The first Peru Gastronomic Week is being held downtown to celebrate Peru's Independence Day and the 21st anniversary of the friendship between Peru and Viet Nam (1994-2015). — Photo giadinhvn.vn

HA NOI  (VNS) — The first Peru Gastronomic Week is being held downtown to celebrate Peru's Independence Day and the 21st anniversary of the friendship between Peru and Viet Nam (1994-2015).

Various traditional dishes representing Peruvian cuisine are being prepared by Aldo Vargas, a chef from the Hilton Lima in Lima, Peru, and David Huaman Quispe, a cook from the same hotel, between July 27 and 31 at Chez Manon Restaurant at Hilton Hanoi Opera.

The two cooks will present a cooking demonstration of some traditional dishes as well as share tips on preparing Peruvian food for invited guests on the morning of July 30.

A conference on quinoa and maca, two agricultural products of Peru, will be held here on July 29. Invited guests include representatives from the ministries of health, agriculture and rural development and commerce as well as some hospitals in Ha Noi.

Quinoa is a species of the goosefoot genus; it is a grain crop grown primarily for its edible seeds and is an important ingredient in Peruvian cuisine. Quinoa is a rich source of the B vitamins thiamine, riboflavin, vitamin B6 and folate and is a rich source of the dietary minerals iron, magnesium, phosphorus and zinc.

Maca is a plant that grows in central Peru on the high plateaus of the Andes mountains. It has been cultivated as a vegetable crop in Peru for the last 3,000 years. Called the "Peruvian ginseng", the maca plant's benefits have long been valued, and it has recently been popularised as a supplement and food ingredient. Its root is used to make medicine.

"We hope this gastronomy week will help more Vietnamese people learn about Peruvian cuisine and culture," Luis Tsuboyama, Chief of Mission at the Peruvian Embassy in Ha Noi said. "Meanwhile, the conference on quinoa and maca will help connect Peruvian enterprises so that Vietnamese partners can import the two products directly. In the past, some Vietnamese companies had to import these two Peruvian products from companies in other countries, such as the United States, Canada, and Australia."

Tsuboyama also wants to promote tourism between the two countries, and a Vietnamese embassy will soon be established in Lima.

He said the Peruvian embassy will soon introduce in Viet Nam literature written by a few Peruvian authors. — VNS