(Japanese) The country of Peru was attacked by a Spaniard named Pizarro in 1531. Before that, the pre-Incas, Incas. After that, Spain, Italy. Later, of course, the Chinese, the Japanese…Many different cultures came and assimilated, and now there are many types of cuisine that use just the most delicious elements of each. So these, of course, taste great. For us chefs the most important thing is the ingredients, and those ingredients are right here in front of us. In abundance. All of those interesting cultures are assimilated. There’s no way the cuisine wouldn’t be delicious. You know, until now, people didn’t know what Peruvian cuisine was. But now it’s getting a lot of attention.
Just recently I came back from Zaragoza, Spain. I’m telling you, the mass media and others…everyone wanted to learn more. It was the same in Barcelona. Every place was packed. So in that way, I think Peruvian cuisine will become better known. Mr. Matsuhisa, too...Fundamentally, of course, he does Japanese cuisine, but he says the first thing he did was actually Latin cuisine. Peruvian cuisine, really. I think that’s his real base. That shows you how interesting Peru’s culinary culture really is.
Date: April 18, 2007
Location: Lima, Peru
Interviewer: Ann Kaneko
Contributed by: Watase Media Arts Center, Japanese American National Museum
Journal feed
