If you already know Chifa food, you also know that chicken is the main ingredient in some of its most delicious dishes. Also, you probably know that a dilemma that many of us chifa lovers have is that we tend to confuse pollo tipakay and chijaukay. Why is it so difficult to remember which is sweet and which is salty? Easy, because they are both equally delicious!
So that you don’t make a mistake again when you’re in front of the menu of your favourite chifa restaurant, let’s take a detailed look at the differences between each one. But be warned, this article will make you very hungry!
How to recognise tipakay and chijaukay chicken? Differences
In tipakay and chijaukay chicken, the main difference lies in the sweet and salty taste of each. In fact, many restaurants list the flavour on the menu so that there is no confusion.
Both dishes are based on a fried boneless chicken that is accompanied by vegetables and sauces. In some cases they come with sauces only, but this is rarely seen. Usually the recipes come in vegetable-laden presentations.
It is customary to serve chijaukay and tipakay with a side dish of chaufa rice and soup. Let’s look at the differences between one dish and the other.
Sweet and salty taste
Tipakay chicken is made with a sweet sauce that is prepared with tamarind, tomato sauce, sugar, white vinegar, lemon, corn starch, pepper, garlic, salt and water.
The savoury flavour is then found in the recipe for chicken chijaukay. The sauce poured on this dish is prepared with soy sauce (sillao), kion (ginger), Chinese cinnamon and sesame seeds.
Tipakay and Chijaukay Color
Another difference we can point out between pollo tipakay and chijaukay dishes has to do with the colour. Tipakay is red in colour due to the tamarind sauce which gets a reddish hue with the tomato sauce.
The colour of chijaukay is somewhat mustard or brown due to the dark ingredients used to make the sauce.
Fruits
Another detail that you can pay attention to in the chicken tipakay and chijaukay difference has to do with the fact that the sweet dish can include pineapple and peach. While the savoury dish does not incorporate any fruit.
Chijaukay and tipakay: emblematic Peruvian chifa dishes
Chijaukay and tipakay chicken are two inescapable dishes in chifa restaurants. In fact, you could say they compete with each other because they are equally explosive in flavour.
There is no Peruvian chifa where these dishes are not served. They are among the favourites after chaufa rice, the dish considered the jewel of Chinese-Peruvian fusion cuisine.
Each restaurant makes its own variations, in terms of the vegetables that complement the recipe or the piece of chicken that is chosen. For example, some use only breast and others only leg or thigh. The important thing is that it is a piece free of bones so that you can enjoy every piece you put in your mouth without hindrance.
So now you know! Next time you go to a Peruvian chifa and if the menu doesn’t indicate the flavour of the dish, you can’t go wrong because here we have identified the differences between tipakay and chijaukay chicken. Do you have a favourite?
The best dose of flavour is in Chifa food
Chifa food has the particularity of being one of the best fusion cuisines in Latin America. It arrived in Peru with the Chinese migrants in the 19th century. Thanks to them, the opportunity opened up to discover new dishes that mix the best of both cuisines.
The wok stir-frying over high heat, typical of oriental cuisine, combined with typical Peruvian foods that began to replace ingredients from Asian recipes, allowed the Andean country to showcase Chifa food as part of its gastronomic identity.
Thanks to the chifa fusion, today we can taste rich and varied dishes such as lomo saltado, a dish where tender meat is combined with al dente vegetables in a juicy dark-coloured sauce, or the aforementioned tipakay and chajaukay chickens.
Not to mention noodles, wantán soup, siu mai, kam lu wantán, among many other delicacies. This is Peruvian chifa, a mixture of flavours and textures worth exploring.
They say that the best way to get to know a country is through its food, and chifa has plenty of reasons not to miss out on trying it and getting to know a little more about China and Peru.
Chifa Du Kang: The best chifa food in Miami
As a good Chinese-Peruvian restaurant, at Chifa Du Kang there is no shortage of chijaukay and tipakay chicken dishes. With these dishes you can start your journey through the flavours that Chifa food has to offer, we assure you that you won’t regret it!
We know very well the authentic flavours of this cuisine and we strive to share them with you as they are enjoyed in Peru.
We have a long history of delighting palates with this type of fusion cuisine. Our goal is to provide you with the best of experiences and to make more and more people know and enjoy Chifa food.
In Miami we have two establishments, one on Kendall Dr and the other on Bird Road. In both we serve chijaukay and tipakay, as well as chaufa rice, lomo saltado and an extensive variety of dishes that you can learn about by checking our menu.
