Colada Morada Fruit Juice Recipe

Traditional Ecuadorian All Soul’s Day Blueberry and Blackberry Drink

Oct 29, 2007

Colada Morada and Guagua de Pan, J. Paredes

This warm colada (thickened juice drink) is traditionally consumed in the weeks before All Soul's Day, and uses Andean products such as blueberry, blackberry and corn.

Recipes for colada morada can vary from region to region and family to family. While all versions contain blueberry, blackberry, and pineapple, some will use naranjilla juice (an Andean fruit), babaco (champagne fruit), strawberries, and even raisins.

The recipe below varies from more traditional versions of colada morada in that it does not contain the corn flour base, substituting cornstarch for the purple corn flour. This cornstarch recipe will keep longer than the corn flour one, which tends to ferment. Moreover, cornstarch is more readily available outside of Ecuador than the purple corn flour.

Tea Ingredients:

½ bundle of spices for colada morada (5-6 orange leaves, 1 fistful each of lemon verbena and myrtle)
6-8 whole cloves
6-8 whole allspice
4-5 cinnamon sticks
1-2 ishpingo (Ecuadorian spice)

Fill a large Dutch oven halfway with water (approximately 2 liters).
Place the spices in the water. Boil for about 15 minutes. Set this tea aside to be used later.

Juice base ingredients:

1 ½ pounds blueberries, rinsed of any impurities
2 pounds blackberries (boysenberries can also be used, or any combination of the two)
1 large pineapple, peeled and cored*
2 cups (or more) sugar
2-3 heaping tablespoons cornstarch

Put the blueberries in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a roiling boil for 5-10 minutes. Set aside to cool.
As the blueberry juice cools, blend the blackberries with a couple of cups of water. Strain the juice and set aside.
Cut the pineapple into small cubes.
Once the blueberry mixture is cool, blend it and strain it. Mix the blueberry and blackberry juices with the tea of spices above. (Divide into two Dutch ovens for easier handling.)
Add the pineapple and boil for about 20 minutes, or until the pineapple is soft but not mushy.
After the pineapple is cooked, add about 1 cup of sugar to each pot. Let dissolve and taste, adding more sugar if needed. (The amount of sugar needed will depend on how ripe the fruits are. Adjust the sugar levels to taste.)
Put 2-3 heaping tablespoons of cornstarch in a glass of cold water. Stir and dissolve the cornstarch and then add half of the mixture to each Dutch oven. Stir for about 5-10 minutes more, allowing the colada to thicken. Adjust the amount of cornstarch as needed (more for a thicker colada).

Serve the colada warm or cold. Ecuadorians will eat colada with guaguas de pan, soft bread loaves shaped in the form of babies (guagua meaning baby in Quichua), filled with chocolate or marmalade, and decorated with frosting on top. In place of guaguas, any soft dipping bread will do.

* Other fruits can be added to colada morada, such as strawberries or babaco. If adding babaco, add at the same time as the pineapple. If using strawberries, add the fruit in the last step, cooking for about 5 minutes.

All Soul's Day Traditions, Ecuador

More Recipes from Ecuador

Chicha de Avena Fruit Drink

Three Quinoa Recipes from Ecuador

Recipe for Chicha de Jora

Traditional Ecuadorian Soups

The copyright of the article Colada Morada Fruit Juice Recipe in South American Food is owned by Kari Miller. Permission to republish Colada Morada Fruit Juice Recipe in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.