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Traditional Ecuadorian fritada is a dish which consists of diced pork boiled down in water and left to fry in its own drippings. Pork is generously seasoned, while onions and garlic are usually cooked alongside the meat. Depending on the region, potatoes, plantains, hominy, fava beans, or corn can be served as side dishes accompanying tender and juicy chunks of pork.
Fritada has been eaten in Ecuador for centuries, and it can be found in many traditional restaurants and typical roadside eateries, popularly called huequitos.
MOST ICONIC Fritada
Fanesca is a unique Ecuadorian soup characterized by its thick consistency, consisting of fresh Andean grains, beans, peas, and lentils, combined with salt cod cooked in milk. There should be 12 different grains and beans in the soup, symbolizing the 12 disciples, as the soup is prepared only during the Easter festivities.
Fanesca is traditionally served in round bowls, garnished with fried plantains, parsley, and hard-boiled eggs.
MOST ICONIC Fanesca
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Encebollado is the national dish of Ecuador, a fish soup that is characterized by a large amount of onions. Very useful in curing hangovers, the dish is made with fresh tuna meat, cassava root, tomatoes, onions, coriander, and various spices. Tomatoes, onions, chili, coriander, and cumin form a pungent mix and a base for the soup, called sofrito, while pickled onions go either on top of encebollado or into it, giving it its name that is literally translated to onioned.
The soup originates from Ecuador's coast during the time when the fishers were out at sea and made the soup out of necessity. As they had some spices, and fresh fish was readily available, encebollado was created and became widely consumed throughout the country.
MOST ICONIC Encebollado
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Tigrillo is an Ecuadorian casserole-style dish made with a combination of mashed green plantains, cheese, and eggs. There are as many recipes as there are cooks, so some versions of tigrillo might include milk, ají hot sauce, or chicharrones (fried pork rinds).
Queso fresco is one of the most popular choices for the cheese, and when served, tigrillo can also be served with a fried or poached egg on top. The dish is traditionally served for breakfast in Ecuador.
MOST ICONIC Tigrillo
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Humitas is a dish popular throughout South America, especially in Chile, Argentina, Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador. The dish consists of corn cakes that are cooked in corn husks. In Argentina, humitas are usually made with corn, onions, and spices, and depending on the region, milk, red peppers, cheese, and spring onions might also be added to the combination, which is wrapped in corn husks and boiled.
In Ecuador, humitas are steamed and are usually made with ground corn, eggs, onions, and variable spices. The Chilean version adds basil and butter to corn and onions, and their humitas are boiled or baked. In Peru and Bolivia, people also prepare sweet humitas with added cinnamon and raisins.