The Peruvian Street Food That Brings Fries And Hot Dogs Together Into A Single Dish

Ketchup- and mayo-drenched hot dogs and french fries might seem like exclusive ballpark bites, but think twice! You can commonly find them while roaming the streets of Peru. Salchipapas, as they're called, are similar to the handheld cuisine found at all-American baseball games, but this Peruvian street food requires a fork and knife — or at the very least, a toothpick.

Salchipapas originate in Lima but can be found throughout Peru and across Latin America. The name is a lexical blend of the Spanish words "salchichas" (sausages) and "papas" (potatoes), which is the most basic form of the dish. But in the same way french fries deserve a creamy Southern twist in pimiento cheese and dressed-up wieners morph into amazing Chicago-style dogs, salchipapas can be topped in so many mouthwatering ways.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with a basket of steak fries jumbled together with slices of flawlessly juicy, crispy hot dogs finished with squiggles of mayo and ketchup. And a dip of creamy, spicy aji amarillo chile sauce adds all the flavor you need. But on the streets of Peru and in Latin American restaurants across the United States, salchipapas can become a veritable feast, a meal so large you'll almost certainly have leftovers.

For example, at West Palm Beach, Florida restaurant Los Brothers, they serve a platter called a Big Brother, which is salchipapas loaded with corn, sweet plantains, nacho cheese, bacon, and quail eggs. You can also go whole hog with their special Full Porky, piled with seasoned beef, chicken, carne asada, guacamole, and fried pork belly (aka chicharrones), cheese, and sour cream. Up north, Peruvian-inspired Cabra Chicago offers brunch salchipapas made with fried chorizo topped with perfectly poached eggs. Salchipapas are so versatile, they make the ideal clean-out-the-fridge meal for a busy Wednesday night or lazy Saturday morning.