As we delve into the daily life of pre-Hispanic civilizations, we discover that among the peoples of America and especially Peru, there was a certain preference for developing beverages made from the various native plants of the continent.
The drink that conquered the conquistadors
To make Peruvian chicha, corn grains were crushed and soaked in water. Then, the woman responsible for preparing the chicha took some of that soaked corn, chewed it, and mixed it back with the rest, now with the fermenting enzymes from her saliva.
This mixture was boiled for several hours and then strained. The resulting liquid was left to ferment in clay vessels until the desired fermentation was achieved.
Generally, Peruvian chicha was fermented at low alcohol levels for daily consumption as a nutritious drink. However, those left to ferment longer reached a high alcohol content and were reserved for celebrations and rituals, where consumers often ended up intoxicated.
Stories say that when the conquistadors arrived in Inca lands, Atahualpa greeted them with gifts, including vessels filled with Peruvian chicha. The conquistadors were amazed by this beverage—possibly intoxicated as well—and adopted it as their own, replacing wine, which had yet to arrive from Mexico or Spain.
The arrival of the Jesuits marked a restriction on the consumption of Peruvian chicha, arguing that it conflicted with liturgical traditions of wine drinking and that these valley beverages led to drunkenness.
Thus, Peruvian chicha was relegated to native consumption.
The delicious purple chicha
From traditional Peruvian chicha, a product has emerged that has gained worldwide fame, even in its modern industrialized form. We are talking about purple chicha. This variety of beverages from the Peruvian valleys is made from culli corn, a purple corn variety.
To prepare purple chicha, the corn is boiled with pineapple pieces and flavored with clove and cinnamon. It should be clarified that purple chicha is non-alcoholic and does not require fermentation.
Today, the global market is flooded with an artificial purple chicha concentrate in powder form that only needs to be dissolved in cold water. Its flavor is somewhat sweeter than the naturally made version.
Nutrition experts affirm that naturally prepared purple chicha contributes to health due to the high antioxidant content of purple corn. Conversely, artificially produced purple chicha often contains a high number of calories.
A Latin American drink
While the process of chewing corn to ferment it has been gradually replaced by using yeast as a fermenting agent, the tradition of consuming chicha extends to almost all Latin American countries.
This is due to the significant role of corn in pre-Hispanic cultivation.
Chicha consumption spread throughout the Americas and, despite facing many critics and supporters, many considered Peruvian chicha as a factor of social decline.
Many governments attempted to ban its production and sale, but such measures always failed because Peruvian chicha can be made with very rudimentary ingredients. As prohibitions increased, so did homemade chicha consumption.
Today, some Peruvian communities maintain traditional methods of making chicha mainly for celebrations and ancestral rituals. However, it’s now common to find bars and restaurants selling Peruvian chicha.
Among the beverages from the Peruvian valleys, chicha has been the most resilient. Despite bans and religious opposition, indigenous peoples have preserved this tradition over the centuries.
From these pages, we want to highlight the value of Peruvian chicha as a cultural element of our oldest traditions.
This is not merely an homage; Peruvian chicha remains as present today as in the past. We also want to emphasize its importance because, even in gastronomy, our present is built by preserving everything that has shaped the nations we have today.
