Name: Puca picante
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 78 min
Total time: 103 min
Cuisine: Peruvian cuisine
Ingredients: 500 g boneless pork shoulder — cut into bite-size pieces; 900 g white potatoes — peeled, in 2 cm cubes; 650 ml water — 400 ml for pork, 250 ml for potatoes; 35 g sunflower oil — for browning and sofrito; 250 g cooked beetroot — peeled and grated; 140 g red onion — finely chopped; 16 g garlic — minced; 65 g ají panca paste — unsweetened; 70 g roasted unsalted peanuts — finely ground; 3 g ground cumin; 6 g salt — divided between meat and sauce; 10 g fresh huacatay — finely chopped

Puca picante with pork, potato and beetroot

Yield 4 servings

Prep time 25 minutes

Cook time 78 minutes

Passive time 0 minutes

Total time 103 minutes

Ingredients ↓

Overview

Puca picante with pork, potato and beetroot

The word puca means red in Quechua, a useful clue to the appearance of this Ayacucho dish. Beetroot and ají panca tint the potato sauce, while toasted ground peanuts give it a rounded thickness. Pork may be cooked in the sauce or served beside it as chicharrón.

Here the pork is simmered until tender, then lightly browned and returned to a beetroot-and-ají sauce. Cooked potato pieces are folded in near the end so they hold their shape rather than collapse into mash. The peanuts should be ground fine enough to thicken the juices without a gritty finish.

A measured amount of liquid matters because the beetroot and potato both contribute moisture. The final pan should contain a generous coating of bright red sauce around visible potato and meat, not a thin soup. Local preparations vary, so the precise ratio of pork to potato here is one coherent home version.

Ingredients

Pork and potatoes

500 g boneless pork shoulder — cut into bite-size pieces
900 g white potatoes — peeled, in 2 cm cubes
650 ml water — 400 ml for pork, 250 ml for potatoes
35 g sunflower oil — for browning and sofrito

Red sauce

250 g cooked beetroot — peeled and grated
140 g red onion — finely chopped
16 g garlic — minced
65 g ají panca paste — unsweetened
70 g roasted unsalted peanuts — finely ground
3 g ground cumin
6 g salt — divided between meat and sauce
10 g fresh huacatay — finely chopped

Method

Tenderise the pork.Place pork with 400 ml of water and 3 g salt in a deep pan and simmer for 30 minutes, turning once; keep the reduced cooking liquid. The meat is tender enough to be pierced but still holds its shape. Cook pork to at least 63 °C with a three-minute rest before serving; simmer longer if still tough.
Part-cook the potato cubes.Boil the potato cubes in the remaining 250 ml water in a lidded pot for 15 minutes, with the pieces largely steaming; reserve any cooking liquid. The tip of a knife enters with slight resistance and the cubes retain edges.
Brown the pork edges.Warm 20 g oil in the pork pan and brown the drained pork for 7 minutes on medium heat; lift onto a clean plate. Several edges are browned without drying out the centres.
Cook the ají panca base.Add the remaining 15 g oil, onion, garlic, ají panca and cumin; cook for 9 minutes while stirring. The ají loses its raw taste and the onion becomes soft.
Thicken with beetroot and peanuts.Stir in grated beetroot, ground peanuts and the reserved pork liquid, simmer for 12 minutes until thickened. The sauce clings to the back of a spoon without pooling. Stir often so ground nuts do not scorch.
Fold in potato and pork.Return pork with potato cubes, add the final 3 g salt and huacatay, and fold gently for 5 minutes. Potato surfaces are evenly stained red but the cubes remain distinct. Serve hot or cool promptly for refrigeration.

Practical

Success points

The success point is a finely ground peanut thickener and potato cubes added only at the end.

Practical guidance

Ají panca is a dark red Peruvian chilli with a particular flavour; generic red pepper powder produces a different sauce. The cooked beetroot adds colour and moisture, rather than turning the dish into beet salad. The peanut powder should dissolve into the sauce. If the sauce starts catching before it thickens, stir continuously over low heat rather than increasing the heat. Peanut is a major allergen in this dish. Cool and refrigerate leftovers within two hours; reheat to 74 °C and avoid keeping cooked potato dishes at room temperature.

Control points

The sauce is chalkyThe peanuts are too coarse or have not simmered long enough. Grind finely and cook gently for several more minutes.
The potatoes fall apartThey were fully cooked before being added. Stop the first simmer while the cubes still resist the knife slightly.

Nutrition per 1 of 4 servings

Serving size1 of 4 servings
Calories690 kcal
Carbohydrate65 g
Protein35 g
Fat32 g
Fibre8 g
Sodium790 mg

Allergens and food safety

Ground peanuts are a major allergen; check packaged pastes for other allergens. Pork must reach at least 63 °C with a three-minute rest; refrigerate promptly and reheat leftovers to 74 °C.

Closing

What to expect: Pork and potatoes are enveloped in a dense red ají-beetroot-peanut sauce.
Key control: The success point is a finely ground peanut thickener and potato cubes added only at the end.