The 3800 Different Types of Potatoes in Peru

While everybody agrees that the birthplace of the potato is in South America, the exact place of origin is unknown and reason for the one or other open dispute between Chile and Peru. There is scientific evidence that potatoes were domesticated as early as 10,000 years ago in the High Andes of southeastern Peru and northwestern Bolivia. They made the oldest archeological findings close to Lake Titicaca, the area around Ayacucho and in the Valley of Chulca. The word "papa" is originally Quechua and simply means tuber.

As wild potatoes taste bitter and contain small amounts of toxins, ancient cultures must have spent more an effort to select the right tubers for cultivation that are more tasty and less toxic. In the course of the centuries potatoes developed to be an important staple food and a primary energy source for early Peruvian cultures, the Incas and the Spanish conquerors. We believe that sailors returning from Peru and other countries in the New World brought potatoes back with them to Spain and England around 1570. But people suspected this botanical novelty, and it took around 100 years until they accepted the potato. Once established in Europe, the potato soon became an important food staple and field crop. It helped reduce famines in the 17th and 18th century. Despite being first introduced outside the Andes region only four centuries ago, today potatoes have become an integral part of much of the world's cuisine.

In Peru you can find over 3800 varieties of potatoes. They differ in size, shape, color, skin, pulp, texture and of course in their taste, but all have their place in the Peruvian cuisine.