By Virginia Cross A traditional chilli pepper found on tables across the Peruvian Amazon is on its way to the U.K, thanks to the English non-profit Plant Your Future. Spicing up dishes with some of this Amazon heat connects straight back to farmers working to restore the rainforest. This tiny pepper, known as ají charapita, […]
By Iván Ulchur-Rota “Was there enough for everyone?”, I asked Estefy Baldeón, chef and Canopy Bridge consultant, about the fish just grilled in a forest clearing on the banks of the Aguarico River in the Amazon. “Everyone ate,” she answered. “And they loved it.” After eating dinner around the fire, four chefs, the Canopy […]
“¿Alcanzó para todos?”, pregunté a Estefy Baldeón, chef y consultora de Canopy Bridge, sobre el pez que habían asado en un claro de bosque a orillas del Río Aguarico. “Comieron todos”, respondió ella. “Y les encantó”. Después de la cena alrededor del fogón, quedaron llenos y satisfechos cuatro chefs, sus acompañantes, tres miembros del […]
What do black outs in 17 historic churches of Quito, Ecuador, Amazonian hot peppers, and conservation have in common? The 2016 Earth Hour in Ecuador, where Amazon products were showcased during the World Wildlife Fund’s iconic event for climate change. The linchpin of this yearly event is an hour of turning off the lights […]
by Jacob Olander The Ecuadorian Amazon is remarkably easy to get to. In no other of the eight countries of the Amazon River basin is the rainforest so accessible. In just a 3-hour drive from the Andean capital city of Quito, where we live, you’re down in the rainforest lowlands. It´s one of my favorite […]
Read More… from In the Native Land of Cacao, Vanilla and Amazon Cinnamon
Rows of combines roll in formation across regimented soybean fields. In the Brazilian Amazon, thousands of square kilometers have been cleared for the production of soy and beef for export. This is one way of producing food from the rainforest. But there are other ways. In Peru, an Awajun farmer tends her farm in the rainforest. […]
From the sizzle in a pan, to the feel of cracking open a piece of salak, to the aroma and composition of a dish that, in the hands of the right chef, is best understood as art—culinary culture and much more were on display this year in Latitud Cero, the premier gastronomic congress in Quito. […]
Read More… from Shortening the Distance to the World of Sustainable Gastronomy
We recently worked with a Shanghai-based startup, Cambio Coffee, to connect them with sustainable producer groups as they searched for new partners in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. We joined up with Cambio Coffee’s Sebastián and Felipe Martin for part of their trip when they visited Quito and the Galapagos Islands. Cambio Coffee is a growing social enterprise dedicated to creating a positive impact on the environment and farming communities in Latin America […]
In Noli, a small comune in Liguria, Italy, Thomas Jefferson reports that you’ll find “a miserable tavern, but they can give you good fish viz. sardines, fresh anchovies, [etc.] and probably strawberries; perhaps too Ortolans.” In Rozzano, a comune in Milan, he recommends that you “ask for Mascarponi, a rich and excellent kind of curd, and enquire how it is made.” […]
Read More… from Thomas Jefferson: The Founding Father of… Gastronomic Tourism?
Virtually unknown outside its native Amazon rainforest home, ishpingo (or American Cinnamon) has a deep, earthy, fruity flavor that adds a surprising and hard-to-place dimension to both sweet and savory dishes. Once a promising spice that moved the dreams of adventurers, isphingo deserves to be rediscovered and better known. […]
Read More… from Rediscover ishpingo: the Amazon’s hidden treasure
