Changua: Breakfast in the Andean Mountains
normally consists of this creamy soup made with milk, water, eggs, and
scallions. The eggs are dropped into the mixture without breaking the yolks. It
is served with cilantro and a piece of (stale) bread that soaks in the mixture.
Ajiaco: Chicken soup like mom used to
make it. It includes chicken, two (preferably three) kinds of potatoes, corn,
sour cream, capers, avocado and guasca. Guasca is a special herb that
grown throughout the Americas and gives the soup its distinct flavour.
Buñuelos: Are popular ball shaped fritters
and eaten as a snack in many South American countries. The Colombian version is
made with dough of curd of white cheese that get fried until golden brown. It
is a typical Christmas dish in Colombia.
Empanadas: It is a stuffed pastry that
can either be sweet or savory. The savory Colombian empanadas are filled with
beef, chicken and/or cheese as well as with rice and coriander. Compared to the
Chilean or Argentinean empanadas they are not baked but fried.
The Bogota Cuisine has a lot influence of the
native’s food, specially the Muiscas, and some European traditions which have
been part of the local gastronomy. Bogota is located on the Andean Region of
Colombia, so the most representative ingredients are potatoes, yucca, meat,
corn, rice, onions, garlic, tomatoes, chicken, pork and fish.
In Bogota hot drinks are very important because
of the cold weather, especially at morning, afternoons and nights. Families
used to meet for eating in the dining room. People eat their meals and always
have different juices with the dishes.
The most representative dishes of Bogota’s
cuisine are:
Chocolate Santafereño |
- CHOCOLATE SANTAFEREÑO: To enjoy this delicious hot drink you can dip the bread and cheese into your cup to get a perfect mix between salt and sweet.
- TAMAL: This is a kind of cake made with corn flour and covered with plantain leaves. In the mass, there are pieces of chicken, carrots, peas and pork. It usually is served at breakfast and hot chocolate is a good company.
- FRITANGA: It is a very popular dish prepared with potatoes, fried plantain, and different kinds of meat pieces. It’s perfect for parties or night meetings.
- PAPAS CHORREADAS: This is a delicious dish to complement meats and white rice. There are potatoes cocked with onions, tomatoes, garlic and salt. Then it is covered by milk and it is served.
- TRES LECHES: It is a delicious dessert full of sweet cream but with a perfect taste.
- JUICES: There are juicies made of blackberry, mango, lulo, maracuya, pineapple, guanabana, curuba, borojó, apple, strawberry, orange, mandarin, guava, pear, lemon, peach and any other kind of fruit that you could find in Colombia.
- MASATO: It’s a fermented drink of indigenous origin. It could be prepared with rice or corn. It’s ideal to complement other types of food like Almojábanas, Empanadas or Pandebonos.
- TINTO: It’s black coffe. People used to drink it in their breakfast or after lunch because it is a digestive drink.
For more information about typical Colombian food go to: