Cartagena is one of those places that surprises visitors due to the large amount of gastronomic offer in the streets. This food is usually delicious and quite cheap. They are not a complete meal but rather a passing meal. In this article you will find the most typical street food in Cartagena.
The best street food in Cartagena
1. Mote de queso
Mote de queso is a truly unique and delicious cheese soup. The mote de queso is made with small pieces of costeño cheese, yams, onion, sweet pepper, and garlic. Yes, with these few ingredients we can prepare this delicious coastal soup. There may be divided opinions regarding this typical food from Cartagena, since just as there are people who love it, there are others who do not exactly hate it but it does not attract much attention to eat it because it is a very different soup from those that are normally eaten.
2. Arepa de huevo
Arepas and fried empanadas are made with cornmeal. These are very common in Colombia and Venezuela, however, the arepa de huevo costeña differs from all other arepas in any other part of Colombia or another country.
When the dough is ready, take a portion of it and mold the arepa, then put it in a cauldron with oil to fry it. After the arepa has been pre-cooked, a small opening is made on one of its sides and through this opening a little previously prepared ground meat is added and an egg is broken and added to the arepa. It is returned to the cauldron to fry it. The final result is a delicious golden and crispy arepa filled with eggs and meat.
The traditional egg arepa contains the egg and ground meat, but you can find variations of it, such as the egg arepa with shrimp, with chicharrón, with shredded meat or with chorizo. Also, it can be found with just the egg for vegetarians.
3. Patacon con todo
If you are looking for typical street food and the arepa de huevo does not appeal to you, try a patacon with everything. The patacon is made with plantain. To start the process, the banana is peeled and thus, whole, it is fried in a pan with enough oil at a medium temperature. When the plantain has been cooked, remove it and crush it. Later it is fried again until it is golden and crispy.
It is common for patacones to accompany other typical meals in Cartagena such as the fish tray or the seafood casserole. But this patacon is prepared longer and thinner than the normal ones and more things are put on top.
In general, meat, chicken, pork, chorizo, butifarra sausage, sausage and cheese are added to the patacon with everything. It is similar to a shelled cob but with a base of plantain instead of corn. On top of everything you add the sauces you want. The best place to try this excellent option for typical Cartagena food is the Plaza de la Trinidad in Getsemani.
4. Arroz de mariscos
Almost all restaurants have this typical Cartagena dish on their menu, which mixes two of Cartagena’s favorite things, rice and seafood. Usually this rice has shrimp, clams, fish and squid. It is similar to paella, it is cooked with all seafood and tends to be a wetter rice. This rice is also known as arroz a la marinera. Melosa rice is a creamier version similar to risotto.
Definitely this seafood rice or rice a la marinera is absolutely one of the best typical foods that must be tried in the streets of Cartagena.
5. Ceviche
One of the places that best prepares this food is La Cevicheria. La Cevicheria offers an incredible ceviche, but they also have a large number of delicious dishes on their menu that will leave you truly fascinated. It is a recommended restaurant to visit and has an informal style.
Although ceviche is not exclusively from Cartagena, this is undoubtedly one of the most desirable seafood dishes, especially as an appetizer or appetizer. Many restaurants present different variations of ceviche, but one with a very Cartagena touch is the one with a touch of coconut milk.