BOLIVIA

COUNTRY	Bolivia
Dishes	Papas a La Huancaina
Time	30 minutes
Effort	4/10
Rough cost	£5

COUNTRY	Bolivia
Capital	La Paz (legislative), Sucre (judicial)
Population	11, 469, 896 (82nd largest)
Land mass	1, 098, 581 km2 (27th largest)
Languages	Spanish (+ 33 other official languages!)
Religions	n/a

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Bolivia is a land-locked country in west-central South America, with its landscape ranging from the peaks of Andes in the west to the Amazon Basin in the lowlands. It is a multiethnic country full of indigenous culture, language and flair.

Bridget made Papas a la Huancaina which is a potato-based salad dish that is very popular staple of any pot-luck in Bolivia. Interestingly, it has a unique peanut creamy sauce. This was SO good. The sauce is nutty, creamy, with just a bit of cheesiness + heat. It was also so easy to make – so go for it!

Hope everyone is doing ok.

RECIPES

Papas a la Huancaina

INGREDIENTS

Sauce

1/2 cup peanut butter (not as traditional as roasted peanuts but works exactly the same)
1 1/2 cups water
Splash of milk / cream *I used vegan Oatly creme (this adds a creamy texture)
3 garlic gloves, finely chopped
1 hawt fresh chilli, finely chopped (can sub with hot sauce)
1 tbsp vegan yeast flakes (this is for the cheese flavour – traditionally use queso fresco)
salt + pepper to taste

Salad

10 medium potatoes, boiled, cooled + chopped
1 medium lettuce
3 tomatoes
5 boiled eggs
1/2 cup black olives
Handful of parsley

METHOD

In a blender, blitz the peanut butter (or peanuts) with 1 cup of water and whatever milk/cream product you desire. Add the hot sauce at this stage if using. It should form a smooth, liquid paste.
In a pan, fry the garlic and chilli (if using) in some veg oil to brown it.
Then add the peanut paste and cook on a low heat until the desired consistency is reached. Add whatever cheesiness you want right at the end, along with the salt + pepper.
Make sure to taste the sauce! If its not spicy enough – add more chilli! If its not cheesy enough – add more cheese / yeast flakes. If its too thick – add some more water or creaminess!
To serve, put all the salad ingredients onto the table & let people build their own plate! In Bolivia, you would put a big lettuce leaf down and put all the other ingredients on top. YUM!

Gracias and see you in Bosnia + Herzegovinia! M + B x