Writes: Luis Carbajal (@ lroberto92)
This country of Central America is well known for its engineering, beaches and wide biodiversity, but also the gastronomy of Panama it can make you fall in love with both your eyes and your palate. Its coastal landscapes link the oceans Pacific and Atlantic, but in its more urban interior majestic skyscrapers emerge. Taste in the city or in the most coastal area its best delicacies with exclusive products of Panamanian lands. Next, we present the most popular and important dishes, as well as drinks, in addition to the Main places that you must visit on your trip to the 'canal' country.
Exclusive dishes of the gastronomy of Panama
- Panamanian Sancocho: This is one of the most identifying dishes of the gastronomy of Panama, is made based on backyard goose meat and is served as Soup. It is a tough meat stew and cilantro, onion, oregano, garlic, vegetables and a little salt are added. The hen is cooked over low heat and once prepared it can be accompanied with a little rice.
- Rice with beans: It is one of the most common foods in the country, there are hundreds of ways to prepare it and one of the succulent ingredients is the beans.
- Corn tortilla: Panamanian breakfasts are very nutritious. Among the ingredients they have the corn tortilla fried, which is often accompanied by fresh cheese or banana.
- Fried yucca: This is a very succulent plant that usually accompanies many dishes, it is usually eaten in long pieces and simmered until it softens. It can also be filled with seasoned ground beef and cheese.
- ceviche: instead, this is a common delicacy in several Central American and Latin American countries. It consists of cutting the fish into pieces or using pieces of shellfish. Then it is macerated with juice of lemon and in Panama is often accompanied by pretzels.
- Panamanian tamales: another very common dish in several countries, but also in the gastronomy of Panama, where it is usually wrapped in banana leaves and it is cooked with a corn dough mixed with raisins. It is then stuffed with chicken or pork meat.
- Meat "old clothes": This is the name given in the vast majority of Latin American countries when we refer to the shredded meat. It is cooked with tomato, garlic, onion and a little paprika. It is accompanied with a portion of fried rice and plantains.
Products and drinks 'canaleras'
- chicheme: drinks based on this cereal are very popular in Central America, is typical of western Panama: La Chorrera. It is made from ground corn and milk, sweetened with sugar, spices are added and it is usually eaten hot on a cool night to combat the heat.
- Corn chicha or strong: This is another of the most succulent drinks of the gastronomy of Panama, its preparation is very laborious, the dough is cooked and it is usually eaten cold. It is a typical drink of the communities indigenous and it is made based on germinated. It means bitter or spicy chicha. The original recipe includes the fermentation of the previously chewed granola.
- Guarapo: this is a juice extracted directly from the sugar cane and it is typical of the summer, it is more and more frequent to find it in different streets of the Panamanian city. It has many properties, especially for the kidneys.
- Sour milk: Prepared from fermented milk, it is usually consumed as a soft drink.
- saril chicha: a typical drink at the time Christmas came to the gastronomy of Panama thanks to the immigration of Jamaica. Its preparation consists of chalices of saril, ginger and sugar. It is accompanied with ice.
- Gueisha Coffee: It is listed as one of the best coffees in the world, it is one of the most expensive and most exotic produced in the 'canal' country.
Enjoy each and every one of these delicacies accompanied by a typical drink of the gastronomy of Panama after visiting its places of interest. The capital city itself, full of gigantic buildings, casinos and nightclubs, stands out, but there is also the Metropolitan Natural Park. On the coast, Bocas del Toro, San Blas or the Gatun Lake are other attractions that add to the famous Panama Canal.
