Peru has three distinct geographic regions.
This map does a good job showing those three geographic features: Costa, the coastal desert, Sierra, the Andes mountains, and Selva, the Amazon rainforest (The text is color-coded to match the map!).
This very distinct geography has played a significant role in the development of Peruvian cuisine. The varied landscapes within Peru provide for the availability of a wide variety of ingredients as well as a diversity of cooking styles. Understanding the geography of Peru is the first step in understanding the cuisine of Peru.
These are the three regions of Peru:
The 3000 kilometer long coastline of Peru is a dry desert facing an ocean teeming with sea life. Fertile watersheds (an area or ridge of land that separates waters flowing to different rivers, basins, or seas.) are carved out along the desert floor by rivers that descend from the Andes mountains as they head westwards towards the Pacific.
Also 3000 kilometers long, running parallel to the coast, the Andes mountains are the spine of the country. The Andes separate the coastal desert on the west from the Amazon rainforest on the east. The Andes contain numerous microclimates suited for varied types of agriculture as they ascend from the coastal desert floor, rise upwards as high as 6700 meters, and then descend along their eastern flank into the lush Amazon rainforest.
The Amazon rainforest of Peru is a region crisscrossed with rivers flowing eastward down the Andes mountains, through lush terrain, converging with other rivers, all flowing eastward to join the mighty Amazon on its journey to the Atlantic Ocean. Much of the rainforest is still isolated and unexplored. In fact, the main Peruvian city in the Amazon, Iquitos, to this day can only be reached by plane or boat, not by road.
Learn more about each region:
http://www.inkalandtours.com/culture_english1.html
This map does a good job showing those three geographic features: Costa, the coastal desert, Sierra, the Andes mountains, and Selva, the Amazon rainforest (The text is color-coded to match the map!).
This very distinct geography has played a significant role in the development of Peruvian cuisine. The varied landscapes within Peru provide for the availability of a wide variety of ingredients as well as a diversity of cooking styles. Understanding the geography of Peru is the first step in understanding the cuisine of Peru.
These are the three regions of Peru:
The 3000 kilometer long coastline of Peru is a dry desert facing an ocean teeming with sea life. Fertile watersheds (an area or ridge of land that separates waters flowing to different rivers, basins, or seas.) are carved out along the desert floor by rivers that descend from the Andes mountains as they head westwards towards the Pacific.
Also 3000 kilometers long, running parallel to the coast, the Andes mountains are the spine of the country. The Andes separate the coastal desert on the west from the Amazon rainforest on the east. The Andes contain numerous microclimates suited for varied types of agriculture as they ascend from the coastal desert floor, rise upwards as high as 6700 meters, and then descend along their eastern flank into the lush Amazon rainforest.
The Amazon rainforest of Peru is a region crisscrossed with rivers flowing eastward down the Andes mountains, through lush terrain, converging with other rivers, all flowing eastward to join the mighty Amazon on its journey to the Atlantic Ocean. Much of the rainforest is still isolated and unexplored. In fact, the main Peruvian city in the Amazon, Iquitos, to this day can only be reached by plane or boat, not by road.
Learn more about each region:
http://www.inkalandtours.com/culture_english1.html