MOCHE: A PERUVIAN COASTAL COMMUNITi'— GILLIN 



53 



2. Add cut-up washed pieces of fish. 



3. Pour chicha over all sufficient to moisten well. 



4. Cock for about 10 minutes. 



Sopa Teotoga 



This "theological soup" is an essential dish for special 

 occasion?, such as hirlhdays, baptisms, marriages, births, etc. 

 It is also known as sof<a de fiesta. 



1. P.rcid is cut into pieces and moistened, allowed to stand 

 I'or half an hour. 



2. Place in cooking pot with water. 



3. In the meantime prepare a thick chicken soup or broth. 



4. Pour this over the bread pap, boiling. 



5. Red and yellow aii (ground) added. 



6. Azafrjn rubbed between the hands and dropped into the 

 I-ot. 



La Boda 



"Theological soup" is usually served on festive occasions 

 as part of a dish called "La Boda" (the wedding). This 

 feast is served in one large plate or shallow gourd and con- 

 sists of the following ingredients: 



1. Sopa teoioga. 



2. Mai~ tostado molido, ground roasted corn kernels, often 

 called iiidchica. 



3. PLpidii de cancha, a stitT mush made of ground roasted 

 corn. 



4. Jeta or gcla. a sort ot sauce made of dry lentils {Icnieja 

 bocona) cooked to a mush, and beaten. 



5. Vuca machada, boiled, mashed yuca. 



6. A piece of chicken or duck. 



7. .\ piece of kid. 



The soup occupies the bottom and center of the plate with 

 the other items ranged about the edges. The piece of chicken 

 is placed in the soup and the piece of kid rests atop the 

 pepidn de cancha. All are well flavored with aji, onions, 

 salt, black pepper, cidantro, azafrdn, etc. It is the manage- 

 ment of the seasoning which distinguishes an expert Moche 

 cook from an ordinary one. 



Chicha 



Chicha may be made from a variety of grains or 

 kernels, other than maize, e. g., peanuts, barley, 

 wheat, etc. In Moche it is always made cf maize, 

 although sometimes wheat grains are mixed with the 

 maize. It is boiled directly over the fire either in 

 large 50-gallon oil drums or in earthenware pots. In 

 Monsefii (near Chiclayo) a c/nV/;a-making arrange- 

 ment was observed which consisted of four large 

 pots set into the ground close together but at the 

 four points of a small rectangle. The earth was 

 tamped well up around their outer sides, while a 

 fire was placed in the center and blown with a fan 

 so as to circulate between the pots. This pattern is 

 said to have been used in former times in Moche, but 



has now completely disappeared, 

 standard recipe. 



The following is a 



1. Prepare the mass of sprouted maize {chuiio de viai:: 

 nacido). Mature maize kernels are laid out on a damp 

 cloth, usually gunny sacking, in a shaded place. Then 

 they are covered with moist leaves or witli a second damp 

 cloth. The kernels are sutliciently sprouted in 6 to 8 days. 



I' Make the jora (chuiio with water), placing the chuiio in 

 the boiler, then adding water. 



3. Boil for 24 hours or longer, up to 48 hours. .\\. one house 

 where the writer obser\ed the process, the jora was being 

 boiled in a 50-gallon oil drum over a cow-dung fire. The 

 woman in charge said that the chuiio involved in this 

 batch amounted to 1}.; arrobas (37.5 lbs.) and that she 

 expected to get "slightly less" than two botijas (200 

 bottles) of drinkable chicha after di.scarding the dregs. 

 During the boiling a plentiful scum accumulated on the 

 surface and was flicked off with a rough branch from 

 time to time. During the boiling process more water is 

 added to compensate lor that lost by eva|)oration. 



4. .\llow to cool. 



5. Strain the jora through cotton cloth and/or a basket into 

 the botija or other container. 



6. Add chancaca (a type of brown sugar in cakes), sirup, 

 molasses, or cane juice. Chancaca is most frequently 

 used, and the amount dcfx:nds upon the experience of the 

 maker. Up to a point, the more sugar used, the more 

 alcohol will result. 



7. .'\llow to stand 4 to 6 days until it has finished "working." 

 Chicha made in this way will last about a month without 

 turning to vinegar. 



"HOT" AXD "COLD" FOODS 



All foods are classified as hot (caliente) and cold 

 or cool (fresco). The classification seems to an out- 

 sider to have nothing to do with the physical proper- 

 ties of the foods thcinselves or the physical state they 

 happen to be in at the moment, i. e., cooked or 

 uncooked, just off the fire or standing cold, etc. In 

 Moche the classification seems to be based upon 

 obscure beliefs concerning the effects which the 

 various foods have upon the huinan organism in 

 certain states of illness or uneasy physiological 

 equilibrium. Beliefs concerning illness will be dis- 

 cussed extensively in a later section, but, among 

 others, there are two types of sickness in the view of 

 the Mocheros: (1) the illnesses which produce a 

 cold feeling (including colds themselves, resfrios, 

 catarros, constipados, etc.) ; and (2) the illnesses 

 which produce a hot feeling (fever). If one is 

 suffering from or is susceptible to a "hot" sickness, 

 he should avoid "hot" foods, and vice versa. 



Common people are not always sure where a given 

 item is classified and seek the advice of curanderos 

 (healers) and old women in general, when in doubt. 



