I live in Huaraz, the capital of my region of Ancash in Perú. Ancash includes some coastline and jungle, but is most characterized by the sierra (highland). The sierra of Ancash consists mostly of the stunning Cordillera Blanca (White Mountains), which are part of the Andes range. This region is famous for its high mountains, and it receives many tourists every year who come to experience beautiful hikes and mountaineering challenges. Today, we will look at a classic Andean dish and the plant it comes from called chocho.
Chocho is a small salad made from chocho beans, with lots of ingredients added depending on where it's prepared. In Huaraz, a chocho simple (simple chocho) is prepared with chocho beans, raw onions, cilantro, diced tomatoes, lemon, and cancha, which is toasted Andean corn. This is a classic dish enjoyed all over Perú, but it's originally from the mountain region.
My favorite variety of chocho adds a hunk of sweet potato and kushuru, which is a small algae that grows in streams up in the highlands.
The scientific name of chocho is Lupinus mutabilis, and it's a type of lupin bean.
