What to eat in Lima
A curated food guide to South America's culinary capital: coastal ceviche, skewered anticuchos, and vibrant Criollo and Nikkei staples.

[ ] Try classic Peruvian ceviche
    Fresh raw white sea fish diced and quickly flash-cured in freshly squeezed key lime juice, red onions, and fiery aji limo chili. It comes plated with sweet potato wedges, jumbo Andean corn (choclo), and crunchy toasted corn kernels (cancha).
[ ] Try leche de tigre
    The concentrated, citrusy, and spicy curing juice produced from ceviche, blitzed with fish trimmings, ginger, celery, cilantro, and chilies. It is often served chilled in a cocktail glass topped with fried seafood bits and toasted cancha.
[ ] Try tiradito
    A hallmark of Nikkei cuisine featuring delicate, sashimi-style raw fish ribbons dressed seconds before serving in an emulsion of lime juice, yellow aji pepper, and subtle soy sauce notes. Unlike ceviche, authentic tiradito is prepared without chopped onions.
[ ] Order lomo saltado
    Tender strips of beef tenderloin flash-stir-fried in a blazing wok with red onions, tomatoes, and yellow chili strips in soy sauce and vinegar. Reflecting Peru's multicultural palate, it is plated over a double starch base of french fries and steamed white rice.
[ ] Try causa limeña
    A layered cold terrine built from whipped yellow Andean potatoes infused with sunny aji amarillo paste, lime juice, and oil. The layers alternate with creamy fillings of shredded chicken or flaky tuna tossed in mayonnaise, topped with avocado.
[ ] Eat beef heart anticuchos
    Skewers of cleaned beef heart cubes marinated in earthy aji panca paste, red vinegar, garlic, and cumin, grilled rapidly over open coals. Accompanied by boiled potatoes, giant corn on the cob, and an herby black mint (huacatay) dipping sauce.
[ ] Try ají de gallina
    A creamy, comfort-food stew composed of shredded chicken in a velvety sauce made of aji amarillo, evaporated milk, stale crustless bread, and ground walnuts. It is arranged over boiled potatoes alongside white rice, hard-boiled eggs, and Botija olives.
[ ] Taste pollo a la brasa
    Rotisserie chicken soaked in a marinade of dark beer, soy sauce, garlic, and cumin, slow-roasted over fragrant algarrobo wood. It is delivered with an immense pile of skin-on french fries and dipping sauces, especially the spicy yellow pollo cream.
[ ] Grab a butifarra sandwich
    A classic Lima tavern sandwich served on a crusty roll stuffed with homemade seasoned country pork ham (jamón del país). It is generously dressed with salsa criolla—a sharp relish made from julienned red onions, lime juice, and chilies.
[ ] Order arroz chaufa
    The backbone of Chinese-Peruvian (Chifa) cuisine: wok-fried rice tossed with scallions, eggs, ginger, and dark soy sauce, mixed with chicken, beef, or roasted pork. Flash-cooked on high flame to produce signature smoky wok hei aroma.
[ ] Try cau cau stew
    An Afro-Peruvian Criollo stew crafted from diced beef tripe and potatoes simmered with aji amarillo, garlic, turmeric, and fresh spearmint. Served traditionally alongside a mound of white rice to absorb the vibrant yellow gravy.
[ ] Order tacu tacu
    A pan-crisped patty made by mashing day-old rice and canary beans with aji amarillo paste and garlic, cooked until it develops a crunchy exterior. Typically crowned with a thin breaded steak, a fried egg, or drenched in a spicy seafood stew.
[ ] Try hot picarones
    Crisp, airy ring doughnuts made from yeast-leavened dough enriched with cooked pumpkin and sweet potato, quick-fried in bubbling oil. Doused while steaming hot with chancaca syrup boiled down with raw cane sugar, orange peel, and fig leaves.
[ ] Taste suspiro a la limeña
    An ultra-sweet 19th-century dessert featuring a rich golden dulce de leche base enriched with egg yolks, crowned by clouds of Italian meringue whipped with ruby port wine and dusted with cinnamon powder.
[ ] Try mazamorra morada with arroz con leche
    Known on street stalls as 'el clásico': a split bowl filled with sweet purple corn pudding laden with dried prunes (mazamorra morada) side-by-side with creamy cinnamon rice pudding (arroz con leche).
[ ] Drink authentic chicha morada
    A refreshing non-alcoholic beverage brewed by boiling whole cobs of purple corn with pineapple rinds, quince, apples, cloves, and cinnamon sticks. Once cooled, it is finished with fresh lime juice, sugar, and finely diced fruit.
[ ] Try hot herbal emoliente
    A comforting, slightly viscous herbal infusion brewed from toasted barley, flaxseeds, alfalfa, and horsetail grass. Street-side emolienteros blend the gelatinous warm liquid with herbal tinctures, lime juice, and raw sugar syrup to your liking.
[ ] Drink an authentic Pisco Sour
    Peru's signature cocktail shaken with grape-distilled Pisco Quebranta, fresh lime juice, simple syrup, and an egg white. Shaken hard with ice until a thick, velvety foam forms, topped with three drops of aromatic Amargo Chuncho bitters.
[ ] Sip a refreshing Chilcano
    A tall, fizzy highball blending fragrant Pisco with ginger ale, a splash of lime juice, and aromatic bitters served over abundant ice. Bars also offer macerado variations infused with exotic fruits like passion fruit or hierba luisa.

Checklist from Unload: https://unloads.me/c/food-lima