South America: Fruit, Vegetables, & More

From the equator to the south pole, South America’s diverse ecosystems can grow almost anything.

Must Try Foods

Fresh Fruit – There’s nothing I love more than tropical fruits. And tropical fruit juices (jugos) and tropical fruit milkshakes (batidos) and tropical fruit salads, tropical fruit plates... you get the idea. Find these fruits in the market, in a grocery store, or through street vendors across the continent:

A few you might know: Mango; Piña (Pineapple); Fresas/Frutilla (strawberries); Arándanos (blueberries); Cerezas (cherries) and more.

A few you might not: Guanabana - a soft, white fleshy fruit with large black inedible seeds; Granadilla - don’t be put off by the frog egg looking interior, the seeds and juicy casing are both sweet and bitter. It’s a great combination; Maracuya - the passionfruit, also seedy on first cut but it makes for a wonderful drink; Lychee - the red, spiny outside reveals soft-sized fruit. Don’t eat the pit but suck on the sweet flesh and spit the pit out. Mora ­– black raspberry, an Andean fruit, grows naturally in the humid cloud forest on the vine.

One you know but you might not know about it’s many varieties:

Banano/Plantano - bananas and plantains are far more than the singular type of yellow fruit on the grocery store shelves around the world. They are bigger and smaller, firmer and softer, sweeter and blander. Some are best freshly peeled, others are fried or lightly boiled. Some are best red, purple, green, and brown. My favorites are as pan-fried plantains, as crispy chips, or little sweet bananas about half the size of global grocery bananas.

Vegetables & More – South America also has plenty of vegetables, starches, grains, and legumes.

Maiz – there are dozens of corn types across South America, over 50 just in the country of Peru! Hard, soft, red, yellow, purple, brown, white - there are many options. For a twist, try tostados- a popcorn-tasting corn kernel that’s been fried in oil and coated with sweet or salt.

Papas – there are more than 4,000 types of potatoes in Peru, Bolivia, and Ecuador alone. They are grown at altitudes above 3,000 meters and a staple of many Andean meals.

Yuca – native time South America’s tropical lowlands, yuca is the primary starch served with meals. Similar to potatoes - they can be boiled, fried, mashed, served in a stew, and prepared in many other manners.

Frijoles y arroz – rice and/or beans are served with many meals across Latin America. Countries in South America also serve

Quinoa – another Andean specialty, quinoa is a protein-packed seed that’s been grown for thousands of years in South America. It can be eaten in many vegetable-based dishes and is the principal ingredient of many Andean soups.