Picarones (or Picarón ''singular'') are a Peruvian dessert that originated in
Lima
Lima ( ; ), founded in 1535 as the Ciudad de los Reyes (, Spanish for "City of Biblical Magi, Kings"), is the capital and largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón River, Chillón, Rímac River, Rímac and Lurín Rive ...
during the
viceroyalty
A viceroyalty was an entity headed by a viceroy. It dates back to the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the sixteenth century.
British Empire India
* British Raj, India was governed by the Governor-General of India, Governor-General and Vi ...
. It is somewhat similar to
buñuelos, a type of doughnut brought to the colonies by Spanish conquistadors. Its principal ingredients are
squash and
sweet potato
The sweet potato or sweetpotato (''Ipomoea batatas'') is a dicotyledonous plant in the morning glory family, Convolvulaceae. Its sizeable, starchy, sweet-tasting tuberous roots are used as a root vegetable, which is a staple food in parts of ...
. It is served in a doughnut form and covered with syrup, made from
chancaca (solidified molasses). It is traditional to serve picarones when people prepare
anticuchos, another traditional Peruvian dish.
History
Picarones were created during the colonial period to replace
buñuelos as buñuelos were too expensive to make. People started replacing traditional ingredients with squash and sweet potato. Accidentally, they created a new dessert that rapidly increased in popularity.
Picarones are mentioned by
Ricardo Palma in his book ''Tradiciones Peruanas'' (literally ''Peruvian traditions''). Picarones are also featured in traditional Latin American music and poetry.
This dessert is mentioned in the autobiographical memoirs ''Remembrances of thirty years (1810-1840)'' (
Spanish: Recuerdos de treinta años (1810-1840)) by Chilean
José Zapiola, who mentions that picarones were typically eaten in
Plaza de Armas de Santiago (Chile) before 1810.
Gallery
File:Picarones recién hechos.jpg
File:Picarones.jpg
Que ricos picarones!.jpg
File:Picaron.jpg, The picarones are one of the main typical dishes of Peru.
See also
*
List of doughnut varieties
Doughnuts are a type of List of fried dough foods, fried dough food. The following is a list of doughnut and fried dough pastry varieties.
Variations and specialties by region
The terms below constitute either names for different doughnut type ...
*
List of fried dough varieties
*
List of squash and pumpkin dishes
*
Sources
* Compton, M. D. April 20, 2004. ''Peruvian Traditions: Ricardo Palma’s Latin American Historic and Folkloric Tales''. United States. AuthorHouse.
* Plevisani, S. 2005. ''Dulce Pasión''. Lima, Perú. Quebecor World Perú.
* Ada y Maricarmen. February, 1997. ''El Arte de la Repostería''. Lima, Perú. Biblos
*
References
External links
Recipe for Picarones
{{Street food
Doughnuts
Peruvian desserts
Street food
Squash and pumpkin desserts