Ecuador is divided into 4 regions (Sierra, Costa, Oriente, and Galapagos), and each región individually has its own cultures, own traditional clothing and of course also it’s own food. Here I am going to focus on the food in the Sierra because I currently life and work in the Sierra and I am therefore very familiar with its local cuisine. While the food in the Ecuadorian Sierra is rather meat based, follows the food in the Costa and on Galapagos a rather fish based diet. In the “Oriente” you can find an eye-catching amount of tropical fruits which includes Granadillas, Tree tomatoes, and many other fruits you have never heard of as a person from Europe or the USA.
If I had to sum up the average menu of the Ecuadorian Sierra, I wouldn’t hesitate and immediately say: rice! Rice is the most prominent part of each Ecuadorian meal. There is always rice in each meal. Once I even found rice next to pasta in a restaurant. In the Sierra, meat consumption plays an unneglectable role. While breakfast is often consumed meatless, you can for sure always find any kind of meat in any Ecuadorian Sierra “Almuerzo”.
There’s a lot of pork and in my host family we almost always eat chicken. Next to the rice and the meat, you will probably find fruits like avocados or green cooked bananas. Finally let’s go to the Sweet snacks which you will most likely learn to enjoy in Ecuador. Next to an incomparable pallet of fresh divine tropical fruits, you can also discover the Chifles. Chifles are dried and fried banana slices which seem like conventional Chips but have a totally unique taste. I personally also really enjoy Tostados. Tostados is dried and cooked corn which serves as a healthy snack in any kind of situation. I can talk a lot about Ecuadorian food, but I would probably never even come with my description close to the real experience. You just have to try it out yourself and enjoy it.