Chifa
Chifa is the Chinese-Peruvian culinary tradition, built on Cantonese cooking adapted to Peruvian ingredients and tastes. The word also names the restaurants that serve it, and it is a everyday part of life in Lima and much of Peru.
History
Chinese workers, many from Guangdong province, arrived in Peru in the mid-nineteenth century under contracts that often resembled servitude. They kept their cooking traditions, importing ingredients and growing their own vegetables.
After gaining their freedom, some opened small inns serving food and lodging to working-class people. The earliest documented ones date from 1863 and 1874, in Camaná and Huánuco. The first Lima chifa with a formal opening date was the Kuong Tong, in 1921, and other restaurants followed in the Chinatown around Capón Street. The cuisine then spread across the country and, later, abroad with Peruvian emigration.
Culture
Chifa is eaten across all social classes, from neighbourhood eateries to more upscale restaurants, and it is a common choice for family celebrations. Its signature dishes include arroz chaufa, tallarín saltado and the generous combination known as aeropuerto. It is typically accompanied by sillao, tamarind sauce and often Inca Kola, while jasmine tea has a long tradition. Today it can also be found in several neighbouring countries and in Europe.
Legend and fact
Popular accounts explain the name in various ways; some say it comes from a Chinese phrase meaning 'have you eaten yet?', while Peruvian lexicographers favour a Cantonese expression meaning 'to eat cooked rice'. Stories about the origins of Capón Street mix anecdote with fact and should be treated with caution.