Venezuela

Cooking by Country - June 2004

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Go to:-    Venezuela Speciality Dish | Venezuelan Featured Ingredient | Cooking by Country Main Page

Ancient Times and Influences

In early times the rich and bountiful lands of Venezuela easily sustained the hunter-gatherer nomads occupying the area and archaeological evidence shows that by 2,000 BC, three main tribes namely the Arawaks, Caribs and Chibcha had settled in the coastal and Llanos (plains) regions. Although all of them practiced farming to some extent, the fact that they had an abundance of fish, seafood, wild animals and indigenous fruit and vegetables on their doorsteps meant that full time farming wasn’t essential. However, complicated crop irrigation and agricultural methods were practiced by the Chibcha, the most advanced of the three tribes who lived on the eastern slopes of the Andes.

One important crop cultivated early on (certainly by the Arawaks) was cassava, a root vegetable from which bread was made. They also grew corn (maize), squash, beans, peppers, sweet potatoes, yams and peanuts.

The arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1498 brought with it Spanish colonisation. Initially searching for gold, attentions were soon turned to agriculture and with enthusiasm for chocolate reaching fever pitch in Europe by the mid 1700s, cocoa plantations were all the rage in Venezuela. At first indigenous Indian labour was used, however with a decrease in the population due to “imported” diseases such as measles and smallpox, slaves from Africa were soon to be imported, bringing with them their cultures and culinary habits.

Also a large number of Spanish immigrants were attracted to Venezuela.  With few Spanish women willing to brave this New World country, the European men soon intermixed with both the indigenous Indian women and the imported African women adding another dimension to the country’s cuisine and the beginnings of a more diverse population and cuisine.

The raising of cattle also became an important economic venture and many ranches or haciendas sprung up across the plains.
 

Current Day Cuisine

The food in Venezuela today is a mixture of African, native Indian and European cuisines which has evolved over the centuries. It also shares many Caribbean influences in its flavours, techniques and ingredients. It is a flavoursome but not necessarily hot cuisine, using ingredients like sweet peppers, garlic, onions and coriander as flavour enhancers.

Corn is a staple and is used to make pancakes of one type or another although wheat is also used. Instead of bread, most Venezuelans eat arepas which are fried or baked corn pancakes, either plain or with a filling. You can find out more about Arepas in the Speciality Dish in this section. Other staples include beans and rice.

Fried and grilled fish  such as trout, red snapper, baby shark (cazon), and shellfish such as oysters prawns and clams are popular and meats such as beef and chicken are common everyday foods, although other meats such as goat are preferred in certain regions, with pork eaten mostly at Christmas.

There is still an abundance of locally grown fruit and vegetables in Venezuela including Mango, papaya , avocado, bananas, coconut, melon, pineapple and guava. Cassava is still widely cultivated as are plantains which are served at most meals, rice, potatoes and yams. Yellow, black, and white beans, tomatoes, lettuce, cabbage, carrots, aubergine, cucumber and peas are amongst the many other vegetables grown and extensively consumed.

The largest meal in Venezuela is eaten between 12 and 3pm and many Venezuelans return home for lunch. The evening meal usually consists of a light supper at around 8pm or later.

Click here for lots of Venezuelan recipes
 

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