Vegetarian and Vegan Diet Concerns While Traveling in Peru

For people with selective diets, such as vegetarian, vegan or raw vegan, there may be concerns about the feasibility of maintaining the diet while traveling. My experiences as a mostly raw vegan were that this really isn't a problem. Finding fresh fruits and veggies is easier than in most places in the United States. Every city that I visited, no matter the size, had a central market that was open daily. Some cities also had a weekly street market where vendors filled the streets with their products.

These markets are where the locals shop for most of their needs. The fixed markets, that is, those that are open daily consist of "puestos" or stands, that are individually owned. They are usually located inside a covered tent-like structure. Many puestos make fruit smoothies in a blender or prepare non-vegetarian or cooked food on a grill. Here you can buy locally grown fruit and take it back to your room to eat when you are hungry.

Most of these markets are centrally located. The employees at your hostel or hotel can usually give you directions. The market en Lima is off the tourist path a ways but well worth the trek. It's in a huge cement structure that looks like a parking garage with ramps that go up to different levels. Here you can get anything and it's the only place in Peru that I could find bubble wrap.

When selecting produce, it is recommended to stick to fruits and vegetables that have a peel. This way the food is protected from bacteria and germs. So things like strawberries, tomatos, celery or lettuces is best to avoid. Examples of foods that I ate: avocados, bananas, cucumbers, cherimoyas, mamays, mangos and papayas. I learned to travel with my own ceramic peeler.

If you eat in the restaurants, you'll want to learn the names of food items on a menu so you don't accidentally order something you don't want to eat. I found this to be challenging as many of the words on the menus were regional. You may have to interrogate the server. Although most restaurants are willing to accommodate special requests, you really have to be clear and specific what your needs are. The waitstaff may not understand the nature of your request. If they bring out something that contains cheese and you are a vegan, you can either eat around it or ask them to replace it. Keep in mind that the service is usually snail-paced in Peruvian restaurants so you may have to wait a long time. It is best to go into restaurants realizing that you may have to compromise. If there is any doubt, order a simple salad.

Most tour guidebooks have recommendations for vegetarian restaurants, including the world-wide Hare Krisha chain Govinda. (There's one in Lima, Miraflores, and Cusco.) I even found some vegetarian restaurants in some of the smaller towns like Máncora and Piura. Most grocery stores have a "healthfood" section which is little more than a few shelves of vegetarian treats like soy-based cookies and snacks.

I also enjoyed eating some of the street food. This of course is much cheaper than the restaurants but can be a bit dangerous if you are eating meat. The conditions aren't that sanitary, and I'm a certified food handler so I know what I'm talking about. They may not be washing the knives after cutting raw meat, etc. It's much safer to eat vegetarian food if you are going to eat the street food. There is a quinoa soup that street vendors sell in Lima which is delicious. And in the Andes it is common to find stands that sell a dish (I forget the name) that contains corn, onions and tomato. It's really simple, but delicious.

One of my favorite things to do in Peru is to have a glass of fresh-squeezed orange juice in the morning. Many of the cities I visited have orange juice stands. The vendor puts an orange in a vice and spins it manually against a blade to peel it. Then he or she puts the peeled orange in a press and squeezes out the juice. The juice goes into a bucket and when there is enough juice, they pour it into a glass. The self-contained cart even carries a place to wash the glasses after the customer finishes the drink. In most places a glass of juice only costs 1 sole (about 33 cents) but in Lima, especially in the morning they charge 2 soles.

Another treat if you can find it is freshly pressed sugar cane juice. I found a stand that sells this in Chiclayo and a roving stand (on wheels) in Huaraz. The one in Chiclayo used an electric motor, but the roving stand was pressed by hand. It is delicious.

In summary, eating a vegetarian or vegan diet in Peru is really easy. It definitely helps if you know enough Spanish to talk to the waitstaff or street vendors about the ingredients. The produce in the markets is usually fresh and abundant. And it's cheap! Just remember to keep smiling when the locals call you a rabbit (for eating rabbit food!)