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Champús
Champús: Lima's thick, warm winter drink of mote corn, pineapple, quince and spices
When Lima's grey winter sets in, from June to September, champús sellers set up on street corners with big pots of this thick, fruity drink, ladled warm into glasses and eaten as much as drunk. It's made from mote (hulled white corn), simmered with pineapple, quince or apple, soursop, chancaca and warm spices, then thickened lightly with corn flour, so every spoonful has soft fruit and chewy corn in a spiced, molasses-sweet base. It is close in spirit to mazamorra morada but paler and tangier. The mistake people make is adding the thickener straight into the hot pot, where it forms lumps; always slake it in cold water first and pour it in while stirring. Canned or jarred hominy saves hours; frozen soursop (guanábana) pulp is in Latin shops and can be left out. Serve warm in glasses with spoons. Chef's tip: simmer the pineapple peel and core with the spices for the first 20 minutes, then strain them out; they give much of the flavour.
- Total time
- 80 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 8
Ingredients
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Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Put the pineapple peel and core in a large pot with 8 ¼ cups water, 2 cinnamon sticks, 6 cloves, 4 allspice berries and 2 strips orange peel. Bring to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes, until the water smells strongly of pineapple and spice.
20 minStep 2: Strain the liquid into a clean pot, discarding the peel and spices.
Step 3: Add 14 oz cooked white hominy (mote), the diced 1 pineapple, 1 quince, 1 apple and 10 ½ oz chancaca. Simmer over a medium heat, stirring now and then, until the fruit is tender and the chancaca has dissolved, 25–30 minutes.
30 minStep 4: Stir in 7 oz soursop pulp if using. Mix 4 tbsp corn flour with 150 ml cold water until smooth, then pour it into the pot in a thin stream while stirring.
Step 5: Simmer, stirring constantly, until the drink thickens to the texture of a thin custard and turns glossy, 5–8 minutes.
8 minStep 6: Serve warm in glasses with spoons. It thickens as it cools; loosen leftovers with hot water.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 250 kcal
- Protein
- 3 g
- Carbs
- 60 g
- Fat
- 1 g
- Fibre
- 4 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does champús take?
- About 80 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 60 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 8 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegan?
- Yes. It has no meat, fish, dairy or eggs.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of cinnamon sticks?
- ½ tsp ground cinnamon per stick.
- What can I use instead of cloves?
- Ground cloves, ¼ tsp for every 3 whole cloves.
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Spanish