How to Cook a Guinea Pig

Principal Ecuador

Guinea pig, is called Cuy, and it is an Ecuadorian delicacy. It would be a sin to leave your vacation in Ecuador without trying it and I had the privilege of helping prepare it from start to finish. Read on for all the details... WARNING: not for people who are grosed out easily! :)
It was a huge, white guinea pig. First, Mama broke its neck and then hung it upside down in her hands to let the blood drip out of its mouth and onto the dirt floor. It was a slow death, as it squirmed silently. When the blood had been reduced to a very slow dripping, she laid it in a big bowl and dumped a pot of boiling water onto its squirming body. This made it easier for her to rip the fur off of its body. After a few moments, it stopped squirming and I hope his soul made it to guinea pig heaven.
When all the fur was off, the next step was to cut the guinea pig open and remove the insides. Mama was afraid to cut it because there was a big of a bulge in the belly, and she feared it may have babies inside! She had Papa cut it open, because she had a fear of baby animals. We hoped and prayed it did not have a baby, and luckily, it did not.
She continued, to remove the intestines, and all the organs except for the liver and the brain. The organs went into a bucket for the pigs to eat.
Next, she rubbed the guinea pig with salt and garlic that she mashed with a rock. She let it marinate for a few hours in a dish covered with a dish towel.
When it was time to cook the guinea pig, Mama borrowed a grill from the neighbors and lit the charcoal with a bit of gasoline. Miggy and I took turns fanning the fire with the "ventador", made of straw.
When the coals were red hot, and there was a nice flame. Mama slid a stick into the body of the guinea pig. We each took turns roasting, fanning the fire, and rubbing orange-colored lard onto the body.
You have to keep rotating the cuy so that it will not burn. The skin became golden brown, crispy, and bubbly. Most everyone in Ecuador LOVES cuy, and they will say their favorite food. It is mostly served on special occasions, and this occasion was St. Josephs Day, but we didn't cook it on St. Josephs day because we didn't have power at that time and it was a very busy time for us.
The cuy is *always* served with potatoes and rice, according to Mama.
They enjoyed eating the feet the best, crunching on the bone.
It is very delicious, very similar to grilled chicken, except crunchier. Jose says cuy is his favorite and his second favorite is FOX! I thought it was a joke until Mama raved about the fox also, and said it makes a delicioius fox soup that is "Que Rico". The fox is cooked in the same way nad has a similar taste.

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