One of my favorite things about traveling is trying different food. I love how every country has its typical dishes, and Ecuador is no different. Ecuador’s agriculture is varied, and I eat here vegetables and fruits that I had not heard about before, such as plantain or yuca. If you want to know more about the food in Ecuador, keep on reading!

Did you know that Ecuador is the largest producer of exported bananas in the world? They grow many different types of bananas (over 300!!) and they use bananas as ingredients for their dishes. Almost every plate is accompanied by plantain (either the sweet or the savory version), which is a type of the many different bananas. The green ones are the savory type. They are green because they are not ripe yet. In Ecuador, they refer to this type of plantain as ‘Verde’. In other countries, they refer to this type as ‘cooking banana’. If the skin of the plantain is yellow, they direct to them as ‘Maduro’. This type is already ripe and has a sweet taste.

Ecuador has four regions and each region has its specialty. The diet on the coast of Ecuador includes fish and seafood such as shrimp, octopus, and shells. While the cuisine in the Andean highlands includes pork, guinea pig, mote, and potato.

Typical food from the coast region

Ceviche

Ceviche can be found in many Latin American countries and each country has its own version, including Ecuador. Personally, it is my favorite dish. Even here, when you order Ceviche the preparation differs per local. Ceviche is a cold ‘soup’ with seafood marinated in lime. Most places use the following ingredients: seafood, lime, tomato, red onion, and cilantro (this is my favorite type) but others add ketchup with mustard to the ceviche. They prepare ceviche with many different types of seafood, but the most common one is fish, shrimp, octopus, shell, oysters, squid, or a mix of seafood. The price for a ceviche differs between $5-$8 depending on which type of seafood you choose. People eat ceviche with chifle (fried green plantain, looks like chips), patacones (fried plantain), or rice.

Encebollado

Encebollado is another seafood dish from the coast. It is very popular in Guayaquil. The dish is made of Albacora, yucca, onion, and tomato among a few ingredients. You eat encebollado hot, like a soup, with chifle. People will eat this soup in the morning and it is difficult to find a restaurant that serves this dish after noon. It is a great dish to eat when you have a hangover ;). Even though it has fish, it does not taste fishy at all (which surprised me the first time I tried). The price of an encebollado will be between $3 and 5 dollars.

Bolon

Bolon is another typical Ecuadorian dish that you must try! It is a big dough made of fried plantain, stuffed with cheese and chicharrón (bacon). When you order this, you can choose with or without cheese or bacon and if you want it to be made of sweet or savory plantain (I suggest the savory one!). If you are in Guayaquil I would recommend one from Cafe El Terre. The dish is quite big to eat and you will be full all morning for only $3.

Tigrillo

If you don’t know what to get for breakfast, you should go for Tigrillo! Another plate that is prepared with green plantain. A tigrillo consists of mashed green plantain, fried with eggs and melted cheese. You can add here chicharrón (bacon) to give it more flavor. The dish is soft and creamy and again a delicious dish from Ecuador. Typically, people eat this for breakfast. For tigrillo you would pay around $4 to $6.

Typical food from the Andean Highlands

Cuy Asado

Cuy Asado is a roasted guinea pig and is a typical dish in Ecuador with a long tradition. It is most famous in Peru but in the highlands of Ecuador, you will also find this dish. Guinea pigs are eaten most in Cuenca, a city in the south of Ecuador. In the Inca time, the guinea pig was used as an offering to the gods, but also as food because the meat is very tasty and can be prepared in different ways. Ecuadorians mostly eat Cuy Asado at family parties or festivities. The dish is accompanied by mote (which is a type of corn) and a salad. Not everyone dares to try this on their visit to Ecuador but I recommend you to do so on your visit!

Hornado

Did you know that pigs did not exist in Latin America until the Spaniards brought them? Hornado is a traditional Ecuadorian dish of oven-roasted pork in a marinade of chicha (a typical drink from fermented corn), garlic, cumin, and achiote (oil made from a special tree). You can buy this at many places in local markets in mountain cities such as Cuenca, Ambato, or Riobamba. They bake the whole pig in a large oven made of clay. The dish is accompanied by mote (which is a type of corn), potato, and a salad. There is not one price to this plate. You tell the lady behind the stand for how many dollars you want pork. We usually order for $5 and if we are still hungry we order another plate.

The first time I saw hornado and a full pig at the market, I was a little skeptical but the flavor is really good! When we visit the mountains we enjoy it a little extra because it is hard to find in Guayaquil.

Fritada

Another typical dish of Ecuador made with pork is Fritada. First, they cook the pork in boiling water with various spices and then fry it in pork fat. It is one of my favorite dishes as it has a lot of flavors. Fritada is crunchy pieces of pork served with mote (type of corn) and salad. You can find this food almost everywhere in Ecuador such as at little stands along the road or at local markets in cities like Riobamba, Ambato, or Pallatanga.

Other typical dishes in Ecuador

Each region has its specialty but some food is served throughout the country and you can order it anywhere you go.

Almuerzo

You may know that Almuerzo in Spanish means lunch. In Ecuador, it is very typical to eat a warm, big lunch which is called ‘Almuerzo’. Everyone will eat this from Monday through Friday. Almuerzo consists of a soup, a plate of rice with meat or fish, and a juice. Every place that sells Almuerzo will give you 1 or 2 options to choose from. The prices for an Almuerzo vary from $2,50 and $4,00 depending on which place you go to. All the women cook this for lunch in their house or if they work too they will buy Almuerzo at work.

Seco de Pollo

Very typical dish throughout the whole of Ecuador and people eat this at lunchtime. The sauce is a special part and is very easy to make. It consists of different condiments and you cook the chicken for some time in there. I really like this and it is one of the dishes that I know how to cook myself. You make Seco de Pollo with chicken but you will see it also on the menu with pork, goat, or meat. I definitely recommend you to try it!

I hope you got some inspiration to try one of these dishes on your visit to Ecuador! You know now what to order in every region of Ecuador. Don’t leave Ecuador before you try their typical dishes.