Ecuadorian Street Food - Five Tips for Eating the Unique and Delicious Dishes

Ecuadorian food is diverse, and underrated.

South American food has some similarities but Ecuador enjoys putting its own twist on South American favorites, as well as making some pretty unique dishes of its own.

Each of the country’s three geographic regions, the Amazon, the Sierra, and the Pacific Coast features its own array of local delicacies.

Ecuadorian Dishes on the coast normally contain seafood whereas up in the Andean region you will find more meat, rice and potatoes.

Soups seem to be popular everywhere.

Besides the typical delicacies Ecuador offers its own variety of street food.

If you are adventurous eater at heart, or even if you prefer more familiar options, you are sure to find something to enjoy.

Although street food suffers from bad reputations, Ecuador’s streets offer unique and delicious options.

And if you keep few tips in mind (and let your stomach get accustomed to the food gradually first) it is possible to eat, and enjoy, street food.

Leave your preconceived notions at the border, and make it a point to step outside your comfort zone while traveling through the country.

There are some Ecuadorian street foods that you will find in every region (Coast, Highlands, Amazon, and Galapagos Islands) of Ecuador and almost every city or small town.

There are also some street foods that are very regional and unique to specific cities.

One of the best places to find delicious street food is at ferias or local fairs and fiestas (local festivities).

Other popular places include markets, main plazas on weekends, beach towns, bus stops, and at the exits of local schools.

There are some traditional dishes that are popular at markets and people visit the markets specifically to be able to eat them.

Keep in mind that not all street food is cooked equal and if you are worried about the quality and your health when eating street food, then it’s best to get recommendations from locals.

I have gotten very sick from eating Ecuadorian street food.

But through the years I’ve learnt to recognize the stalls where you can eat safely and the ones where you cannot.

Always check how clean the place is and also the utensils, a good thing is to think about the smell also, does it smell delicious or like something has gone bad.

Many things can be seen just with the bare eye but an Ecuadorian trick is also to check how many people are eating in the place compared to the others next to it.

Usually the fullest, or the one with most buyers, is the best and safest.

Tips:

1. Make sure the place is clean looking and smelling, as the person selling and preparing the food.

2. Sanitize your hands before eating. Always carry a hand sanitizer with you.

3. Don’t eat mayonnaise, chili sauce, salads or fresh ingredients without cooking, or let them come into touch with your food. Sadly these are the ones with most parasites, and possible diseases.

4. Make sure the utensils are clean, and clean them with paper towel (and if necessary with bottled water) again.

5. Drink only bottled water. Make sure the juices and ice are done from bottled water.

Extra tip:

Look where the other's are eating. Usually the place that is full has good food, and it is good quality too. If in doubt ask from the hotel reception where to eat, taxi drivers also normally know good places that they can recommend.

The Queen With The Frozen Heart - A Suitable Wife

From touch of air in the butterfly’s wings, Sisa summoned the wind.

Her magic stretched itself and danced playfully among the jungle trees.

- Come now, she called it, and the magic obeyed.

In a strong gust she rode the wind through the jungle, to the queen's palace.

There the magic deposited her gently on the roof, next to the regal woman and the magical being that were waiting for her.

- Here she arrives, Lusiru smiled at Sisa, the flower that will save us all.

- But she is just a girl, Queen bursted.

- Like you once were yourself, Lusiru raised his eyebrows, take a look at her magic and tell me how she is just a girl to you.

The queen appraised Sisa, looking at the magic swirling around her.

- How are you able to control so much, she finally asked, you are stronger than my son!

- And she already loves your son, Lusiru nodded, don't you?

Sisa nodded back, she was afraid to trust her voice.

- You wear your pacha still on your left shoulder, the queen challenged Sisa.

- Yes, Sisa swallowed, I have not yet known a man.

- But you claim to love my son; Queen looked straight to her eyes.

- He spent just a moment in our village, Sisa whispered, and he promised to wed the boa princess for their help. But since the boa people left him alone after he turned into a monster, he is free again.

- I must say I'm rather glad for their treacherous actions, the queen smiled tightly; I would not enjoy having a boa for daughter-in-law. Even if she were a princess!

Sisa did not answer; it was not her place to comment who would be a suitable wife for Amarun.

The two women stared each other in silence, appraising their strengths.

- It is almost dark, Lusiru woke them up from their thoughts, and my brother will be waiting for us with Amarun. And there is still a lot to do before the darkness falls tonight.

To be continued...

This is the twenty-sixth part of the story.

To read the first part of the story, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 1  

To read the second part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 2 

To read the third part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 3. 

To read the fourth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 4. 

To read the fifth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 5.

To read the fourteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 14

To read the sixth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 6

To read the seventh part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 7

 To read the eight part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 8

To read the ninth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 9

To read the tenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 10

To read the eleventh part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 11

To read the twelth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 12

To read the thirteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 13

To read the fifteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 15

To read the sixteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 16

To read the seventeenth part, go to the The Queen With The Frozen Heart 17

To read the eighteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 18

To read the nineteenth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 19

To read the twentieth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart 20

To read the twenty first part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - The Night Of The Black Moon

To read the twenty second part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - To The Enchanted Night

To read the twenty third part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - At The Mouth Of The Cave

To read the twenty fourth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - The Visiting Star

To read the twenty fifth part, go to The Queen With The Frozen Heart - Time To Leave The Home

Sumak Kawsay - Good and Perfect Life in the Intercultural and Plurinational Ecuador

Ecuadorian society is characterized by cultural and ethnic diversity.

The goal of Ecuadorian constitution is to build a new form of civil coexistence in diversity and harmony with nature to achieve the good life, sumak kawsay.

SUMAK KAWSAY

The concept of "good living" takes its terminology "sumak kawsay" of ancestral Quechua worldview of life.

According to its proponents present similarly among the Aymara as suma qamaña and among the Guarani as Porâ teko teko or kavi.

In its original meaning Kichwa, sumak refers to the realization of the ideal and beautiful planet, while kawsay means "life," a decent life to the full.

The "sumak kawsay" ancestral sees people as an element of Mother Earth or Pachamama (mother world).

So, unlike other paradigms, sumac kawsay seeks balance with nature in the satisfaction of needs ("take only what is necessary").

SUMAK KAWSAY TODAY

The relationship with nature has a privileged place in the vision of "Good Life" by Ecuador’s Indigenous People.

The man takes the second place after the environment, because we are a part of the nature.

Nature is the source of life and the humans are the thinking part of this reality.

The nature has the priority because without it the mankind cannot live.

So, to be concerned about the good of the humanity means to first defend the land and establish harmony between nature and human beings.

Which implies respect for all natural environments.

Colada Morada - Ecuadorian fruit beverage to celebrate the Day of the Deceased

Colada morada is a traditional Ecuadorian beverage prepared with black corn flour and fruits such as naranjilla, babaco, pineapple, blackberries, strawberries, and Andean blueberries (which give it its color).

The drink is sweetened with cane sugar, known as panela, and prepared with spices such as cinnamon, allspice, cloves and herbs such as lemongrass and lemon verbena.

Colada morada is prepared for the Day of the Deceased celebrations in Ecuador.

Typical Day of the Deceased wreath that is left on the grave.

Ecuadorians celebrate el Dia de los Difuntos or Day of the Deceased on November 2^nd.

The celebration is both similar and also different than the better known Mexican Day of the Dead (November 1).

It is a day to honor and remember all the loved ones who have passed away and people visit the tombs at the cemeteries, clean the gravesites and leave flowers behind.

As with most Latin holidays and events, there is always a food aspect to any special day, in this case it is a thick purple drink called colada morada. 

The drink is traditionally consumed with a type of bread called tanta wawa which are bread figures shaped like babies and often decorated with colorful icing and filled with fruit jam (strawberry or guava).

In indigenous Andean communities, especially in rural areas, it is consumed and offered in the cemetery next to the tomb of deceased relatives as part of the rite of reunion with ancestors.

 In the olden times, the indigenous people used to make wawas from an inedible type of dough.

These were meant to be used as offerings for the graves.

Some indigenous groups would also put small human like figures made from clay in the graves or tombs of the dead, and just like many other ancient cultures in the world, they also buried the dead with food and treasure so that they would be comfortable in the afterlife.

These tombs or gravesites are also known as wakas, and are sometimes raided by those looking for gold or treasure.

Stealing from a waka is supposed to bring very bad luck, and there are countless stories of misfortune that has fallen upon those who have tried to take treasures from the wakas.

So I recommend staying away from them.

Colada morada is a gastronomic tradition that endures in Ecuador and is not limited to be consumed in commemoration of the dead.

Its preparation is also ritual that maintains the recipe accurate throughout the years.

The traditional preparation of colada morada uses local fruits, spices and herbs; some of which are very difficult to find outside of Ecuador.

This recipe is adapted based on the ingredients that can be found in the US (or Europe).

Just in case you are in Ecuador, some of the additional ingredients that have been left out include a delicious fruit called babaco, spices called ishpingo and arrayan.

Some variations also add passion fruit and other fruits, just as most other typical Ecuadorian dishes, the recipe will vary from one family to another – with each one claiming that theirs is the best version.

The beverage is usually served warm, though it is also just as a good served cold.

Similar to any concoction – be it drink, soup, stew – that is made with a variety of fruits and spices, it tastes better when it’s a day old than when it’s freshly made.

Colada morada always tastes better if made with fresh fruit, however frozen berries work perfectly fine. 

COLADA MORADA

Ingredients

1 cup purple or black corn flour

14 oz naranjilla pulp

2 cups blackberries

2 cups blueberries

2 cups strawberries, sliced

1 pineapple, peels and core + 2 cups finely diced

5-6 cinnamon sticks

4-5 whole cloves

4-5 all spice berries

12-14 oz panela or brown sugar

A few lemon verbena leaves, fresh or dry

A few lemongrass leaves, fresh or dry

2 pieces orange peel

8 + 4 cups water

(1/4 of large babaco if you can find it)

Instructions

Place the pineapple skins and core, cinnamon, spices and panela or brown sugar in a large pot with 8 cups of water.

Boil for about 20-25 minutes.

Add the lemon verbena, lemongrass, and orange peel.

Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Remove and strain. You will only use the liquid.

In a separate pot, add 4 cups of water with the blueberries and blackberries, boil for about 20 minutes.

Remove them from heat, let cool down until safe to handle, then blend and strain.

Mix the cup of the purple corn flour with 1 cup of the spice and pineapple liquid stirring it until it is well diluted.

Add the strained berry mix, the naranjilla juice, the spiced pineapple liquid and the diluted purple flour mix to a large pot.

Cook over medium heat, stir constantly to keep it from sticking, bring to a boil.

Add the pineapple (and babaco) chunks and reduce to simmer for about 10 minutes.

Remove from the heat, add the strawberry slices. Serve warm or cold.

ENJOY!