If you’ve typed “best locro de zapallo near me” into Google, there’s a decent chance you’ve just come back from Peru, spent time with a Peruvian family, or stumbled across a photo of this golden, creamy pumpkin stew online and needed to know more. Here’s the honest answer: locro de zapallo is one of the hardest Peruvian dishes to find on a British restaurant menu, and there’s a good reason for that.
We spoke to what Peruvian home cooks and restaurant menus in the UK actually offer, and the pattern is consistent. This is a dish people make at home, not one kitchens tend to charge for. Below, you’ll find where to look if you want to eat it out, and a proper recipe if, like most Peruvians, you end up making your own.
What Is Locro de Zapallo, Exactly?
Locro de zapallo is a thick Andean stew built around squash, usually a Peruvian variety called zapallo macre, along with potatoes, sweetcorn, broad beans, onion and ají amarillo, the mild yellow chilli paste that turns up in most Peruvian kitchens. Milk or evaporated milk and cheese are stirred in near the end, giving the dish its characteristic orange colour and velvety texture.
According to food writers at Eat Peru, the word locro comes from the Quechua term sapallu, later hispanicised into the name still used today. The dish itself traces back to at least the late 1500s, when Spanish missionaries and conquistadors first recorded the word locro in their writing, though the pumpkin heavy version served today evolved well after that period, once dairy and cheese arrived with European settlers.
Locro isn’t unique to Peru either. Argentina, Bolivia and Ecuador all have their own versions, and ingredients shift by region. In Peru, the squash and cheese combination is the version most people mean when they say locro de zapallo.
Why Best Locro de Zapallo Near Me Doesn’t Work Quite Like You’d Expect
Here’s the bit most searches skip over. Chef Diego, who writes the food blog Chewing Happiness, put it plainly: most restaurants don’t sell locro de zapallo because it’s considered too simple a dish to charge for. It’s comfort food, the kind of thing a Peruvian grandmother makes on a weeknight rather than something a chef plates up for a paying table.
That’s borne out by what’s actually on Peruvian restaurant menus across London, where the country’s food scene has grown fast over the past decade. Places like LIMA in Fitzrovia, which became the first Peruvian restaurant in Europe to win a Michelin star in 2014, Coya in Mayfair, Ceviche in Soho and Andina in Spitalfields all lean heavily on ceviche, anticuchos, lomo saltado and ají de gallina. None of the major menus we checked list locro de zapallo by name, also there you would also get Juane.
That doesn’t mean it’s impossible to find. Smaller, family run Peruvian spots, particularly around Elephant and Castle, where London’s Peruvian community has historically been strongest, are a better bet for homestyle dishes that don’t appear on glossier menus. If you’re in that part of south London, it’s worth asking directly whether locro or a pumpkin based stew is available, since these places often cook what their families eat rather than a fixed printed menu.
Where to Look in the UK
| Option | What to expect | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Family run Peruvian restaurants, Elephant and Castle area | Homestyle dishes, ask staff directly, menu may vary by day | Diners who want the closest thing to authentic |
| Larger Peruvian restaurants (LIMA, Coya, Ceviche, Andina) | Polished modern Peruvian menus, ceviche and anticuchos focused | A great introduction to Peruvian food generally, though not locro specifically |
| Latin American grocers | Ají amarillo paste, huacatay, Peruvian corn in the freezer section | Cooking it yourself |
| Home cooking | Full control over squash, spice level and dairy | Anyone who actually wants locro de zapallo, not a substitute |
Latin American grocers in cities with sizeable South American communities, including parts of south London, are worth checking for the ingredients rather than the finished dish. Ají amarillo paste, huacatay (Peruvian black mint) and frozen Peruvian corn are the three ingredients that make the biggest difference to authenticity, and they’re increasingly stocked in Hispanic grocers even outside London.
How to Make Locro de Zapallo at Home
Cooking it yourself is genuinely the most reliable route to trying locro de zapallo properly, since it turns up so rarely on menus. The good news is that it’s a forgiving dish built for weeknight cooking, and British ingredients substitute in well.
Ingredients (serves four)
- Butternut squash or kabocha squash, roughly 800g, peeled and cubed (traditional zapallo macre isn’t available outside South America, so squash of this type is the standard substitute)
- 3 to 4 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 2 to 3 garlic cloves, minced
- 2 tablespoons ají amarillo paste (sold in Hispanic grocers, or substitute pureed jalapeño for a milder result)
- 150g sweetcorn kernels, ideally Peruvian corn from a Latin grocer, or standard sweetcorn
- 100g frozen peas
- 200ml evaporated milk (not condensed, which is sweetened)
- 150g mozzarella or a mild white cheese, cubed
- Fresh coriander or huacatay, if you can source it
- Salt and black pepper
- Vegetable stock, around 500ml
Method
- Heat a little oil in a large, heavy based pan. Add the onion and garlic with a pinch of salt, and cook gently until soft.
- Stir in the ají amarillo paste and cook for a minute so it loses its raw edge.
- Add the squash and potato, then pour in the stock. Simmer, covered, for around 20 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender enough to break apart when pressed with a spoon.
- Stir in the corn and peas, and cook for a further five minutes.
- Turn the heat right down and add the evaporated milk and cheese. Fold gently rather than stirring hard, so some of the squash and potato cubes stay intact. The finished dish should be thick, closer to a stew than a soup.
- Season to taste and finish with fresh coriander or huacatay if you have it. Serve with steamed rice, and a fried egg on top if you want the full Peruvian version.
Cooks writing for Piquant Post and Chili Pepper Madness both note that leftover locro tends to thicken further in the fridge and reheats well with a splash of stock or milk stirred back in.
Nutritional Notes For Locro de Zapallo
Locro de zapallo is naturally vegetarian in its base form, built from squash, potato, corn and beans, and it can be made entirely plant based by swapping the dairy for coconut milk, an approach several Peruvian food writers have adapted for their own kitchens. Squash brings a good amount of vitamin A and fibre, and the dish overall sits closer to a nourishing, vegetable forward meal than a heavy stew, despite its rich appearance. Anyone managing dairy intolerance or following a vegan diet should check labels on ají amarillo paste, since some brands are processed alongside dairy products.
FAQ’S About Best Locro de Zapallo Near Me
1. Is locro de zapallo the same as pumpkin soup?
No. It’s thicker and chunkier by design, meant to hold its shape rather than be blended smooth, and it includes potato, corn and often cheese, which a typical British pumpkin soup wouldn’t.
2. Can I find locro de zapallo at UK Peruvian restaurants?
Rarely, and mostly at smaller, family run spots rather than the well known names. It’s considered too simple a dish for most restaurant menus, so home cooking or asking directly at family run establishments is your best bet.
3. What can I use instead of zapallo macre squash?
Butternut squash, kabocha or acorn squash all work well and are widely available in UK supermarkets.
4. Is huacatay necessary?
It adds an aniseed edge that’s authentic to Peru, but fresh coriander or mint make a reasonable substitute if you can’t find huacatay locally.
5. How spicy is locro de zapallo?
Mild by most standards. Ají amarillo brings flavour rather than serious heat, and the dish is built to be comforting rather than fiery.
Bottom Line
If you’ve been hunting for the best locro de zapallo near me and coming up short, that’s not a gap in your search skills. It reflects how the dish actually works in Peru, as a home cooked staple rather than restaurant fare. Your best options in the UK are asking directly at smaller, family run Peruvian restaurants, particularly around south London, or picking up ají amarillo paste from a Latin grocer and making it yourself. The method is simple enough that cooking it at home is likely to get you closer to the real thing than any menu will.