Are you brave enough to try this dish?
Maybe when the pigs are fried.
New York City epicureans are gobbling up a “special” Ecuadorian delicacy, guinea pigs — a state best known as a potential pet for children — and hailing them as a “very tasty” feast.
At least that’s the experience at restaurant La Casa Del Cuy—literally, “the house of the guinea pig”—a favorite kitchen in Corona, Queens, that roasts and serves the rodent (cuy) whole, basically every part but “the calf “.
On a recent Monday night, the house was packed with diners tearing into the 2½-pound animals, which can be about 16 inches from snout to outstretched toes. Pet-sized guinea pigs are usually smaller, but can range from 2 to 3.5 pounds.
“It’s better than chicken. Better than the rabbit,” manager Lucio Barrera told The Post, even claiming the head is the best part.
And the $110 cuy is selling like hotcakes, according to Lucio, requiring the restaurant to take in the rodents in bulk.
But importing the South American animal wholesale is no cakewalk.
After flying in frozen from a small farm in Ecuador, they must be processed through customs, which can take a long time.
“It’s difficult because we use a lot,” he said Lucio.
The pig boss, who hails from Cuenca, Ecuador, runs the restaurant out of the North Boulevard location of the former Ilusion Tavern with his husband, Marcelo Barrera.
They originally specialized in rotisserie chickens, but began serving roly-poly rodents during the COVID-19 pandemic in response to the demand of hungry Ecuadorians for a taste of home.
“So all people drive [to] Northern Boulevard, they start asking, ‘Why don’t you do cuy instead of chicken?'” Lucio explained. “I said, ‘Let’s do something because life is too short.'”
Thus La Casa Del Cuy was born.
Pigs are considered a culinary tradition in the South American nation, where they have been a staple among indigenous people for thousands of years, prized for their low fat and protein content and the fact that they are relatively light. to grow up.
Cuy believers have even promoted their farming as a more sustainable and profitable alternative to cows and other traditional livestock because they require less space and fewer resources.
Despite being a mainstay, rodents are often served on special occasions such as weddings – a pair of mated guinea pigs is traditionally given to the bride’s family.
“In my country, [the] the food is very special,” Lucio, himself an avid rodent lover, is commonly adopted as a pet in the US.
“I love it,” he told The Post. “I eat it every day.”
Casa Del Cuy charges $110 for the rodent food, while other items cost about $20, with Lucio joking that they would be even more expensive if purchased from a pet store.
At Casa Del Cuy, specimens are thawed and pressed lengthwise into jumbo bars before being marinated in garlic and other spices and set over a flame in an outdoor rotisserie.
They are then spun on the whimsical carousel until they crackle and turn bronze.
The cooked carcass is then served – chompers and all – on a bed of potato and corn rice and a peanut sauce before being severed with heavy shears.
During a recent dinner that coincided with the Festival del Cuy this month — where locals gather in Cuenca, Ecuador, to enjoy a rodent roast for the ages — the chef carved a pig that surprisingly fed a lot of people for such a small amount of the creature.
The decision? When The Post stopped by to sample the cuy, it was surprisingly non-gamer with tender meat that was more marbled than a rabbit and crispy skin like a fun-sized sucker pig. It wasn’t shriveled up on the rotisserie, but the hamster was surprisingly roomy, able to feed three fairly large guys, with each bite washed down with Ecuadorian “Club” beer served in a salt-filled glass.
While most New Yorkers may be predisposed to scorn rodents — even our infamous pizza rat — this cuy is causing a stir outside of the Ecuadorian enclave of Queens.
Lucio says he’s already familiar with adventurous “gringos” and Chinese gourmands, who he says often devour the whole pig themselves.
However, foodies can still enjoy roast chicken and other grilled dishes at the restaurant if they don’t feel up to venturing out.
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Image Source : nypost.com