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Ancient Flavours
Northern cuisine has won deserved recognition on the nation's dining
tables
Some two thousand years ago, the inhabitants of the kingdom of Sipán were able to stock their tables with a wide range of products, thanks to great developments in agriculture, fishing and trade. The Moche culture (in Lambayeque) was, together with Mesopotamia and Egypt, one of the great ancient irrigation-based cultures. The irrigation system of Lambayeque linked the La Leche Valley, Lambayeque, Reque, Zaña and Jequetepeque and represented some 30 percent of all coastal agricultural land.
 From these fertile lands a wide variety of foods were harvested, such as wheat, cassava, potato, sweet potato, beans, tomatoes, pumpkin, squash, chilli peppers, custard apple, eggfruit, "pacae" and passion fruit. The development of the ancient fishing industry brought other delights to the Moche table, including many species of fish such as sea bass, as well as squid, crab, shellfish and lobster.
And this rich variety so familiar to us in today's Peru was further enhanced by the products brought by the Spanish colonisers, particularly ducks and goats.
The culinary heritage of the region rests on this solid base of natural wealth and privileged history. Displaying its great diversity, Chiclayo cuisine assigns a typical dish to each day of the week: on Sundays "causa ferreñafana"; Mondays "espesado"; Tuesdays "cabrito" (kid); Wednesdays "chirimpico"; Thursdays rice and pork; Fridays "aguadito" and humitas"; Saturdays fried pork. Bon appetit...
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