Colombia

Montoya's Seven and Six Regional Kitchens

Colombia has never hosted a Grand Prix, yet Juan Pablo Montoya won seven, and its food changes with every one of its six regions.

Colombia has never hosted a World Championship race, and only three Colombians appear in our records. Ricardo Londoño was entered for the 1981 Brazilian Grand Prix, and Roberto Guerrero made 21 starts in 1982 and 1983.

Then came Juan Pablo Montoya. In 94 starts between 2001 and 2006 he won 7 Grands Prix: Italy in 2001, Monaco and Germany in 2003, Brazil in 2004, and Britain, Italy and Brazil again in 2005. Those seven are every Colombian win in our records, which makes Montoya less a chapter of the national story than the whole of its winning column.

Colombia does not have one cuisine so much as six, one for each natural region: the islands, the Caribbean coast, the Pacific coast, the Andes, the Orinoco plains and the Amazon. Indigenous, Spanish and African traditions run through all of them, with a light Arab touch in places. The building blocks are rice and corn, potatoes and cassava, beans, beef, chicken, pork, goat and seafood, and tropical fruit is everywhere. The arepa, a cake of ground corn, ranks among the oldest dishes cooked anywhere in the country, and it has lost none of its popularity.

Every city has a signature. Bogotá is known for ajiaco, Medellín for the generous bandeja paisa and Cali for sancocho de gallina, while the Caribbean coast favors spicy fish and coconut rice. Two sauces follow almost everything to the table: hogao, of tomato and onion, and ají, a spicy cilantro sauce. Coffee, served as tinto, heads the list of drinks, as anyone would hope in Colombia. For a race weekend, a pot of ajiaco and a plate of patacones make a warm Colombian welcome.

A taste of Colombia

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