A highlight of our trip to Peru was enjoying a meal called pachamanca, a Quechua word that means earth (pacha) pot (manca). This technique for preparing food in a pit, much like a Hawaiian luau, predates the Spanish, going back at least to the time of the Incas. It’s a communal way of feasting, and we got to experience this tradition at El Albergue, a historic hotel with a farm, coffee roastery and distillery, next to the train station in Ollantaytambo.
Our host led us through the courtyard to a picnic area where stone pits had been constructed for the pachamanca. One was piled with rocks that were being heated to create an oven effect. While we waited, platters of chicken, lamb and beef, a large bowl of potatoes, fava beans, and other dishes that were going to be buried and smoked, were brought out. I was wondering who was going to be eating all this food.
Once the “oven” was ready, the rocks were lifted up to reveal a large hole that the cooks now strategically re-filled with our lunch, ensuring optimal contact between the side of the pit, the potatoes, meat, earthenware dishes and the hot rocks.
Bunches of green herbs were then laid on top. Fava beans were gently placed on the herbs. Everything was covered with wet cloth and then sealed with a mound of dirt. A cross was added for good measure.
While our food cooked, we walked around the farm, enjoyed the good weather and chatted with Cristo, our guide. About 20 minutes later, it was time to reverse the process. The dirt was shoveled off, the cloth and herbs lifted, revealing nicely charred potatoes and pieces of meat underneath.
More people had arrived during this time; it was a relief knowing that we weren’t responsible for eating everything. We took our places around the table while the cooks served us this specially prepared meal, a feast in honor of Pachamama, or Mother Earth.
Here’s a short video of our pachamanca experience:
After lunch we toured the roastery, where we drank local coffee, and the distillery (Destilería Andina), where we sampled cañazo, a Peruvian rum made from sugarcane juice. It was a fun way to end what had been a singular experience.
We left El Albergue, pausing outside the train station to take photos without the crowds; we’d be returning in few days at the end of our Machu Picchu trek.
Experiencing a pachamanca was one part of our overall Peru experience. Read about the rest of our Peru trip here.
Coda
I can see how it would be really fun with a large group of friends to prepare everything together and then hang out while waiting for the food to cook. From reading other blogs, it seems like the typical cooking time is 1-2 hours which results in really tender meat. Our experience was abbreviated since it was arranged as part of our tour; I can’t imagine that they’d have us wait for that long to eat. Our meat wasn’t as tender as it could have been but it was nonetheless, a great tradition to participate in.