Bolivian food
Bolivian ingredients and what to use instead
This is the page that solves the real problem of cooking Bolivian food abroad. The recipes are not difficult. The difficulty is that five or six ingredients are not in your supermarket. Here is what to swap them for and — the part nobody tells you — what you lose by doing it.
The quick table
| If the recipe calls for | Use | What changes |
|---|---|---|
| Ají colorado | Ají panca paste | Almost nothing. The most faithful swap on this list. |
| Ají amarillo | Peruvian ají amarillo paste | Nothing: same product, different label. |
| Locoto | Rocoto, or habanero at a third of the quantity | Habanero is hotter and tastes tropical rather than vegetal. |
| Quirquiña | Coriander and rocket, three to one | You lose the bitterness. Llajua comes out milder. |
| Huacataya | Huacatay paste, or mint with basil | The paste is identical. Mint and basil get the freshness, not the anise depth. |
| Chuño | Day-old boiled potato, or potato flakes | A lot. This is the worst substitution here: it changes the texture of the whole dish. |
| Tunta | Chuño, if you can get it | Tunta is milder and more neutral; chuño adds a smoky note. |
| Royal quinoa | Ordinary white quinoa | Smaller grain, less creamy. Barely noticeable in soup. |
| Raw peanuts | Raw unsalted peanuts from an Asian or Latin grocery | Nothing, if they are genuinely raw. Roasted will not do. |
| Charque | Dried salted beef, or Brazilian carne seca | Less fibrous. Soak it for less time. |
| Mote | Canned hominy, drained and rinsed | Softer. Add it at the end so it does not fall apart. |
| Singani | Young, non-aromatic pisco | Very little. Both are unaged grape spirit. |
| Fresh criollo cheese | Desalted feta, or Mexican queso fresco | Feta brings too much salt: soak it in water for ten minutes. |
Three rules before substituting anything
1. Substitute the function, not the name. Chuño is not in chairo soup to taste of potato: it is there to soak up broth and add a spongy texture. Once you know what an ingredient is doing, you choose its replacement far better.
2. Colour is not flavour. The most repeated mistake is swapping ají colorado for sweet paprika because both are red. Paprika gives colour and nothing else; the fruity depth disappears and the dish falls flat.
3. If the substitute changes too much, change the dish. Some recipes are not the recipe without their ingredient. Llajua without chilli is tomato salsa; peanut soup with peanut butter is satay. Cook something else rather than serve a version that disappoints.
What is actually worth ordering
Four things travel well, last for years and change the result enough to justify the shipping:dried ají colorado, chuño, raw peanuts andsingani. With those four in the cupboard, most of this cuisine works properly.
What is not worth ordering: fresh herbs. Quirquiña and huacataya do not survive international shipping and in many countries will not clear customs. Buy them frozen or as paste.
If you are shopping in the US
Names change from country to country and that is where half the shopping list gets lost. Ask forají panca or guajillo for ají colorado, rocoto for locoto,papalo for quirquiña, huacatay paste for huacataya, hominy for mote and raw unsalted peanuts for maní crudo. Chuño has no English name at all; some shops label it freeze-dried potato or papa seca.
Frequently asked questions
What is the best substitute for Bolivian ají colorado?
Peruvian ají panca paste, which is almost identical in sweetness and colour. Failing that, Mexican guajillo chilli is the next best option, slightly more acidic: balance it with half a teaspoon of sugar per four chillies. Sweet paprika only supplies colour.
What can I use instead of chuño?
There is no real substitute, because no other tuber gives that spongy texture. The closest in function — soaking up broth and giving body — is day-old boiled potato, slightly dried out, or dehydrated potato flakes. The flavour will not be the same and it is worth saying so.
What replaces quirquiña in llajua?
Coriander with a little rocket, three to one. Quirquiña sits between the two: it has the perfume of coriander and the green bitterness of rocket. If you find papalo in a Mexican grocery, it is literally the same plant.
Can I use peanut butter for peanut soup?
Badly. Commercial peanut butter is roasted, sweetened and often has added oil, which gives you a sweet soup that tastes like satay sauce. If it is your only option, use 100% peanut butter with no sugar at half the quantity, knowing the result is a different dish.
Where to start cooking
Three recipes that work first time with what you can find abroad:pique macho, which has no difficult ingredient at all;silpancho, which uses ordinary beef; andsalteñas, which depend on patience rather than shopping.