anthony: i m in peru with this guy, eric ripert. eric: the guy was looking at us. he went into the tree. anthony: that s funny. chef of the world-famous restaurant le bernardin in new york, to look at where chocolate comes from, particularly our chocolate, the very expensive, limited-run, designer chocolate bar business that eric got me into last year. so that s why we re in peru. but before we get all indiana jones, we re spending some time in lima, as we like the capital city just fine. and we have, both of us, from previous trips, friends here. lima is the cultural hub and culinary capital of a country that has exploded in the last decade with scores of world-class chefs, cooks, and restaurants. it has long been considered to be one of the best food scenes in all of south america. let s do it. eric: how far away is the house? coque: that s it. so, it s eric: over there? coque: yeah. five minutes. anthony: one of our friends here is chef restaurateur,
see chef javier wong, uniquely nonconformist seafood specialist, famous for his incredible and uncompromising ceviches and his flaming wok. if peru has a national dish, it s probably ceviche. the freshest fish only needs the right cut, a little citrus, and no heat. what s the most common thing that people do wrong? eric: the quality of the ingredients. you don t do a ceviche with something that is not ultra fresh. anthony: right. eric: the cut is very important, the thickness. anthony: right. eric: and when you do the ceviche, you don t do it too much ahead of time. anthony: the whole place is served whatever menu he s doing that day, same for everybody. and today, the flounder he got from the market is particularly nice, so that s what we re getting. generally thicker pieces to stand up to the spices and acids.
first up, an octopus and flounder ceviche. eric: i don t know what to tell you, man. it s damn good. anthony: mm. oh, that is good. eric: is this one very spicy, or no? anthony: you ever been spanked in your life and enjoyed it? yeah, me neither. i don t like pain. eric: except anthony: except eric: if you re spanked with a pepper. anthony: brutalized with a pepper, i like. eric: oh, that s that s really hot. anthony: tiradito of flounder, dressed with pecans, lime, aji limon, and sesame oil, which, clearly, eric likes. eric: ah, this is totally going to le bernardin. anthony: oh, really? eric: yeah. anthony: yeah, i see you re not like, foraging in the catskills for your inspiration. eric: um anthony: you basically just rip your ideas off of small businessmen? eric: javier. es stupdendo. javier: it s okay, tres bien? eric: si. it s anthony: oh, superb. [ javier speaking spanish ] eric: you want, uh, another little thing? anthony: s
coque: a ceviche. eric: ceviche for sure. anthony: ceviche de conchas, fresh scallops with lemon juice, garlic and aji limon. [ coque speaking spanish ] anthony: drum fish braised in chichi de jora, a corn-based beer. eric: they look fantastic, huh? marissa: this is a rocoto. eric: spicy or not? marissa: it is very spicy. eric: very spicy, okay. anthony: oh, that sounds good. oh, and stuffed rocoto peppers filled with ground beef and raisins served with parilla cheese. eric: yeah. anthony: wow. eric: are we lucky, or what? anthony: we are lucky. and that s just the beginning. there s so much more food, there s no way we could show it all, much less describe it. it s incredible, overwhelming, invariably fresh and delicious and thrillingly different than what i m used to. eric: yeah, it s fantastic. anthony: i could frankly get out of the chocolate business right now, put up a pup tent on marissa s porch, and pretty much dig in for the duration. this is li
anthony: yeah. coque: normally we we have lunch late, uh, like 5:00, or anthony: do you nap before lunch or after? coque: both. anthony: both. [ laughter ] sounds like paradise. wow, look at this. every weekend, marissa opens the house to an ever-changing mob of friends, visitors, drop-ins, and family. coque: this is fantastic. anthony: they do not skimp on the food. delicious, delicious things pour out of the kitchen. eric: wow. anthony: a torrent, a deluge of traditional peruvian favorites. marissa: this is a causa with crabmeat, the yellow potato, and avocado, and we love avocado. anthony: causa de congrejo is like a tureen of crabmeat, eggs, avocado, and mashed yellow potatoes. eric: okay. marissa: this is a tiradito, ceviche from the coast. anthony: beautiful. tiradito de pejerrey, basically raw king fish filets dressed with aji amarillo and lime juice. perfect. marissa: and that s scallop ceviche.