I couldn’t conclude the Aperitif Menu for the column Building the Menu other than with a cocktail: Aguaymanto sour, a Peruvian cocktail based on Physalis peruviana, known as cape gooseberry in English.
➡️In Peru, Physalis peruviana is also known as aguaymanto, in neighboring Colombia as uchuva, and uvilla in Ecuador; it is called poha in Hawaii and Harankash in Egypt. In northeastern China, it’s called dēnglóng-guǒ: “lantern fruit.”
➡️It’s a perennial plant belonging to the Solanaceae family, not all species produce edible fruits, only the sweet-yellow cape gooseberry (Physalis peruviana) is the most widely used for food purposes.
➡️Within Latin America, it is often consumed as a smoothie or shake and, due to its unique husk, as a decorative garnish for desserts.
The cocktail is a variant of the classic Pisco Sour (Pisco + sugar syrup + egg white + lime) with the addition of cape gooseberry juice and I paired it with plantain chips.
- Difficulty: Medium
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 1 person
- Cooking methods: No cooking
- Cuisine: Peruvian
- Seasonality: Summer, Fall
Ingredients
- 2 oz pisco
- 1 oz lime juice (or lemon)
- 1/2 oz gum syrup (or sugar syrup)
- 1 egg white
- 1 oz cape gooseberry juice
Tools
- 1 Boston Shaker
- 1 Glass champagne coupe or old fashioned
- 1 Blender
Steps
Blend the cape gooseberries, keeping some aside for decoration, and strain the juice.
In a shaker, place the egg white, pisco, sugar, lemon or lime juice, cape gooseberry juice, and 4 ice cubes per person.
Shake vigorously for at least a minute to slightly whip the egg white. Pour into a champagne coupe or old fashioned glass.
Garnish.
“Check out my review of the portable SOUTH AREA 350 ml electric blender”
In the making video, the handy Fresh juice portable blender is useful for carrying your favorite smoothies and the plantain chips called redondadas distinct from taijaditas due to their round shape.
FAQ (Questions and Answers)
Is the cape gooseberry an autumn fruit?
The cape gooseberry is generally harvested from mid-August/early September until late autumn, when the lanterns dry out, revealing the berry inside.
What is Pisco?
Pisco is a national drink in Peru.
Though it is a distilled wine, it does not belong to the brandy family because it is not aged.
It is distilled only with the copper pot still, the traditional copper alembic, which distills slowly, for days, not industrially, continuously or discontinuously from wine made from Muscat grapes, also known as Italia, and from other grapes grown both in the Ica region and in other arid coastal valleys of southern Peru. The alcohol content ranges from 40% to 50%.
It is distinguished into 4 categories:
– Puro (made from a single grape variety, non-aromatic)
– Aromatic (with wine made from aromatic grapes such as albilla, moscatel, torontel, or Italia grape.)
– Acholado (a distillate made from wine from a mix of aromatic and non-aromatic grapes)
– Mosto Verde (special and thick, from a wine where fermentation has been stopped and still contains sugar)
Also used for Pisco punch – a cocktail made with pisco, sugar syrup, pineapple juice, and lime juice and the Chilcano de pisco with angostura and ginger ale, Capitan served with vermouth.
