Practically every festival in the Andes of Ecuador will have at least one whole roast pig for sale. Called
hornado, this mouthwatering oven-roasted pork is always served by the plateful, and is accompanied by mashed potato pancakes fried in lard, a piece of
cuero (pork crackling),
mote (field corn similar to hominy),
tostado (toasted kernels of dried corn), a garnish of tomato and red-onion, and sliced avocado. Some regions replace the potato with fried sweet plantain.
Ají, a homemade hot sauce with
a tomate de arbol base, is liberally added by aficionados of heat.
Hornado is also found at neighborhood markets in just about every town in the Ecuadorian Sierra. It is offered for
breakfast and
lunch. This list includes many high placing contestants and winners in the World Championship of Hornado.
