I believe sampling traditional goods on the street is a great way to learn about the local culture and cuisine, aside from visiting restaurants and people’s homes. Be it a shack on the beach, a food truck or a stand on the street, these are great places to try new things and really taste the country’s flavor.
I have to say, some of the food in Colombia (Bogota and Medellin to be precise) surprised me quite a bit. I was not expecting much from the local cuisine – since (let’s be honest) one rarely says: “let’s go eat Colombian food!”
I was taken away by four things in particular: the meat was amazingly soft and juicy in most places I ate (I’m not talking street food here) – why it’s not popular like Argentinian or Brazilian meat, I do not understand; the {arepa de choclo}, very similar if not identical to a Venezuelan cachapa, is basically a sweet corn pancake usually served with {queso blanco} or white cheese; the {ajiaco}, a traditional soup made with potatoes, corn, chicken and {guascas}, a Colombian herb; and finally, my favorite – the {obleas con arequipe} sold off a street cart.
Arequipe is the Colombian version of dulce de leche, a traditional sweet made by heating sweetened milk and turning it into a rich, gooey caramel-like sauce. It is used in many desserts, but I tried it served between two {obleas} - thin crispy cookies usually made with corn flour, measuring about 20 cm in diameter. The {obleas con arequipe} are sometimes topped with condensed milk, chocolate sprinkles, coconut or jam. I ate mine with no toppings at all, and that goopy mess was a simple (and very affordable) way to satisfy my sweet tooth.
Other street food around the streets of Bogota include:
- fresh fruit (and lots of it) – mangos, fresh coconuts
- {mazorca asada} – grilled corn
- {guarapo} – water made with sugar cane and turns into {aguapanela} when adding lime juice
- variety of bread-based goods like {buñuelos},{empandas} and {arepas}
- {tinto} – do not expect a glass of red wine here, this is what Colombians call a small black coffee
- {platanitos}
and last but not least…
- fried ants
