Papa a la Huancaína

Papa a la Huancaína

Origin
Place of origin	Peru
Details
Course served	Hors d'oeuvre
Serving temperature	Cold
Main ingredient(s)	Yellow potatoes, Huancaína sauce (Queso fresco, vegetable oil, aji amarillo, evaporated milk, salt)

Papa a la Huancaína (literally, Huancayo style potatoes) is a Peruvian appetizer of boiled yellow potatoes (similar to the Yukon Gold potatoes) in a spicy, creamy sauce called Huancaína sauce. Although the dish's name is derived from Huancayo, a city in the Peruvian highlands, it has become a staple of everyday and holiday cuisine throughout the country.

It is typically served cold as a starter over lettuce leaves and garnished with black olives, white corn kernels and hard boiled egg quarters.

The sauce is made of fresh white cheese (Queso fresco-similar to feta or lumpy farmers cheese), vegetable oil, aji amarillo (yellow Peruvian pepper), evaporated milk and salt mixed in a blender. Some recipes call for garlic, onion and crushed saltines.

In the south of Peru (Cuzco, Puno, Arequipa) it is served with ocopa rather than Huancaína sauce, made from freshly toasted peanuts, fried onions and tomatoes, aji amarillo, cream or condensed milk, crushed crackers or dried bread, salt, and huacatay (Tagetes minuta).

Because it is served cold, Papa a la Huancaina is a favorite food of Peruvians to take on picnics and trips.