11 Peruvian Desserts You Need To Try Immediately

There’s so much to see and do in Perú, and especially so much to eat. If you have a bit of a sweet tooth and you’re looking to build a “must sample list” before your next trip to Perú, this list is for you. The top 11 Peruvian desserts you definitely want to try!

From the Andes of Perú, to the Coast, to the Jungle, Perú has a vast selection of totally unique sweets. I obviously haven’t tried them all, or even managed to travel across all of Perú yet to be able to tell you everything you should try. But here are some unique Peruvian desserts I recommend.

I included the towns with each of these as some can be found elsewhere, but these have been my favorites of each so far. In no particular order, other than that I lumped the cities together, here are some of my favorite Peruvian desserts.

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One: Zacateca – Lima

We found this little hole in the wall during our first trip to Perú. We went looking for ice cream and stumbled upon popsicles instead. It has quickly become a favorite, and every time we’re in the area we make a point to visit.

These popsicles contain goodness inside. Some caramel, chocolate, or berries, in others you may find sweetened condensed milk, lime curd, or even white chocolate. There are so many flavors to choose from!

If you’re ever in the area, we recommend the mint, the coconut, or the Selva Negra. But honestly, it’s dessert, you probably can’t go wrong with any of them.

There are at least two of these shops in Lima San Borja, close to the train station. “Zacateca” is the store name, so I would recommend you look it up on maps if you’re looking to check them out. Just a heads up, be sure not to go on a Monday as they are closed.

We like to get dessert here after we eat lunch at Naruto, a Japanese restaurant in Lima.

Two: Raspadillas – Tacna

Did you ever eat snow cones growing up? The cup of shaved ice topped with a big pump or two of corn-syrupy fake fruit flavor? You know that thing?

Well, this is nothing like that. The only similarity is shaved ice in a cup.

Raspadillas are just about the best summertime snack. A pile of shaved ice topped with up to three flavors of juice made from actual fruit.

Depending on where you get them from, sometimes you have a wide variety of options, featuring 20 different flavors. And sometimes there are only four. Either way, it’s still worth it.

My favorite raspadillas have come from a food truck down in Tacna, Perú. The people are sweet, the ice is cold, and usually, you can’t go wrong with any mix of fruit flavors, assuming of course, that you already like those fruits. My favorite usually has something to do with coconut as at least one of the flavors!

In Tacna, you can find lots of street vendors selling these during the summer. If you’re spending a day out and about around the city you shouldn’t have any problem spotting a vendor or two selling raspadillas.

Three: Max Cafe – Tacna

I’m not a big coffee drinker, but this was one of our favorite places to go if we needed a cute date activity and a nice drink and a snack.

They have mostly cold drinks, like mochas and smoothies, as well as muffins and cake. Some of the bigger cafes have ice cream as well. We did give the ice cream a go once, it wasn’t bad, but the cold drinks won out every time.

When we’ve gone in the past they always had a two-for-S/10 deal, which meant the flavor options were a little more limited, but it enabled us to each get a drink and split a cheesecake slice.

10/10 would recommend as a date activity.

We’ve never found this cafe in any other part of Perú, only Tacna. If you’re ever down by the Chilean border, be sure to check this place out.

Four: La Catita Helados – Tacna

On a Saturday adventure one summer, we went to go find some cheap ice cream to cool off after our activities and instead stumbled upon this place.

It is absolutely the best place to buy a tub of ice cream to go.

This sweet lady runs the shop and only opens on Saturdays and Sundays–but not always! Sometimes you just have to knock and see if she’s serving today.

When we went we tried as many things as we could, including the waffles. Because in Perú, waffles are not breakfast foods, they’re desserts. As they honestly should be.

Our favorite ice cream flavors, which we bought in tubs to go, were the Baileys and the chocolate. The lady who makes these ice creams likes to experiment with new flavors each time too!  I hope to go back to this ice cream shop one day, such a great treat.

Five: Picarones – Tacna, Lima, wherever

Picarones are kind of like a doughnut. They’re made from sweet potato and pumpkin and cooked right in front of you in about two minutes. Finished with a drizzle of honey containing cloves, cinnamon, and some other spices. They’re simultaneously soft and crunchy – and best eaten hot.

These make a wonderful dessert for two, or just for you if you’re feeling greedy. No judgment, I’ve been greedy before too.

You can get these from a street vendor in most cities. I have no particular favorite place or destination recommendation for you to get them from. We always get them spontaneously when we see them on our walk, so there’s no shop I can specifically send you to.

Six: Chocotejas – Ica

The original Chocotejas come from a place called Rosalia, La Casa de las Tejas. This is found in Ica. I recommend you buy the original ones (in any flavor that fancies you) from the factory after you take a quick tour.

These chocolates are very rich and about the size of a two dates. They’re made from pecans and chocolate. And some have coconut, caramel, or coffee, inside, among other options. There’s a handful of flavors to choose from, my favorite definitely included the very original flavor.

They can be found being sold from a vendor in the Huacachina – Ica city center if you’d like to purchase a cheap knockoff, but I highly recommend you go direct for these, the quality and the experience were worth it. Rosalia, La Casa de las Tejas are the founders of this treat.

Seven: Ice cream –  Sancos

Perú has a variety of unique ice creams, you can find cheese ice creams and some others that are more like sorbet. The one I want to point out here is the most unique flavored ice cream I’ve ever had.

I could never quite pinpoint the distinct flavor, but it was both gorgeous to look at and delicious to eat. Upon asking about the flavor we discovered the ice cream was made from blackberries. This is the only blackberry ice cream I’ve ever had, so maybe it’s really that good, or maybe I just like blackberries. You’ll have to give it a try sometime and let me know what you think!

Let me go ahead and put a little disclaimer on this before I tell you to go all the way up the hills to Sancos just for some ice cream. The only time I’ve visited Sancos was during a huge festival, where people and vendors come from all over Perú specifically for this festival. If you go anytime other than during this season, there honestly might not be any ice cream, or much of anything to do up there.

Sancos is a small town deep in the Andes. It’s a beautiful town with incredible people. But, the only people that live there are older and have lived there for generations. I’ve been told there’s nothing there, and basically, no one, most of the year, and only when this festival comes around do the people come out, along with the ice cream vendors and all the activities.

Eight: Alfajores – Jaquí

Layers of cookie sandwiched together with homemade caramel make the ultimate Peruvian dessert. The fresher you can get these, the better they taste, though they do keep decently. These cookies are sweet and heavy with caramel, delicious to the last bite.

This is a classic Peruvian cookie. I imagine it would be great with coffee, my mom would have loved these.

Any of the following treats from Jaquí can be found in little corner stores or shops, produced by the locals. Jaquí is a small town, you really won’t have to go hunting for these treats, just wherever you stop in to buy some water or detergent be sure to ask if they have them. And if they don’t, I’m sure they’ll point you in the direction of someone who can sell them to you.

We find that the more “From the source” that you can get, the better they taste. You can find these treats in places like Lima as well, but they’re either imported from Jaquí, or produced with a different technique, and I’m partial to the technique of the ones prepared in Jaquí.

Nine: Chimango – Jaquí

It’s a light and fluffy cake sandwiched together with homemade caramel. Though the caramel tastes different than all the other caramel desserts mentioned in this post. I can never quite pinpoint the flavor, I almost want to say it’s like an apple puree, but that’s not quite right.

They remind me of a breakfast cake, though I’ve never had one for breakfast, and usually they’re not ready until late in the day.

If you’re looking for a Peruvian dessert that’s a little less sweet than all the others mentioned here, this is your best bet. These cakes and the alfajores are a little sturdier and travel well if you need a snack to travel with.

Ten: Yoyo – Jaquí

Similar to the alfajore, though less cookie and less crunchy. These cakes come in a shape very similar to an alien spaceship. Once you see it you can’t unsee it.

The spaceship-shaped cake has homemade caramel on the inside and is sprinkled with coconut around the edges. They’re soft, and moist and a great snack if you’re looking for something similar to an alfajore that’s a little less sweet and a little less messy with a cake texture instead of a cookie.

Eleven: Maicillo – Jaquí

Maicillos are two cookies made from white corn, sandwiched together with a little bit of homemade caramel. They remind me faintly of cornbread.

The cookie is so soft and crumbly when they’re fresh. My only warning is to eat them slowly, have something nearby to drink, and try not to laugh while eating them.

Because of the homemade, from-scratch, aspect of these treats, especially the ones found in Jaquí, they take a long time to produce and are made in small batches. There are not many widely available, but you can place an order with the wonderful people who make them. If you ever find yourself in any of these cities in Perú I hope you’ll stop by and give these a try!

Have you ever tried any of these Peruvian desserts? Which one seems the most interesting to you?

Looking for more Peruvian food to try? Come check out this post about my fav Peruvian Dishes or check out our page of recommendations for all things travel, DIY, and remote work, here.

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