Recipe: Huevos pericos (Colombian scrambled eggs)

Although I’m not good at cooking, I organized a typical Colombian breakfast to share with my host family. Guided by recipes my parents sent from Colombia, I discovered that things made with love are delicious.

My host family loved this simple meal of huevos pericos (scrambled eggs with onion and chopped tomato – my host mom’s favourite), fat pancakes made from my father’s secret recipe (a hit with my host sisters and brother), and arepas (made with wheat flour, butter and salt). Hot chocolate directly from Colombia accompanied the rest of this breakfast that transported us south.

It was a perfect morning to share Colombian music while we ate, compare pancake recipes with my host mom, and, most importantly, to eat with the family around the table and enjoy each other’s stories.

A little piece of Colombia came to visit us as we ate in pajamas, showing the trust that exists between family.

—A Mennonite World Conference release. Natalia Vaca is a member of Iglesia Menonita Ibagué in Colombia. She participated in Mennonite Central Committee’s IVEP program in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, 2017–2018.

Huevos Pericos (6 people):

12 Eggs (2 per person)

2 medium onions

2 large tomatoes

1 Tablespoon oil

1 teaspoon salt

1. Process the onions and tomatoes in a blender until they are well chopped.

2. In a large pan, heat the oil and start to fry the stew that we just made with onions and tomatoes.

3. In another bowl, beat the eggs and salt so that everything is well mixed.

4. Once the stew is warm, put the eggs in the same pan and stir until they are set.

5. Serve hot to enjoy better.