Causa Limeña

Lima, Peru (pre-Columbian kausay adapted with colonial Spanish layers; Lima criollo tradition)

Causa limeña is Lima's most architecturally elegant preparation — chilled mashed yellow potato (papa amarilla) layered with a filling of avocado, tuna or chicken, and mayonnaise, seasoned with ají amarillo and lime juice, formed in a mould and served cold as a first course. The papa amarilla (Solanum goniocalyx) is Peru's most prized potato: its naturally yellow, buttery, fine-grained flesh produces a mash with a silkier, less starchy texture than Russet or King Edward. The ají amarillo in the mashed potato provides its characteristic orange hue and fruity heat. The word 'causa' derives from Quechua 'kausay' (food of life) — this was a pre-Columbian potato preparation that gained Spanish-influenced layered form in the colonial period.

A first course at Peruvian restaurants; the cold, creamy potato and avocado filling is designed as a textural and temperature contrast to the hot ceviche or lomo saltado that follows.