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Chuño phuti
Chuño phuti: Puno's freeze-dried black potatoes crumbled and scrambled with egg and cheese
Chuño are potatoes freeze-dried the ancient way on the Altiplano: left out on frosty nights, trampled to squeeze out the water and dried in the high sun, so they keep for years. In Puno and across the border in Bolivia, they are soaked, crumbled and fried with onion, then scrambled with egg and fresh cheese to make phuti, a hearty breakfast or supper eaten with a hot tea. The texture is dense and slightly chewy, and the flavour earthy and a little tangy. Chuño is sold dried in Andean shops; it must soak overnight (ideally 24 hours, with the water changed) and then be peeled, which adds time before you start. The mistake is not soaking or rinsing enough: under-soaked chuño smells strong and stays hard in the middle. Serve with a fresh tomato salsa or uchucuta. Fresh cheese is usually made with animal rennet, so use a vegetarian one if needed. Chef's tip: squeeze the soaked chuño hard between your palms before crumbling; the drier it is, the better it fries.
- Total time
- 40 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Drain 10 ½ oz chuño (freeze-dried black potatoes), peel off the dark outer skins with your fingers and rinse well. Taste a corner: if it smells strong or is still hard, soak in fresh water for another hour.
5 minStep 2: Boil the chuño in fresh water until tender all the way through, about 15 minutes, then drain and squeeze out as much water as you can.
15 minStep 3: Crumble the chuño into pieces the size of peas with your fingers.
Step 4: Heat 3 tbsp vegetable oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat and fry 1 red onion until soft and golden, 5 minutes. Add 1 tomato and cook for 2 minutes until it collapses.
7 minStep 5: Add the crumbled chuño and fry, stirring, until hot and lightly toasted in spots, about 3 minutes.
3 minStep 6: Lower the heat, pour in 4 eggs and scatter over 5 ½ oz queso fresco, ½ tsp salt and ¼ tsp black pepper. Stir gently until the eggs are just set and creamy and the cheese softens, 2–3 minutes.
3 minStep 7: Serve at once, with 2 tbsp parsley over the top if you like.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 390 kcal
- Protein
- 16 g
- Carbs
- 52 g
- Fat
- 14 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does chuño phuti take?
- About 40 minutes in total: 15 minutes to prepare and 25 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- 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 red onion?
- White onion or shallots, same amount (soak raw onion in cold water for 10 minutes to soften it).
- What can I use instead of tomato?
- Tinned chopped tomatoes: a 400g tin for about 6 tomatoes (in cooked dishes, not salads).
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