Asian Diaspora in Peru [Alex]

There is a rich history of Asian migration in Peru. With Chinese immigration in the 19th century, there has been a significant influence on food culture in the country. This is seen prominently in the various Chifas (Chinese Restaurants) you’ll see on the streets and Chinese-Peruvian fusion dishes in many restaurants. A common dish you’ll see is Chuafa, which is the “spanishfied” word for of fried rice, which is pretty close to the phonetic pronunciation in Mandarin. The Japanese-Peruvian cuisine is named “Nikkei”, which we didn’t see as prominently displayed, but actually ate in Panama.

Various Chifa’s in Lima

You won’t find many people that look ethnically Chinese running these restaurants , which would be common in other countries, such as in the United States. However, there is actually a large amount of people in Peru that have Chinese ancestry, due to the cultural mixing of the Chinese immigrants with the local population. According to Wikipedia 15% of Peruvians have Chinese ancestry, even though only < 1% identify as Chinese. As indentured servants brought to work on railroads and infrastructure, mostly men were brought to Peru, thus limiting the number of Chinese only families. Marriage would nullify indentured servant contracts, so Chinese men were somewhat incentivized to marry Peruvian women, and the women in turn saw these men as their servants, flipping the traditional patrimonial roles.

We did encounter people of Asian decent in Lima, speaking Spanish fluently, but even in Chinatown, they were still a small minority. However, we did meet Francisco, a Peruvian from Lima, who kindly shared a photo of his great-great grandfather who became very successful and owned many properties in Lima during his life.

Many Chinese and Japanese people in Peru eventually migrated elsewhere due to race tensions and discrimination. However, their impact on Peruvian culture remains, particularly in some of the best fried rice I’ve ever had in my life.

The fried rice that smiles back

To read more, see the following sources:

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_Peruvians

• https://www.migrationpolicy.org/article/peru-asian-immigration-history#:~:text=Chinese%20and%20Japanese%20influence%20continues,100%2C000%20Peruvians%20had%20Japanese%20roots.