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Nine Great Latin American Food Facts

Bowl of ceviche, a food Peru is known for.

Peru is known for its ceviche and fried guinea pig.

Latin American woman using a stone grinding tool, grinding cacao to make mole.

Oaxaca is known for its seven moles: manchamanteles, chichilo, amarillo, rojo, verde, coloradito, and negro.

Sliced guava displaying its vibrant pink interior and seeds.

Yucca, guava, lime beans, black-eyed peas, and corn are native to the Spanish Caribbean.

Many stacked baskets of acai berries, from northern Brazil.

The “superfood” açai berry comes from northern Brazil

A collection of traditional yerba mate gourds with metal rims and bombilla straws.

Yerba Mate—an infusion made from the yerba plant—is traditionally served in a gourd with a metal straw.

La marraqueta, a traditional Chilean yeast bread.

La marraqueta is a traditional Chilean yeast bread. Chileans consume almost 220 pounds of bread per person, per year.

A close-up of Cochinita Pibil, a traditional SE Mexican shredded pork dish with a red sauce.

The cochinita pibil (pork) is part of the culinary legacy of southeast Mexico.

Arepas, a Venezuelan dish of grilled/stuffed flatbread made of ground maize & twice fried plantains.

Arepas, a grilled and stuffed flatbread made of ground maize, and tostones, twice fried plantains, are national dishes.

Puerto Rican pasteles with masa of green banana, plantain, taro, pumpkin, and annatto oil.

The masa for the popular Puerto Rican pasteles consists of green banana, plantain, taro, pumpkin, and annatto oil.