An Arequipeño salad built to be eaten fresh and by the generous spoonful. Tender fava beans and choclo meet firm Andean fresh cheese, tomato, red onion, and rocoto in a bright acidic dressing that wakes everything up without weighing it down. Colorful, punchy, and refreshingly direct—the kind of starter that disappears before the main course arrives.
Turn what you find into an experience you can actually bring to your kitchen.
Bring the water to a boil with part of the salt. Add the choclo and cook for 7 minutes; then add the fava beans and continue for 5 minutes, until both are tender but still firm. Drain immediately and leave them in the colander while you prepare the rest, so excess steam escapes without softening them further.
Cut the Andean fresh cheese into medium cubes. Remove the wet seed pulp from the tomato and dice it; also cut the red onion into small squares, finely dice the rocoto after removing veins and seeds, and halve the black olives. Finely chop the parsley, keeping the cuts fairly even so each spoonful gets a little of everything.
In the mixing bowl, stir together the red wine vinegar, lime juice, olive oil, pepper, and the remaining salt for 30 seconds, until the dressing looks glossy and lightly emulsified. Add the chopped onion and rocoto and toss once so they begin picking up the acidity while you finish assembling the salad.
Add the choclo, fava beans, cheese, tomato, olives, and parsley to the bowl. Toss with broad, gentle movements for 20 to 30 seconds, just until the dressing coats everything without breaking up the cheese or crushing the beans. Serve right away, cool or at room temperature; if the cheese still holds its shape and the grains retain some bite, it came out exactly as it should. Time to eat! 😌
