Culture, regional pride, and culinary choices are deeply connected, and a given dish can tell us a lot about the history of any region and culture. Just as pizza, barbecue, and frybread connects New Yorkers, Chicagoans, various Southern states, and Native Americans to their culture and their history, respectively, the anticucho serves the same purpose for Peruvians. Examining this dish, which predominantly consists of marinated skewered beef hearts, its origins and evolution, its street food status, and its regional diversity will reveal much about Peru’s rich multi-cultural and culinary heritage.
Origins and Evolution
The anticucho has its roots in the Incan empire, but the modern dish is a result of an influx of different peoples into Peru. The Quechuan word antikuchu, a possible origin for the name of the dish, likely refers to a different recipe altogether, although scholars dispute this.[1] However, Spanish Conquistadors observed Andeans grilling in the style of the modern anticucho. The Spanish also introduced ingredients from the old world and slaves to the new world. Although the arrival of Chinese laborers brought in more ingredients and methods, It is within the Afro-Peruvian culture that the true origins of the anticucho lie.[2]
The anticucho began as a food for slaves. Spanish plantation owners, hacendados, in the colonial period, often butchered cows, beef being their protein of choice. They considered the viscera of the cattle, the offal, inedible garbage and fed it to the slaves.[3] The slaves adapted Andean ingredients, aji panca primarily, and combined them with vinegar, garlic, cumin, and other ingredients brought by the Spaniards to create a marinade. Not having access to stoves, slaves skewered the marinated innards with sugar cane stalks and cooked them over a fire and thus, the anticucho as we know it today was born.[4]
Street Food Staple
Despite its humble beginnings as a food for slaves and the impoverished, its ingredients consisting of what was hitherto discarded as inedible and leftover scraps, the anticucho has gained favor as a street food staple. Anticucherias are prevalent, particularly in coastal Peru, with some chefs gaining national fame (Tia Grimanesa pictured above). Made with thinly sliced beef hearts, regional preferences may vary, marinated with an aji paste, and usually served with a side of potatoes or corn, two other Peruvian staples, what was once food for slaves has united Peruvians of all classes, ethnicities and backgrounds in a manner. They celebrate the anticucho nationally every third Sunday of October as part of a religious holiday honoring El Señor de los Milagros. This dish is very much a part of the Peruvian identity.
Conclusion
We can glean much about Peruvian culture by examining the anticucho dish. From its main ingredients, we can see Andean, Spanish and Asian influences. From its origins, we can see the contributions of Afro-Peruvians to the culture at large. Its origins can also tell us about the history of class structure in Peru. Anticucho’s current status as a street food staple and national symbol informs us of the mestizaje that has occurred and is ongoing in Peru. Conquest, resilience and, although not fully realized, reconciliation are written into its ingredients. As ubiquitous as hot dogs are in America, The dish is quintessentially Peruvian.
[1] Janine @ Arousing Appetites, Manila Spoon, and Cyrus, “Beef Anticuchos with Chuck Roast (Instead of Cow Heart),” Arousing Appetites – International Cuisine Made Easy for American Kitchens, February 3, 2023, https://arousingappetites.com/anticuchos-peruvian-beef-kabobs/.
[2] RicardoZarate, Jenn Garbee, and Ed Anderson, The Fire of Peru: Recipes and Stories from My Peruvian Kitchen (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2015), 111.
[3] Ram, Chandra. “Anticuchos Offer a Taste of Africa’s Influence on Peruvian Cooking.” Plate, 2018. https://plateonline.com/food/anticuchos-offer-taste-africa%E2%80%99s-influence-peruvian-cooking.
[4] Gill, Nicholas, “Origins: Anticuchos de Corazón.” New Worlder. Accessed February 2, 2024. https://www.newworlder.com/origins-anticuchos-de-corazon/.
