Ecuadorian Cuisine by Region
Traditional Foods of the Coast, Andes, Oriente, and Galapagos
The geographical regions of Ecuador are as distinct as can be, and each boasts its own local delicacies. Here is a guide to some of the most typical.
Even today, the geographical regions of this small country are isolated from one another, as the towering Andes and expansive Pacific Ocean make it difficult to communicate. This has led to a great variety in local cuisines.
Coastal Region (Litoral)
This region runs along the western egde of the country, bordering the Pacific Ocean. Due to colder currents, a variety of fish and shellfish can be found in this part of the Pacific, and therefore this region’s cuisine tends to be dominated by seafood, (although other non-seafood dishes, such as guatita and seco de chivo, are also popular at a national level).
- Ceviche: One of the most popular and well known South American seafood dishes worldwide is ceviche. Ecuadorian ceviche is different from the more widely recognized Peruvian ceviche, and the recipe varies throughout the country. Served cold, it is made from cooked fish, conch, or shrimp (or any combination), with lots of onions, tomatoes, ketchup and lemon. It is generally served with fried plantain chips (chifles) and popcorn.
- Cazuela: a plantain-based casserole dish with fish or shrimp, and sometimes peanut sauce.
- Guatita: cow stomach cooked in a hard-boiled egg and peanut sauce and served with boiled potatoes.
- Aguado de gallina (chicken rice soup): The flavors in this thick soup are very concentrated. It is cooked (and served) with chicken pieces on the bone. Sometimes vegetables are added, but traditionally the soup only has chicken and rice.
- Seco de chivo (goat stew): stewed goat (or lamb) meat served with rice and plantains.
Andean Region
Dividing the country in two is the Andean region. Typical ingredients in this region are corn, potatoes, fava beans and pork. As with the Coastal Region, each city or town has its own variations for each dish, but some of the more popular are listed below:
- Llapingachos: fried potato cakes filled with cheese and topped with a fried egg and a side of chorizo sausage, atop a salad of lettuce, tomato, and cooked carrots and beets.
- Helado de paila: fresh fruit sorbet.
- Mote con chicharron: hominy served with fried pig fat.
- Hornado: tender roasted pork served with agrio (a vinegary parsley and lemon sauce) and llapingachos and/or mote (hominy).
- Fritada: fried pork meat.
- Locro de papa: thick potato and cheese (or egg) soup.
- Cuy: roasted or fried guinea pig served with potatoes topped with a peanut sauce
Oriente Region
This region, located in the heart of the Ecuadorian rain forest, is sparsely populated. Foods typical of this region are cassava (yucca) root, tapir, plantain and fresh water fish.
- Chicha de yuca: fermented drink based on cassava root.
- Hormigas limón (lemon ants): A rarity, these ants are eaten alive and have a very lemony taste.
Galapagos Region
This region’s population is relatively new and not indigenous, and therefore the cuisine of the Galapagos tends to be taken from other parts of the country. Meals usually revolve around seafood and plantains, and dishes such as ceviche, breaded and fried shrimp and fish, crab, conch, and plantain soup, are easy to come by.
