Latin America is known for its scrumptious meals, and Colombia doesn’t disappoint. In reality, sampling Colombian meals is among the high causes to go to Colombia. Like its nation, Colombian delicacies is numerous and thrilling.
You could spot the odd Caribbean meals or Peruvian dish in these 28 finest dishes – Colombian delicacies is massively influenced by its surrounding areas and colonial historical past. The nation is cut up into six areas, every of which has its personal regional specialties as effectively. Remember that there are regional variations when touring round Colombia’s must-see cities – you don’t need to miss out on a specialty dish.
28 Traditional Colombian Dishes
Ready to discover one of the best Colombian meals? Whether you need to try some Colombian delicacies at home or are visiting Colombia and are excited to try native dishes, this information will introduce you to one of the best. We’ll cowl all the pieces, from Empanadas to Frijoles Rojos. Let’s dive straight in.
1. Colombian Empanadas
Colombian empanadas have been a favourite dish since colonial occasions. Its look is very like a Cornish pasty, and the pastry is folded over with a filling inside. It’s straightforward to spot with its attribute semi-circle form and pinched edge.
You’ll discover floor meat, potatoes, cheese, and hogao (tomato salsa sauce) inside. Of course, there are some recipe variations – particularly for meat-free variations of the dish. Colombian empanadas are simple to make at home and scrumptious to eat in Colombia. If you need a fast, straightforward snack, empanadas are among the best Colombian dishes.
If you need to try an empanada earlier than you journey to Colombia, you possibly can comply with this recipe to make your personal at home.
2. Pandebono
The legend behind pandebono is that an Italian baker residing in Cali created the bread. When he bought it, he used to stroll the streets shouting ‘pane del buono’ (good bread); the title caught, and the bread turned one of the crucial fashionable Colombian meals.
So, what’s it precisely? The bread can be nicknamed Colombian cheese bread, which ought to offer you a very good trace. It is made with melted cheese, yuca flour, and eggs and formed into bagel or ball shapes. You can eat pandebono at breakfast, as road meals, or as a facet at dinner – it’s a versatile dish. Remember that it’s best eaten when it’s nonetheless heat out of the oven. Pandebono is a dish supposed to be eaten as recent as attainable.
To get in the temper on your Colombian travels, make your personal Pandebono at home with this recipe.
3. Bandeja Paisa
Bandeja paisa might be probably the most iconic Colombian meals in this information. Some even go so far as to name it the nationwide dish. Bandeja paisa is a platter-styled meal with an assortment of meats, a fried egg, white rice, corn, plantain, pink beans, and an avocado. The meats embody minced beef and chorizo sausage to chicharron. You’ll normally discover an Arepa on the plate, too (extra on that later).
Bandeja paisa is typical of Colombia’s Antioquia area and, like frijoles rojos, was excellent for employees spending lengthy days in the mountains and on farms. Bandeja paisa packs a nutritious punch and is full of protein and carbohydrates. It stays a preferred lunch selection and is one to try for those who go to Colombia. Make your recipe at home by following this recipe.
4. Frijoles Rojos
Frijoles Rojos is a particular Colombian dish that makes use of cargamento beans, additionally known as pink beans. This Colombian meals is especially wholesome, and pink beans are an awesome supply of iron, potassium, low-fat protein, and fiber. It is a stew-like concoction, and the pink beans are blended with tomatoes, onion, and garlic. It is then normally served on high of a portion of rice.
Frijoles rojos was initially a laborer’s meal. It is budget-friendly and full of power and vitamins – excellent for fueling a tough day at work. However, Frijoles Rojos have change into a extensively eaten dish in Colombian delicacies. Watch this straightforward video to make it your self.
5. Bananos Calados
Bananos calados is one in all Colombia’s finest desserts and comes from the Quindio area, close to the Andes. It won’t look (or sound) appetizing, however it’s simply one of many tastiest meals you possibly can try from Colombian delicacies. The dessert consists of fried bananas blended with lime juice and served with a scoop of ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream, making a candy but tangy deal with on your tastebuds. Occasionally, you may additionally discover the lime juice changed by orange juice and cinnamon – so maintain your eye out for any distinctive recipes.
Colombia has plenty of native fruit, and you may simply see that this has impressed many conventional recipes. Bananos calados are one meals to try if you need to expertise Colombia’s dessert scene. Make this scrumptious candy at home to convey again reminiscences of your travels to Colombia.
6. Chicharron Colombiano
Chicharron Colombiano is fried pork stomach, a hearty dish lined in onions, bay leaves, and seasoning for a wonderful style. Chicharron is full of taste and served with a crisp texture that has been perfected over generations of cooking. It is a typical dinner dish and is related to household and custom.
The dish is typical of Colombia’s Andean area. However, it originated in Spain and was launched to Colombia by Spanish colonizers. The Spanish recipe varies enormously; rind or stomach cuts can be utilized, not like the Colombian model. You’ll discover that almost all nations in Latin America have their very own model of chicharron. Get prepared to try as many alternative variations as attainable. Colombia has since taken a agency spin on the dish, although, and chicharron has effectively and really entered Colombian delicacies.
7. Coconut rice
Forget white rice; coconut rice is the tastiest. As its title could recommend, coconut rice is cooked with coconuts, giving it a yummy taste and getting it a spot on this listing as a meal in its personal proper. There are two major methods coconut rice is ready: cooking it in coconut milk or mixing it with shredded coconut. Cooking it in coconut milk is one of the best, as you get a stronger coconut taste.
The historical past of coconut rice is a little bit of a thriller. The dish is scattered throughout the globe, particularly in Asia and South America. However, since coconuts are one in all Colombia’s commonest tropical fruits, it’s no thriller why they’re so prevalent in Colombian delicacies. If you get the possibility to try it, coconut rice is a tasty dish.
8. Pescado Frito
Pescado Frito is a basic, conventional Colombian meals. Pescado Frito interprets as fried fish and is served complete, with pores and skin and head intact. It is usually a little daunting for those who aren’t used to consuming fish like this. However, you’ll quickly be received over, as cooking the fish in its pores and skin boosts its taste and retains the fish meat moist. You can count on a lot juicer meat than you’d get consuming fillets and fish steaks.
In Colombia, the fried fish is normally mojarra or pink snapper. The fish is sliced after which flavored with lime and seasoning, typically sitting in the juice for some time to actually absorb the flavour. It is served with rice, plantain, and salad – the right lunch dish.
9. Arepa de Huevo
Arepa de huevo is a variation of ordinary arepas, that are fried corn desserts. Arepas are a massively fashionable breakfast meals and are additionally thought-about considerably of a consolation meals. Arepa de huevo are one of many tastiest variations with egg. Preparing them entails frying a corn cake, splitting it, and filling it with an egg, then frying it once more to prepare dinner the egg inside. The result’s a fried egg coated in fried bread.
It is not any shock that arepas de huevos are one of the crucial fashionable dishes – particularly for breakfast. They are served in stacks (like pancakes) as a standalone dish. Just choose your sauce to match, salsa and bitter cream are nice decisions. See this recipe to get up with a style of Colombia.
10. Sopa de Pollo
Sopa de pollo interprets as hen soup, and it’s one other comforting meal in Colombian delicacies. It is truthful to say that it’s most likely the commonest Colombian soup and is extensively eaten throughout the nation. The hen soup can be full of plantain, corn, potatoes, and yuca. In reality, it’s so filled with elements that it typically seems extra like a stew than a soup.
Of course, hen soup is discovered worldwide, however Colombia’s model is especially scrumptious. The mix of elements like plantain and yuca is way more distinctive, and sometimes Colombian recipes use a complete hen.
Sopa de pollo is a superb Colombian meals to try when visiting or to recreate at home. It is finest cooked slow-cooked and served piping sizzling and is a type of one-pot dishes the entire household loves.
11. Morcilla
Morcilla is a blood sausage made with floor pork and pork blood. Morcillas are simply noticed due to their darkish, deep reddish-brown colour. They are a really conventional dish throughout Latin America. You should not have any downside discovering some to try for those who go to Colombia. And for those who like black pudding, you might be in for a deal with.
Morcillas are ready from scratch, and the method entails squeezing the combination into sausage casings. The floor meat is blended with pork blood, onions, and rice earlier than being put into casings. Colombian recipes have a tendency to add cilantro and infrequently inexperienced peas as effectively. The sausages are then normally boiled to prepare dinner.
12. Cazuela de Mariscos
Ready for a Colombian seafood dish? Cazuela de mariscos is among the hottest Colombian dishes in coastal areas, particularly alongside the Caribbean Coast and Cartegena. It is a typical meals and seafood casserole or seafood stew – full of all the pieces from prawns to mussels and lobster. The meats are cooked in coconut milk with a mix of greens. You may even have white wine and cheese added to the combo if you’re fortunate.
Cazuela de mariscos is an iconic dish when visiting Colombia’s shoreline. What is best than a recent seafood dish? Most of the time, the elements have been simply caught out of the Caribbean Sea. This is certainly one on your listing once you go to Colombia. Or try making it at home with this yummy recipe.
13. Colombian Bunuelos
Bunuelos are deep-fried balls full of recent cheese – an ideal afternoon snack or breakfast chew. Strangely sufficient, they’re typically served alongside sizzling chocolate and occasional, so you possibly can typically discover bunuelos at cafes in Colombia.
Bunuelos are one of the crucial fashionable Colombian meals. The recipe creates dough from yucca flour, cornstarch, eggs, milk, and sugar. The deep-fried dough is then made, with the bunuelos organized into their attribute appetizer-sized ball form and floated in a pan of boiling vegetable oil.
It is believed that bunuelos have been launched to Colombia by Spanish invaders. The snack is now eaten throughout Colombia as road meals and cafe or restaurant deal with. Bunuelos are particularly fashionable at Christmas time. We discovered this straightforward to comply with recipe on YouTube
14. Obleas
Obleas is not only a typical Colombian dish; it’s loved throughout Spain and Latin America. Obleas seems like a sandwich, and that’s exactly what it’s. The basic dessert consists of two wafers that sandwich a filling of dulce de leche and sometimes a mix of fruit, whipped cream, and jam. The Colombian model is nearly similar however provides one particular ingredient – Colombian caramel.
If you’ve acquired a candy tooth, obleas are among the best typical Colombian desserts to try. You’ll discover them all over the place, from cafes to road stalls.
15. Lechona
Lechona is a Colombian meals for particular events. The dish consists of a complete roasted pig filled with onions, peas, potatoes, pork fats, white rice, garlic, and spices like cumin. After the pig has had its bones eliminated and has been stuffed, it’s positioned in the oven and slow-cooked (typically for up to ten hours).
Needless to say, lechona is meant to be the culinary masterpiece of the desk. It is a dish designed to be shared with giant teams of individuals once you need to splash out on a flowery meal. You will typically discover particular person servings of lechona at eating places round Colombia, although, so maintain your eyes peeled.
16. Cholado
Let’s set Colombian meals apart for a second. Cholado is among the finest drinks in Colombia, so let’s introduce you. The drink is a refreshing combination of shaved ice, recent fruit, and sweetened condensed milk. Depending on the place you get one, you may additionally discover the drink served with ice cream, wafers, and whipped cream.
Cholado originates from Jamundi in Valle de Cauca. It is a combination between dessert, fruit cocktail, and drink – ticking all of the bins creatively and deliciously. If you like recent fruit and candy treats, it’s a nice drink to try when visiting Colombia, but easy sufficient to recreate at home.
17. Carimanola
Carimanolas are straightforward to spot. The tiny fritters are formed into attribute torpedo shapes, normally served in bulk as bitesize appetizers. They are a standard Colombian meals, though you’ll additionally discover carimanolas in different Southern American nations like Panama.
Inside, carimanolas are filled with floor beef or shredded hen, cheese, and seasoning. The fritters are then deep-fried to create a kind of meat pie. They are mild and crispy on the surface but mushy on the within. More typically than not, carimanolas include aji sauce. This brilliant inexperienced sauce primarily consists of cilantro and is sweet and spicy – the right facet. Want to try them earlier than your travels? Head over to comply with this recipe
18. Colombian Sopa de Mondongo
While mondongo typically has a stew-like consistency, it’s truly one other typical Colombian soup. The soup consists of onion, potato, beef tripe, chorizo, and pork, all served piping sizzling in a small bowl. It is a extremely conventional Colombian meals, and also you’ll discover mondongo at most eating places throughout the nation.
Like many Colombian dishes, sopa de mondongo is believed to have been launched by Spanish colonizers. The tomato-based soup has been firmly adopted into the Colombian culinary scene, although, and Colombian variations of the recipe have a particular twist.
19. Fritanga
Fritanga is a platter dish. The dish is extensively bought amongst road meals distributors and consists of a mix of meals heaped onto a big plate – normally barbecued on the road. So, what meals will you discover in fritanga? Usually, chorizo, sausage, plantain, and a mix of greens.
Fritanga is a Nicaraguan dish, though it has change into adopted into Colombian delicacies. The story behind its origin is a tragic one. The meal was first created after the 1931 earthquake, which hit Nicaragua, and folks cooked meals on the road with barbecues.
Now, you’ll discover fritanga cooked throughout Latin America and Colombia. It is a historic, tasty, and filling dish to try.
20. Bocadillo
A bocadillo is a scrumptious Colombian meals made with guava paste – a product of a preferred tropical fruit. The dish is extraordinarily candy and a particular deal with and dessert. It has a melt-in-your-mouth texture however is in any other case not sticky to the contact. Bocadillos solely require a couple of elements, principally panela and guava pulp, so they’re simple to make if you need to recreate the dish at home.
You’ll typically discover bocadillos served at cafes, normally alongside a slice of salty white cheese. They come minimize into little rectangles or squares and are the right bitesize treats.
21. Aborrajados
Aborrajados are one dish that you simply don’t discover as simply. It originated in the Valley de Cauca and is a regional specialty. The artistic (if barely bizarre-sounding) dish consists of deep-fried plantain filled with cheese to create a crispy, wholesome cheese chew. The absolute best place to try aborrajados is in the area of the Valley de Cauca itself, the place you’ll discover the dish most prevalently anyway.
Aborrajados are served as snacks or appetizers earlier than a big meal. Don’t rule out the dish at pudding time, although, as you possibly can add guava paste to the fried dish to create a candy deal with for dessert.
22. Arroz con Pollo
Arroz con pollo actually interprets as rice with hen. It is a straightforward however staple Colombian meals and very like Spanish paella. The dish consists of rice, hen, onion, and greens, with saffron tossed by the combination for added taste.
If you need a filling dish, arroz con pollo is an excellent selection. Plus, it’s straightforward to discover and is extensively served at eating places and road vendor stalls throughout Colombia. It is believed that arroz con pollo originated in Spain whereas the nation was beneath Moorish affect. When Spanish colonizers arrived in Colombia, it’s presumed that the dish was launched to Colombian meals tradition.
23. Cocadas Blancas
We’ve lined tons from Colombia’s coastal area. But what a couple of dessert from the Caribbean Coast? Cocadas blancas is an excellent candy dessert on your listing. The dish is made with a mixture of shredded coconut, sugar, milk, and coconut water. Depending on the place you try it, you may additionally discover further elements like cinnamon – most individuals have their very own twist on the basic recipe.
Cocadas blancas are normally bought on the road and alongside Colombia’s seashores. However, you’ll find them on dessert menus in eating places too. They are scrumptious meals, sticky and candy. You are in for a deal with making an attempt one.
24. Colombian Hot Chocolate
Speaking of desserts, sizzling chocolate is one other candy deal with that Colombia excels at. The Colombian model of sizzling chocolate is named Santafereno. It could be very completely different from the European and American variations of the drink. Instead of candy milk chocolate, the Colombian model makes use of darkish, unsweetened chocolate. Santafereno is usually made in water, not milk, with cinnamon or cloves typically added to counteract any bitterness. It could sound unusual, however Colombians are additionally well-known for dipping cheese in their sizzling chocolate – which you’ll or could not need to try.
Another factor that’s necessary to know is that Colombia has been utilizing chocolate for hundreds of years. Chocolate is produced from cacao timber, that are discovered in areas of Colombia and the Amazon basin. Colombia isn’t alone both; cacao has been used all throughout Latin America way back to the Aztecs and Mayans.
25. Calentado
Calentado is a staple in Colombian gastronomy and is a dish rooted in recycling leftovers from the evening earlier than – its title actually interprets as ‘heated’. The dish was born out of poverty to restrict waste, however now it is among the most conventional meals in Colombia.
The commonest elements in a calentado dish are white rice, plantain, and steak. It is then typically topped with a fried egg and arepas, maybe even served with a sizzling chocolate or espresso. By the character of the dish, calentado was primarily cooked at home. Of course, now you’ll discover it on menus throughout the nation. At eating places, you have a tendency to additionally discover avocado and sausage served alongside the usual elements.
26. Fried Plantain
Fried plantain is yummy Colombian meals. To the untrained eye, you will be forgiven for mistaking them for bananas. They look similar, besides plantains are a lot bigger, much less candy, and solely change into ripe as soon as they flip black. In their yellow levels, plantains are excellent for frying, which is the place deep-fried plantain comes in.
The smartest thing about fried plantain is its versatility. You might have it savory with breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Or you possibly can caramelize it and have it as a dessert. You might pair it with an egg, or you possibly can pair it with ice cream.
Fried plantain tastes like a potato, and the crisp outer layer provides means to a mushy, squishy inside. You received’t have any points discovering fried plantain in Colombia (or Latin America), so try it your self.
28. Colombian espresso
If you like espresso, you might be in for a deal with. This conventional Colombian drink is world-famous, and the quantity of espresso beans grown in Colombia is thrilling for any caffeine fanatic. For probably the most half, Colombia grows Arabica beans, that are mild and candy to style, not like the extreme Robusta. The undeniable fact that Arabica is a bit weaker than Robusta might be a very good factor, although, since, in Colombian espresso tradition, it’s drunk most from late afternoon to early night. Not from the morning to early afternoons like in the US and Europe.
A good way to expertise Colombian is to go espresso tasting. And if you need to go espresso tasting in Colombia, prioritize visiting Medellin or Manizales. These areas are famed for his or her espresso beans and have varieties named after them. You can guide excursions round native espresso plantations or go to native cafes.
27. Maracuya
Maracuya may sound unfamiliar, however the likelihood is excessive that you simply’ve seen one earlier than. Passion fruit won’t be a dish as such. Still, tropical fruits are such a longtime a part of Colombian gastronomy that we had to embody them on this listing. Passion fruits are a deep purple on the surface, with a waxy, protecting outer pores and skin. Cut open, they reveal a tangy, scrumptious mattress of yellow seeds. These seeds will be eaten straight from the eagerness fruit or used as an ingredient for merchandise like ice cream or juice.
Passion fruits develop throughout South America and are believed to have initially come from the Northern Argentina area earlier than spreading out in recognition throughout the continent. Not planning a go to to Colombia? No downside. You can try ardour fruit worldwide since it’s a vital export product.
Colombian meals is among the finest cuisines in the world. There is a lot to try, so get began as quickly as attainable. Luckily, if you’re visiting Colombia, there are many meals excursions to pattern conventional Colombian delicacies – main you round one of the best spots. You can take a look at our greatest journey suggestions right here as effectively.
Read different articles about Colombia and scrumptious meals of the world: