner at about 7 PM, but the rush

begins around 9, and people will still be dining until almost

midnight. Tourists are often amazed that they can be seated in

the best places at 7 or 8, and don’t realize that by local

standards that is ridiculously early. Tourists also stand out

because they are excessively casual; at all but the most modest

restaurants, people are expected to dress up for dinner.

In most restaurants, as at Colombian homes, the oldest

person will always be served first, and it is expected that even

finger-friendly items like empanadas will be eaten with a knife

and fork.

SPECIAL MEALS

As is the case throughout Central America, special versions

of tamales appear at Christmas and Easter. One is the tamale

Tolimense style, made with beef, pork, chicken, and vegetables

with ground corn, boiled or steamed in cornhusk casings. Fruit

and dessert tamales are also made. Colombian tamales are usually

more mild that Mexican versions, but otherwise similar, and are

almost always accompanied by hot chocolate.

Many Christmas pastry treats are deep-fried instead of

baked. These include cheese fritters called buñuelos and bolillas,

fried round doughnuts that are served with chocolate or coffee.

Hojuelas, flat fried cookies topped with powdered sugar, are

almost identical to the Polish Christmas cookie called kruschicki,

though it is hard to establish a connection between the two

seasonal treats.

Other seasonal treats are natilla, a coconut milk custard that

is sometimes fortified with rum or aguardiente, and champus, a

drink similar to chicha but with chunks of fruit, extra spices,

and orange leaves added.

DIET AND HEALTH

The most famous living Colombian artist, Fernando Botero,

famously portrays his countrymen as pudgy sensualists who are

obsessed with food. His sometimes cruel, sometimes sympathetic

portraits are an exaggeration of a sad fact; a 1999 study showed

that over 40% of the country’s citizens are obese, and that

figure may be rising. It is ironic that a government that has

historically focused on getting its rural and native citizens

enough to eat now must change its focus to convincing them to

switch to healthier foods. The popularity of sugary sodas and a

diet heavy in meat, cocoanut milk, and cream, plus the increasing

use of motor vehicles instead of walking for everyday tasks, is

probably to blame. Unfortunately, Colombians who can afford it

often get weight loss surgery rather than change their diets, and

more of these operations are performed there than anywhere else

in South America.

When Colombians do fall ill, traditional practices that are

based on a diet of scarcity are actually counterproductive.

Traditional ideas of health prescribe aguapanela, the mix of

sugarcane and water, for almost any illness, and especially in

diabetic people this can make things much worse. Colombians also

ascribe characteristics of hot and cold to many foods, and give

beef broth the kind of reverence accorded to chicken soup in

Eastern European cultures.

There is a specific regimen called the dieta that mothers are

supposed to observe for 40 days after giving birth. Besides never

being exposed to direct sun, she is supposed to eat sancocho and

hot chocolate; at the end of this period, she takes a bath in

herbs before going outside and resuming normal life. If the baby

becomes sick at any time, putting slices of cucumber on its head

is supposed to help protect it from sinus infection.

The influence of Colombian traditional healers has been

growing, and the commercialization of their remedies based on

Amazonian plants have been a boon for people who want to preserve

jungle regions.

Colombian culture is very macho, and there are many recipes

for aphrodisiacs. Some of these involve eating insects such as

leafcutter ant queens, a logical choice for someone obsessed with

fertility since ant queens are literally egg machines. Since

leafcutter ant queens are high in protein and have low levels of

saturated fat, this at least does no harm, unlike more toxic

alternatives.

FURTHER READING

The Cuisine of Cartagena de Indias: Legacy of Spanish Cooking in

Colombia, by Karpf, Hellen (Gamma 2001)

The Taste of Colombia (El Sabor de Colombia) available in English

or Spanish editions (Villegas)

http://www.mycolombianrecipes.com

Richard Foss

Richard Foss is a journalist, author, and educator based in Los

Angeles who is on the board of the Culinary Historians of

Southern California.