Panamanian cuisine

Panamanian cuisine is a mix of Spanish, Indigenous, and African techniques, dishes, and ingredients, reflecting its diverse population. Since Panama is a land bridge between two continents, it has a large variety of tropical fruits, vegetables and herbs that are used in native cooking.

Common ingredients in Panamanian food are maize, rice, wheat flour, plantains, yuca (cassava), beef, chicken, pork and seafood.^[1]^[2]

Dishes

Corn-based dishes come from the kernel, cooked in water and then ground in order to obtain a dough (as opposed to using corn flour to obtain the dough). Fresh corn is also used in some dishes. Due to the multicultural background of the Panamanians, many of its dishes are heavily influenced by the cuisine of other Latin American countries and also the Caribbean as well as European. Some of the main meals, dishes and specialties include:

Almojábanos – S-shaped corn fritters.^[3]
Arroz con camarones y coco – rice with shrimp and coconut milk.
Arroz con chorizo y ajíes dulces ^{[citation needed]}
Arroz con pollo^[4]
Arroz con puerco y vegetales^[5]
Arroz verde^[6]
Bistec de higado – liver steak
Bistec picado – chopped beefsteak.
Bollos – corn dough wrapped in nahuala palm leaves,^[7] corn husk or plantain leaves and boiled. There are two main varieties: fresh corn bollos (bollos de maíz nuevo) and dry corn bollos. The dry corn type is sometimes flavored with butter, corn, or stuffed with beef, which is called bollo "preñado" (lit. "pregnant bollo"). Bollos have been described as a type of tamale.^[8]^[9]
Carne entomatada
Carimañola – similar to an empanada, but made from yuca and stuffed with beef^[1]
Ceviche – commonly made from corvina and tilapia^[1]
Chorizo con vegetales ^{[citation needed]}
Chuletas en salsa de piña
Empanadas – made either from flour or corn, and stuffed with meats and/or vegetables,^[10] cheese, and sometimes sweet fillings, such as fruit marmalade or manjar blanco (dulce de leche).
Ensalada de papas – potato salad, called ensalada de feria when beetroot is added.
Fried fish
Gaucho soup^[4]
Hojaldres/Hojaldras – a type of fry-bread, similar to South American countries, known in other countries as "blach tostones".
Lengua guisada – stewed beef tongue^[11]
Mondongo a la culona – stewed beef tripe^[12]
Palm tree flower – prepared like spaghetti^[13]
Pernil de puerco al horno – roasted pork leg
Plátano en tentacion – ripe plantain cooked in a sweet syrup.
Ropa vieja^[14]
Salpicón de carne^[15]

Sancocho^[6]
Tamal de olla^[1]
Tamales^[4]
Tortillas – these can be around ten to twelve inches in diameter (these are always cooked on a griddle), or smaller, around four inches (most of the time these are fried).
Torrejitas (Pastelitos) de maíz – A fresh corn fritter.
Tortilla Changa – a thick tortilla made out of fresh corn.
Tasajo – dried, sometimes smoked meat,^[16] usually from beef though the word refers mainly to the mode of curing rather than the type of meat.

Desserts

Bocadillo – Hardened square milk candies.^[17]
Bocado de la reina
Bolitas de tamarindo – Sugar balls with tamarind fruit.^[17]
Cabanga
Cocadas ^[1]
Cocadas – Coconut rolled candy made from condensed milk.^[17]
Dulce de papaya
Flan – Rimmed pastry or sponge base containing a sweet or savoury filling.^[1]
Gollería – sweetened plantain fritter
Huevitos de leche- Balls of milk candy^[17]
Mamallena
Manjar or manjar blanco^[17]^[18]
Mazamorra or pesada de nance
Meringue – Whipped eggs and sugar baked.^[17]
Orejitas – Ear shaped sugar coated flour.^[17]
Queque
Seasonal pineapple – grown in Panama using a hybrid of Hawaiian pineapple, it is very sweet^[19]
Sopa borracha ^[20]
Suspiros – Wafers made from flour that release air when you bite.^[17]
Tres leches^[21]

Drinks

In Panama there were bars that catered to local businessmen, tourists and gamblers and some that were frequented by US military personnel. The latter mostly had a reputation as "shot and beer" dives with unknown names. One of these bars, Kresch's Place, published a drink recipe book. Several of the drinks are named after bases, submarines, forts, ships and other military institutions. The "U.S.S. 44 Special" was Old Tom gin, sloe gin and lime juice. The U.S.S. Mallard was aged rum (Panamanian, Venezuelan and Colombian), red vermouth, Bénédictine, absinthe, Angostura bitters garnished with lemon peel. The cover of the recipe book shows soldiers, sailors and an Army officer drinking.^[22]

Beer
Chicha^[23]
Chicheme^[1]
Coffee
Fresh fruit juices (licuados or jugos naturales) – pineapple, passionfruit, papaya, orange, tree tomato, etc. are prepared by blending fresh fruit and straining; typically heavily sweetened and optionally with condensed milk added
Malteada – a malted eskimo-like milkshake without ice cream
Resbaladera
Ron ponche^[24]
Saril – a drink containing sorrel sepals, ginger, cinnamon, cloves, sugar, water, and a splash of rum)
Seco Herrerano^[25]

Spices

Achiote – common in Panamanian cuisine^[13]
Aji chombo – a hot pepper grown in local regions^[13]

Special occasions

Christmas

The traditional Panamanian dish for Christmas usually includes chicken tamales, arroz con pollo (rice with chicken), puerco asado, pernil, pavo (turkey), and relleno (stuffing).^[26] Bowls of fruits and fruitcake^[26] are set out on the tables along with the dishes. Along with these foods and dessert, a traditional drink is served called ron ponche^[24] (eggnog).

References

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Baker, C.P.; Mingasson, G. (2007). Panama. National Geographic traveler. National Geographic Society. pp. 22–23. ISBN 978-1-4262-0146-2. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ "Eating Down South: The Panama Experience". Jamaica Observer. November 28, 2016. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
^ "This Cheese Curl Gets Its Own Festival". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
^ ^a ^b ^c Helstosky, C. (2014). The Routledge History of Food. Routledge Histories. Taylor & Francis. p. 296. ISBN 978-1-317-62113-3. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ "The Exotic and Tempting Ethnic Food of Panama". Tastessence. Retrieved 17 October 2018.
^ ^a ^b Orr, S. (2014). The New American Herbal. Crown Publishing Group. p. 159. ISBN 978-0-449-81993-7. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ Helstosky, C. (2014). The Routledge History of Food. Routledge Histories. Taylor & Francis. p. pt554. ISBN 978-1-317-62112-6. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ Kraig, B.; D, C.T.S.P. (2013). Street Food around the World: An Encyclopedia of Food and Culture: An Encyclopedia of Food and Culture. ABC-CLIO. p. 82. ISBN 978-1-59884-955-4. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ Howard, A. (1999). Central America. Fodor's Up Close Series. Fodor's Travel Publications. p. 307. ISBN 978-0-679-00311-3. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ Goody, C.M.; Drago, L.; American Dietetic Association (2010). Cultural Food Practices. American Dietetic Association. p. 57. ISBN 978-0-88091-433-8. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ Berrío-Lemm, V. (2003). Panamá: tierra, gente, legado -- centenario: aproximación a las raíces del hombre panameño. Panamá (in Spanish). Ediciones del Istmo. pp. 701, 706. Retrieved October 21, 2018.
^ Berrío-Lemm, V. (2003). Panamá: tierra, gente, legado - centenario: aproximación a las raíces del hombre panameño (in Spanish). Ediciones del Istmo. p. 344. Retrieved October 21, 2018.
^ ^a ^b ^c Bolongaro, Kait (December 27, 2016). "Don't Know Panamanian Food? These Chefs Aim To Change That". NPR. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
^ Fodor's Travel Publications, I.S.; Kast, M.E.; Mattson, S.; Van Fleet, J. (2010). Fodor's Panama, 2nd Edition. Fodor's Panama. Fodors Travel Pub. p. 20. ISBN 978-1-4000-0429-4. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ Caras y caretas (in Spanish). 1929. Retrieved October 21, 2018.
^ Cameron, S.; Box, B. (1999). Mexico & Central America Handbook. Footprint Central America Handbook (in Italian). Footprint Handbooks. p. 1168. ISBN 978-0-8442-4838-7. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h "Panama Desserts". amble.com. Archived from the original on 10 April 2019. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
^ Soley, L.V.M.S. (2008). Culture and Customs of Panama. Cultures and Customs of the World. ABC-CLIO. p. 33. ISBN 978-0-313-05636-9. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ "See this, skip that: Panama City, Panama". ABC News. April 17, 2018. Retrieved October 18, 2018.
^ Nevins, D.; Quek, L.; Hassig, S.M. (2016). Panama: Third Edition. Cultures of the World (Third Edition). Cavendish Square Publishing. p. 128. ISBN 978-1-5026-2215-0. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ Sweet Treats around the World: An Encyclopedia of Food and Culture: An Encyclopedia of Food and Culture. ABC-CLIO. 2014. p. 68. ISBN 978-1-61069-221-2. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ "Lost Cocktail Culture: Navy Drinks from the Panama Canal Zone". The Daily Beast. September 5, 2019. Retrieved 6 September 2019.
^ Soley, L.V.M.S. (2008). Culture and Customs of Panama. Cultures and Customs of the World. ABC-CLIO. p. 31. ISBN 978-0-313-05636-9. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ ^a ^b García, Deysi. "Ron ponche, la bebida en Navidad". Telemetro (in Spanish). Retrieved October 19, 2018.
^ Foster, D. (2002). Global Etiquette Guide to Mexico and Latin America. John Wiley & Sons. p. 87. ISBN 978-0-471-27283-0. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
^ ^a ^b Kopka, D. (2011). Welcome to Panama: Passport to Central & South America. Passport Series. p. 121. ISBN 978-0-7877-2768-0. Retrieved October 19, 2018.

External links

Media related to Cuisine of Panama at Wikimedia Commons

[Baker_Mingasson_2007-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g Baker, C.P.; Mingasson, G. (2007). Panama. National Geographic traveler. National Geographic Society. pp. 22–23. ISBN 978-1-4262-0146-2. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[Jamaica_Observer_2016-2] "Eating Down South: The Panama Experience". Jamaica Observer. November 28, 2016. Retrieved October 18, 2018.

[3] "This Cheese Curl Gets Its Own Festival". Atlas Obscura. Retrieved 17 October 2018.

[Helstosky_2014-4] Helstosky, C. (2014). The Routledge History of Food. Routledge Histories. Taylor & Francis. p. 296. ISBN 978-1-317-62113-3. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[5] "The Exotic and Tempting Ethnic Food of Panama". Tastessence. Retrieved 17 October 2018.

[Orr_2014-6] Orr, S. (2014). The New American Herbal. Crown Publishing Group. p. 159. ISBN 978-0-449-81993-7. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[7] Helstosky, C. (2014). The Routledge History of Food. Routledge Histories. Taylor & Francis. p. pt554. ISBN 978-1-317-62112-6. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[8] Kraig, B.; D, C.T.S.P. (2013). Street Food around the World: An Encyclopedia of Food and Culture: An Encyclopedia of Food and Culture. ABC-CLIO. p. 82. ISBN 978-1-59884-955-4. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[9] Howard, A. (1999). Central America. Fodor's Up Close Series. Fodor's Travel Publications. p. 307. ISBN 978-0-679-00311-3. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[10] Goody, C.M.; Drago, L.; American Dietetic Association (2010). Cultural Food Practices. American Dietetic Association. p. 57. ISBN 978-0-88091-433-8. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[11] Berrío-Lemm, V. (2003). Panamá: tierra, gente, legado -- centenario: aproximación a las raíces del hombre panameño. Panamá (in Spanish). Ediciones del Istmo. pp. 701, 706. Retrieved October 21, 2018.

[12] Berrío-Lemm, V. (2003). Panamá: tierra, gente, legado - centenario: aproximación a las raíces del hombre panameño (in Spanish). Ediciones del Istmo. p. 344. Retrieved October 21, 2018.

[Bolongaro_2016-13] Bolongaro, Kait (December 27, 2016). "Don't Know Panamanian Food? These Chefs Aim To Change That". NPR. Retrieved October 18, 2018.

[14] Fodor's Travel Publications, I.S.; Kast, M.E.; Mattson, S.; Van Fleet, J. (2010). Fodor's Panama, 2nd Edition. Fodor's Panama. Fodors Travel Pub. p. 20. ISBN 978-1-4000-0429-4. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[15] Caras y caretas (in Spanish). 1929. Retrieved October 21, 2018.

[16] Cameron, S.; Box, B. (1999). Mexico & Central America Handbook. Footprint Central America Handbook (in Italian). Footprint Handbooks. p. 1168. ISBN 978-0-8442-4838-7. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[d-17] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h "Panama Desserts". amble.com. Archived from the original on 10 April 2019. Retrieved 22 October 2018.

[18] Soley, L.V.M.S. (2008). Culture and Customs of Panama. Cultures and Customs of the World. ABC-CLIO. p. 33. ISBN 978-0-313-05636-9. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[19] "See this, skip that: Panama City, Panama". ABC News. April 17, 2018. Retrieved October 18, 2018.

[20] Nevins, D.; Quek, L.; Hassig, S.M. (2016). Panama: Third Edition. Cultures of the World (Third Edition). Cavendish Square Publishing. p. 128. ISBN 978-1-5026-2215-0. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[21] Sweet Treats around the World: An Encyclopedia of Food and Culture: An Encyclopedia of Food and Culture. ABC-CLIO. 2014. p. 68. ISBN 978-1-61069-221-2. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[22] "Lost Cocktail Culture: Navy Drinks from the Panama Canal Zone". The Daily Beast. September 5, 2019. Retrieved 6 September 2019.

[23] Soley, L.V.M.S. (2008). Culture and Customs of Panama. Cultures and Customs of the World. ABC-CLIO. p. 31. ISBN 978-0-313-05636-9. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[García-24] García, Deysi. "Ron ponche, la bebida en Navidad". Telemetro (in Spanish). Retrieved October 19, 2018.

[25] Foster, D. (2002). Global Etiquette Guide to Mexico and Latin America. John Wiley & Sons. p. 87. ISBN 978-0-471-27283-0. Retrieved October 17, 2018.

[Kopka_2011-26] Kopka, D. (2011). Welcome to Panama: Passport to Central & South America. Passport Series. p. 121. ISBN 978-0-7877-2768-0. Retrieved October 19, 2018.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9]

[10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]

[15]

[16]

[17]

[18]

[19]

[20]

[21]

[22]

[23]

[24]

[25]

[26]

v t e Cuisines
Continental	African North West list Americas Caribbean North South list Asian Caucasian Central Levantine South list European Balkan Central Eastern list Oceanian Intercontinental Global Latin American Mediterranean Middle Eastern
National and regional	Afghan Albanian Algerian American Californian Floribbean Hawaiian Lowcountry (South Carolina) Midwestern US New English New Mexican Pacific Northwestern Puerto Rican Southern US Southwestern US Texan Angolan Argentine Armenian Australian Austrian Azerbaijani Bahraini Bangladeshi Barbadian Belarusian Belgian Belizean Beninese Bhutanese Bolivian Bosnian-Herzegovinian Botswana Brazilian British Anguillia Channel Islands English Gibraltarian Northern Irish Saint Helena Scottish Welsh Bruneian Bulgarian Burkinabé Burmese Burundian Cambodian Cameroonian Canadian Acadian Québécois Central African Republic Chadian Chilean Chinese Beijing Cantonese Hong Kong Macanese Shandong Sichuan Tibetan Xinjiang Colombian Congolese Croatian Cuban Cypriot Czech Danish Faroese Greenlandic Djiboutian Dominican Dominican Republic Dutch East Timorese Ecuadorian Egyptian Emirati Equatorial Guinean Eritrean Estonian Ethiopian Fijian Filipino Kapampangan Finnish French Corsican La Réunion French Guianan Occitan Gabonese Gambian Georgian German Ghanaian Greek Cretan Epirotic Greek Macedonian Heptanesean Guatemalan Guinea-Bissauan Guinean Haitian Honduran Hungarian Icelandic Indian Andhra Arunachali Assamese Bengali Bihari Chhattisgarhi Goan Gujarati Haryanvi Kashmiri Jharkhandi Karnataka Kerala Maharashtrian Manipuri Meghalayan Mizo Naga Odia Punjabi Rajasthani Sikkimese Sindhi Tamil Telangana Tripuri Uttar Pradesh Uttarakhandi Indonesian Acehnese Balinese Banjar Batak Betawi Gorontalese Indo Javanese Madurese Makassar Minahasan Minangkabau Palembangese Sundanese Iranian Iraqi Irish Israeli Italian Abruzzese Apulian Ligurian Lombard Lucanian Neapolitan Piedmontese Roman Sardinian Sicilian Tuscan Venetian Ivorian Jamaican Japanese Okinawan Jordanian Kazakh Kenyan Korean North Korean South Korean Kosovan Kuwaiti Kyrgyz Lao Latvian Lebanese Lesotho Liberian Libyan Liechtensteiner Lithuanian Luxembourgish Macedonian Malagasy Malawian Malaysian Sabahan Sarawakian Maldivian Malian Maltese Marshallese Mauritanian Mauritian Mexican Moldovan Monégasque Mongolian Montenegrin Moroccan Mozambican Namibian Nauruan Nepalese New Zealand Nicaraguan Niger Nigerian Niuean Norwegian Omani Pakistani Palestinian Panamanian Papua New Guinean Paraguayan Peruvian Polish Portuguese Qatari Romanian Russian Bashkir Chechen Circassian Cossack Komi Mordovian Sakha Tatar Udmurt Yamal Rwandan Saint Lucian Salvadoran Sammarinese São Tomé and Príncipe Saudi Arabian Senegalese Serbian Seychellois Sierra Leonean Singaporean Slovak Slovenian Somali South African Spanish Andalusian Asturian Balearic Basque Canarian Cantabrian Catalan Extremaduran Galician Manchegan Valencian Sri Lankan Sudanese Swazi Swedish Swiss Syrian Taiwanese Tajik Tanzanian Zanzibari Thai Togolese Tunisian Turkish Turkmen Tuvaluan Trinidadian and Tobagonian Ugandan Ukrainian Uruguayan Uzbek Vanuatuan Venezuelan Vietnamese Western Saharan Yemeni Zambian Zimbabwean
Ethnic	African American Ainu Arab Arab-Indonesian Aromanian Assyrian Balochi Berber Buryat Cajun Chinese American Australian British Cambodian Canadian Filipino Indian Indonesian Malaysian Pakistani Peruvian Crimean Tatar Gagauz Greek-American Hazaragi Hmong Indian English Indonesian Malaysian North Indian South Indian Indigenous American Indigenous Australian Inuit Italian American Jewish American Ashkenazi Bukharan Ethiopian Mizrahi Moroccan Sephardic Syrian Kurdish Livonian Louisiana Creole Malay Ossetian Parsi Pashtun Pennsylvania Dutch Peranakan Pontic Greek Romani Sámi Tejano Transylvanian Saxon Yup'ik
Religious	Buddhist Christian Goan Catholic Mangalorean Catholic Mennonite Hindu Islamic Chinese Ital Jain Kashrut Kosher food Ritual slaughter Sikh
Historical	Ancient Egyptian Ancient Greek Ancient Israelite Ancient Roman Antebellum America Aztec Byzantine Early modern European Historical Argentine Historical Chinese Historical Indian subcontinent Historical Japanese Historical North Indian and Pakistani History of agriculture History of alcoholic drinks History of bread History of seafood History of vegetarianism Hittite Inca Mayan Muisca Mughal Medieval Ottoman Peasant Pre-contact Hawaiian Korean royal court Scottish royal household Soviet Thirteen Colonies
Styles	Classique Fast food Fusion New American Eurasian Haute Molecular gastronomy Note by Note Nouvelle Vegetarian
Lists	List of cuisines List of historical cuisines Lists of foods Prepared
Related	Cookbook Cooking Culinary arts Drink Food history sociology Diet Fat Meal Meal preparation
Category Outline

v t e North American cuisine
Sovereign states	Antigua and Barbuda Bahamas Barbados Belize Canada Costa Rica Cuba Dominica Dominican Republic El Salvador Grenada Guatemala Haiti Honduras Jamaica Mexico Nicaragua Panama Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucia Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Trinidad and Tobago United States
Dependencies and other territories	Anguilla Aruba Bermuda Bonaire British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Curaçao Greenland Guadeloupe Martinique Montserrat Puerto Rico Saint Barthélemy Saint Martin Saint Pierre and Miquelon Saba Sint Eustatius Sint Maarten Turks and Caicos Islands United States Virgin Islands
Food portal Category: North American cuisine