Peruvian · dessert
Picarones
Picarones reads sweetness 8.1, richness 3.7 and salinity 3.6 on Palate's 0–10 flavor X-ray — a Peruvian dessert, about 1 hr 20 min. Measured from the recipe itself: ingredients and technique.
The flavor X-ray — six axes, 0–10
- Umami & Savory — 4.0 / 10
- Sweet & Fruity — 8.5 / 10
- Sour & Bright — 1.5 / 10
- Bitter & Earthy — 1.4 / 10
- Rich & Fat — 4.1 / 10
- Aromatic & Spice — 3.6 / 10
The measured notes (of 18)
Sweetness 8.1 · Richness 3.7 · Salinity 3.6 · Warm Spice 3.3 · Floral 2.2 · Umami 1.9 · Fruity 1.6 · Funk & Ferment 1.6 · Nutty 1.5 · Sourness 1.3 · Earthy 1.3 · Herbaceous 0.9 · Bitterness 0.8 · Citrus 0.6
What's in it (9)
- 2 cups butternut squash
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tsp active dry yeast
- 1 tsp anise seeds
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 4 cups oil for frying
- 1 cup chancaca syrup with cinnamon and orange peel
Time & effort: about 1 hr 20 min (20 min active) · effort: easy
Nutrition (per 100 g, engine-estimated): 168.8 kcal, 3.1 g protein, 0.5 g fat, 39.5 g carbs
Dietary: Vegan — engine-derived; double-check anything allergy-critical.
How it's cooked (3 steps)
- Mix mashed squash or sweet potato with flour, yeast, anise, a bit of sugar, and salt into a sticky dough; let rise for an hour.
- With wet hands, shape rings directly and drop them into hot oil, frying until puffed and golden.
- Drain and drizzle generously with warm chancaca syrup.
Dishes with a similar flavor shape
- New World Spanish Corn Pudding — Spanish
- Cardamom Coffee Bread (Pulla) — Scandinavian
- Apple Stack Cake with Sorghum — American · Appalachian
- Danish Æbleskiver — Scandinavian
- Teurgoule — French · Normandy
Keep reading: what sweetness, richness, salinity mean in the flavor lexicon · the world's cuisines, by flavor.
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Every number above is Palate's engine-measured estimate, computed from this recipe's ingredients and techniques — not human-tasted ratings or reviews.