TYPICAL FOOD OF BOYACÁ: 5 TYPICAL DISHES HIGHLIGHTED - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The typical food of Boyacá, department of Colombia, is composed of a variety of dishes made from vegetables, cereals and meats produced in this Andean region located in the center-east of the country.

Among the most outstanding typical dishes are: the small porridge, the wheat cuchuco with backbone, the boyacense stew, the stew and the chicken necks.

Drinks such as chicha, panela water, masato and chocolate and other nationally recognized products also stand out, such as paipa cheese, mogolla and corn bread.

The typical food of Boyacá mixes traditions and indigenous culinary recipes with flavors from Europe and Africa.

The 5 main typical dishes of Boyacá

1- Little Mazamorra

This dish is made from cooked cornmeal that is mixed with onion, peas, potatoes, peas, coriander, garlic, beans, and beef.

A plant called stems is added to it. It is called small mazamorra to differentiate it from the sweet mazamorra.

It is a soup of indigenous origin, since the Muisca natives who lived in this region consumed a similar thick soup that they seasoned with an herb called guasca, to give it a spicy flavor.

The Spaniards who colonized the territory assimilated this soup into their kitchen and added chicken and seasonings.

This is how the mazamorra, the stew, the ajiaco, the sancocho, the tripe and other popular dishes originated.

2- Pot

It is considered as the main dish of this region. In this, various types of meat are delicately mixed with vegetables and other foods produced in the Colombian highlands.

The ingredients of the stew are chicken and pork loin, with green plantain and corn on the cob.

Pieces of streaky bacon and sausage are added, accompanied by yucca, potato, cabbage, pumpkin and hogao. It is then seasoned with salt, pepper and cumin and simmered.

The broth is served separately from the already cooked ingredients and topped with hot hogao.

3- Wheat cuchuco with backbone

This is the typical dish of Runta, one of the rural paths located on the outskirts of the city of Tunja.

Cuchuco is a very inexpensive and popular soup that is made with half-ground peeled wheat, which gives it a very thick consistency.

The original recipe is made with tender beans, broad beans and Creole potatoes. To this is added chives, carrots, green peas, coriander, garlic, salt and pepper. The main ingredient is the pork backbone, which gives this soup its unique flavor.

4- Boyacense stew

It is another main dish of Boyacá cuisine that is served as lunch. It is made with ingredients such as turnips, broad beans, cubes, hibiscus and tender green peas cooked together with chicken, pork and beef rib meats. It is accompanied with coriander and pennyroyal.

Some authors claim that it is of Hebrew origin and was later modified and brought by the Spanish, who called it "rotten pot". Its origin in Colombia is attributed to the population of Villa de Leiva.

5- Hen necks

This traditional dish is made especially at Christmas time. The hide from the hen's necks is filled with blood from the bird itself, taken after boning.

Dried rice, cooked and chopped potatoes are added, as well as cooked green peas and chopped chives. This mixture is garnished with oregano, parsley, thyme, garlic, and oil.

The necks are tied at both ends, and once filled they are boiled. They can also be fried before cooking.

References

1. Typical dishes of Boyacá. Retrieved on November 14, 2017 from platostipicosdeboyaca.blogspot.com
2. Vega Castro, Oscar Alfonso and López Barón, Francy Nataly: Typical foods of Boyacá, Colombia. (PDF) Recovered from scielo.org.co
3. Typical meals. Consulted of memoboyaca.blogspot.com
4. Boyacá gastronomy. Consulted of boyaca-colombia.jimdo.com
5. Cuchuco wheat Spine. Consulted of antojandoando.com
6. The typical cuisine of Boyacá. Consulted of colombia.gastronomia.com