Mapuche

Mapuche cuisine is the traditional food culture of the Mapuche, an indigenous people of south-central Chile and southwestern Argentina, shaped by the ingredients of their ancestral lands. Its signature seasoning is merkén, dried and smoked red chili peppers, often smoked over native canelo or laurel wood, ground into a coarse, smoky powder used on grilled meats and stews. Pulmay is a slow-cooking method in which meat, vegetables, and herbs are layered in an earthen pit, covered with hot stones, leaves, and soil, and left to braise. Chapalele are savory dumplings of mashed potato and flour dough, often filled with meat, cheese, or mushrooms and served alongside stews or grilled meat. The cuisine also draws on foraged berries, mushrooms, and greens, on preserving techniques like pickling, fermenting, and drying, and remains closely tied to Mapuche cultural and spiritual life.