Pachamanca
Pachamanca takes its name from the Quechua words for "earth" and "pot," and its roots reach back to pre-Columbian Andean cooking, long before Spanish colonization brought metal ovens to Peru. Communities across the highlands used heated stones buried underground to cook meat and root vegetables for festivals honoring Pachamama, the earth mother, turning the meal into both a cooking method and a ritual offering of thanks for the harvest. The technique survives largely unchanged today, still built around a pit, fire-heated stones, and layers of banana leaves that trap steam and smoky flavor. Families and communities gather for the hours-long process, treating the slow reveal of the buried feast as a communal event rather than a quick meal. The result is meat that falls apart at a touch and vegetables infused with the mineral, earthy perfume of the stones themselves.
Cooked in a pit of hot stones
Heated volcanic stones buried in the earth steam the meat and vegetables from below
A mix of marinated meats
Pork, chicken, and sometimes lamb are rubbed with huacatay and chincho herbs before cooking
Layered with Andean vegetables
Native potatoes, sweet potatoes, and fava beans cook alongside the meat
Wrapped in banana or chala leaves
Leaves seal in steam and pass on an earthy, smoky aroma
Ingredients 4 servings
- 1.2kg pork shoulder, cut into large chunks
- 800g chicken thighs, bone-in
- 4 garlic cloves, crushed
- 3 tbsp huacatay paste (Peruvian black mint), or substitute mint and cilantro
- 2 tbsp chincho or dried oregano
- 60ml red wine vinegar
- 8 small native potatoes, unpeeled
- 4 sweet potatoes, halved
- 300g fava beans in their pods, plus banana leaves for wrapping
How to make it
- 1Rub the pork and chicken with crushed garlic, huacatay paste, chincho, vinegar, and salt, then let the meat marinate for at least two hours or overnight in the refrigerator.
- 2Dig a pit in the ground and build a fire over a bed of large stones, letting the flames burn down for about an hour until the stones glow red hot.
- 3Rake away the embers and quickly line the bottom of the pit with a layer of banana leaves over the scorching stones.
- 4Arrange the marinated meat, potatoes, sweet potatoes, and fava beans in layers, tucking hot stones between them so the heat reaches every layer.
- 5Cover everything tightly with more banana leaves, a wet cloth, and a mound of earth so no steam can escape during cooking.
- 6Leave the pachamanca to cook undisturbed for about an hour and a half, trusting the buried heat to steam and roast everything slowly.
- 7Uncover the pit carefully, lift out the smoky meat and vegetables, and serve everything together straight from the earth with a spicy huacatay sauce.
Nutritional info
per serving (~350 g)
Estimated nutritional values.
Pairs perfectly with
