Chupe de pallares

Peruvian lima bean chowder

Origin: Peru (coastal and Andean highland regions)

From the journey of Beans.

Chupe (from the Quechua word chupi, meaning 'stew' or 'to sip') is one of the oldest surviving soup traditions of the Andes, a class of thick, creamy, hearty soups that trace directly to pre-Columbian Inca cooking. Pallares are large, flat, pale-green or white lima beans (Phaseolus lunatus), cultivated in coastal and highland Peru for over four thousand years and among the most ancient of all Andean legumes. The lima bean takes its English name from Peru's capital city, a testament to its Andean origins, and the pallaro is its fresh or dried Peruvian form. Chupe de pallares blends the ancient Andean pallaro with post-colonial ingredients: Spanish-introduced dairy (milk and cheese), ají amarillo, and the fresh herbs of the criollo tradition. The result is a vivid, golden-hued chowder of extraordinary creaminess and depth: thick with beans, potato, corn, and melted queso fresco. It is a defining dish of Peru's coastal valleys, associated with Ica and the Pacific coast wine and pisco regions, and served as a warming midday meal throughout the Andean winter.

Ingredients

Beans

  • 400 g fresh or frozen lima beans (pallares), or dried lima beans soaked overnight and pre-cooked until just tender

Base

  • 2 tbsp vegetable oil
  • 1 medium white onion, finely diced
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced

Spice

  • 2 tbsp ají amarillo paste (or 1 tsp smoked paprika + pinch cayenne)
  • 1 tsp ground cumin

Vegetables

  • 2 ears of corn, husked and cut into 3cm rounds (or 200g frozen corn kernels)
  • 300 g waxy potatoes (about 2 medium), peeled and diced into 2cm cubes

Liquid

  • 1 litre vegetable or chicken stock

Dairy

  • 250 ml whole milk
  • 100 g queso fresco or feta, crumbled (plus extra to garnish)

Thickening

  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten

Herbs

  • 1 tsp dried oregano

Finish

  • 3 tbsp fresh coriander (cilantro), roughly chopped

Seasoning

  • 1 tsp salt, or to taste

Method

  1. Heat the oil in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 8 minutes until soft. Add the garlic, ají amarillo paste, cumin, and oregano. Stir and cook for 2 minutes until very fragrant.
  2. Add the corn rounds and potatoes and stir to coat in the spiced oil. Pour in the stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a steady simmer.
  3. Add the lima beans. Simmer for 15–20 minutes until the potatoes and corn are completely tender and the beans are soft.
  4. Reduce the heat to low. Pour in the milk and stir. Slowly drizzle the beaten egg into the soup while stirring in a circular motion: it will cook in wispy ribbons and thicken the broth naturally.
  5. Add the crumbled queso fresco and stir gently until it begins to melt into the soup. Simmer on the lowest heat for 5 minutes. Season generously with salt.
  6. Ladle into deep bowls. Garnish with extra crumbled queso fresco and fresh coriander. Serve immediately with crusty bread.

Notes

Chupe de pallares should be thick and creamy (somewhere between a soup and a stew. The egg and milk are the traditional thickeners; cream can substitute for the milk in a richer version. The corn on the cob rounds are traditional and add sweetness and texture) don't substitute kernels if you can avoid it. Queso fresco is ideal but a mild feta works well. The chupe is best eaten the day it is made; the milk can separate on reheating, though a gentle low-heat reheat with a splash of fresh milk corrects this.

The Gastrographer

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