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FijiFlavors · Bogotá
Thick soup of shredded chicken, three types of potato and corn, scented with guascas. It is the dish most associated with Bogotá and is served with capers, cream, and avocado.
Traditional dish from Bogotá, Bogotá, Distrito Capital
Also known as: ajiaco bogotano, ajiaco
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
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Ajiaco santafereño — Bogotá, Colombia
Ajiaco santafereño is a thick soup made with chicken, three varieties of potato, and fresh corn. The criolla, pastusa, and sabanera potatoes cook at different rates: some fall apart and thicken the broth, others remain in pieces. The characteristic aroma comes from guascas, an Andean herb with a slightly bitter flavor.
The name comes from Santafé, what Bogotá was called during the colonial period. The city's Mayor’s office presents it as a typical dish and a symbol of Bogotá’s cuisine, alongside chocolate santafereño. Market cooks say the recipe has been prepared since colonial times, and some link its origin to corn-and-potato soups of the muisca peoples, a hypothesis without confirmation.
There is no single recipe. In Bogotá the ajiaco santafereño is distinguished—generally served in an earthenware bowl—from cundiboyacense versions that come with different accompaniments. The corn may be served on cob pieces or kernels.
Ajiaco is brought to the table with side accompaniments that each person adds: capers, cream, and avocado. It often comes with a portion of white rice. The cool climate of the capital in the Andes helps explain the taste for hearty soups.
Bogotá , Bogotá, Distrito Capital
The Mayor’s office of Bogotá presents ajiaco santafereño as a typical dish of the city, and the name comes from Santafé, the former name of the capital.
Chicken, criolla, pastusa and sabanera potatoes, fresh corn, guascas, scallion (long onion), garlic, cilantro, salt and pepper. On the side: capers, cream, and avocado.
Hot, in a deep bowl, with the accompaniments added by the eater: capers, cream, and avocado. It is usually served with white rice.
Everyday and Sunday lunch; also on city dates, such as Bogotá’s anniversary in August.
Your questions
Chicken, three types of potato (criolla, pastusa and sabanera), fresh corn and guascas, an Andean herb. Capers, cream, and avocado are served on the side.
An Andean herb with a slightly bitter taste that gives ajiaco its characteristic aroma.
Because of Santafé, the name of Bogotá in the colonial period.
Flavors of Colombia
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