Venezuelan food: the most famous dishes in the country

Venezuelan food is one of the most delicious of typical Latin American cuisine. In fact, today it is increasingly common to find a wide variety of Venezuelan restaurants in large cities. If you’ve never tried any of their delicious dishes, you don’t know what you’re missing.

Venezuelan food delicacies

The gastronomy of Venezuela, like most of those of other Latin American countries, is a mixture. Here we can find a clear Spanish, Italian, German, French, Portuguese and even African heritage; all these mixed with the autochthonous food of the indigenous peoples prior to the conquest of America.

Venezuelan food dishes vary considerably depending on the geographical area of the country. But you should know that a large part of the gastronomy of Venezuela has the same base for all its meals. For example, cereals such as rice and corn predominate. If you ever visit this beautiful country or go to a Venezuelan restaurant in your city, we recommend you order some of these delicious dishes. You will not regret!

Creole Pavilion

One of our favorite dishes (if not to say that it is really our favorite) is the Creole pavilion. It is one of the most representative dishes of Venezuelan food and a whole mixture of flavors in your mouth.

El pabellón criollo tiene origen colonial

The Creole pavilion carries white rice, shredded meat, black beans or beans (that’s what they call beans in Venezuela), fried plantain and, in some places, sliced avocado. This rich delicacy is considered to be the national dish of Venezuela. The Creole pavilion is believed to have colonial origins and to date from the 18th century; According to the experts, the Creole pavilion arose when the slaves of the haciendas mixed the leftovers of the meals of the great landowners.

Cheese tequeños: indispensable of Venezuelan food

In recent times, it is increasingly common to find tequeños as a starter in some fusion food places. Tequeños are a kind of fried cheese rolls or fingers. Although the original recipe is believed to come from Asia, Venezuelan tequeños are simply delicious.

In Venezuela itself they still do not know very well where the famous Tequeños come from, but one of the most correct hypotheses is that they are originally from Los Teques (hence the name). According to this theory, the Tequeños were invented in the 1920s by the sisters of the Báez family (very famous in Los Teques).

But what are tequeños and why are they so delicious? Well, they are cheese rolls, covered with a fried dough. They are served as starters, tapas, appetizers. In some places they are served with tomato sauce to accompany them. There is a larger version of the tequeños, it is called tequeñon.

Venezuelan tripe

Tripe is a typical dish of much of Latin America, but inside Venezuelan food it has a very important place. The tripe has Spanish roots, is thick and has a very intense color. Not everyone can prepare a good tripe, since its preparation requires a long time to cook all the ingredients (meats and vegetables).

Tripe is made from the guts of the cow. The preparation of the tripe starts from the day before, when the guts are washed very well with hot water and must be left to rest with lemon and bicarbonate, overnight and in the refrigerator. Without a doubt a fairly elaborate recipe, but delicious.

Roasted Black

The black roast is another of the traditional Venezuelan food recipes that you cannot stop trying if you ever have the opportunity. The asado is a cylindrical cut of meat, which extends from the back of the beef and is known in the area as “boy round.” This stew is prepared with spices and papelón (molasses from sugar cane, boiled and curd); In addition, wine and sweet pepper are added.

This dish, which has its origin in Caracas, is served with cooked white rice and fried ripe plantain. Some also accompany it with salads and it is very characteristic at Christmas and New Years.

Arepa, emblem of Venezuelan food

Arepas are a religion in Venezuelan food, as are tortillas for Mexicans. And these dishes are quite similar. They have pre-Columbian origin, they are made from ground corn or precooked corn flour. The arepas are round and flat and their name was officially accepted by the Royal Spanish Academy in 1884.

La comida venezolana se acompaña con arepas

In Venezuela they can serve you arepas for breakfast, stuffed with just about anything, but they also serve as an accompaniment to main dishes. In fact, it is a very Venezuelan custom to eat arepas when partying.

Sancocho for the holidays

Sancocho is a very consistent soup based on vegetables, tubers, herbs and meat. It is a typical dish of Latin American food, as we can also find it in Cuba, Colombia, Ecuador or Panama, as well as in Venezuela, of course.

In Venezuela the sancocho is prepared during the weekend and also after some important party or celebration. It is the dish with which Venezuelan families gather at the table! Tradition says that the sancocho is prepared over a wood stove, which gives it a unique flavor. In this country the sancocho is prepared with chicken, beef, pork or “cruzao”, which is the union of these 3. Near the coast, the sancocho is made with fish.

This dish is accompanied with arepas (indisputable queens in all meals), banana, rice and avocado.

Cassava cassava

It is called cassava cassava or simply cassava or cassava, a crisp, unleavened bread that is very traditional in Venezuelan food. The cassava is made with cassava flour and has a circular shape, as well as being very thin. This dish is prepared on a comal (flat metal kitchen utensil) or on the grill. It has pre-Hispanic origin!

The casabe was prepared by the Native Americans of the Caribbean basin, so it is a typical recipe that we can find not only in Venezuela, but also in the Lesser Antilles, Colombia, Cuba, Haiti, etc.

There are multiple variants of casabe in Venezuela. In the south, for example, the bread is thick and is called “casabe burrero”. In the flat part of the country it is quite thin and is called “biscuit”, because it is very fragile to the touch. A combination of casabe with panela and cheese is also prepared, and is known as naiboa.

Casabe can be eaten with oil, with roast meat, as an accompaniment to fish; the thick variety of cassava is ideal to soak in the stew. As a curious fact, it should be mentioned that to prepare cassava, bitter or brava cassava is taken directly from the ground, washed, peeled and grated and then sifted. The device with which it is sifted is called sebucan.

Hayaca or Hallaca

The hayaca or hayaca is another typical dish of Venezuelan food and it is truly delicious. In other countries, like Mexico, the saca is called a tamale. We tell you that it is a corn flour dough, filled with a stew of beef, pork and chicken or chicken; This filling is sometimes accompanied by olives, raisins, capers, potatoes, carrots, and so on. The Halca is characterized by its presentation: wrapped in banana leaves and tied with a special cord.

La hallaca es un plato tradicional de la comida venezolana

This dish, which is usually very characteristic for the holidays, is made by flattening the dough in a special device; then the filling is added (already cooked) and it is folded into 4 parts (depending on the size of the sacaca) and then wrapped in the banana leaves. Once the Halca is tied, it is submerged with water and salt, preferably with firewood.

As a curiosity, we want to tell you that once the ingredients have been mixed with the dough, they are called Halca buns or Christmas buns. The preparation of the Halca is ancestral and its elaboration is an art. Do you dare to prepare yours?