Dining review: Mi Peru nails traditional Peruvian dishes

Every time another Peruvian restaurant opens in the area – and they’ve been coming more frequently in recent years – my mouth waters at the prospect of ceviche and rotisserie-roasted chicken. I’m eager to broaden my horizons, too, with each new opportunity to explore a cuisine that never seems to run out of delightful surprises.

But I’ve never been able to get excited about lomo saltado. I realize that the dish, a fusion of native and Chinese immigrant cuisines dating back over a century, is one of the country’s iconic dishes. I just didn’t get what was so special about a dish that struck me as little more than a basic beef stir-fry in a brown sauce – a dish whose most distinctive characteristic is that it’s served over French fries, with white rice on the side.

Then I had the lomo saltado at Mi Peru, a little family-run eatery that opened last summer in Durham. Husband-and-wife partners Edwin Vergaray and Gladis Muñoz, both natives of Peru, share cooking duties. I don’t know which one is primarily responsible for the lomo saltado, so I’m happy to credit them both for the rendition that finally showed me what the fuss is all about.

Petals of beef so lean and tender you’d swear they’re filet (sirloin is traditional, but other cuts are often used) are lightly glazed with a supple sauce that adroitly walks the tightrope between salty soy and tangy vinegar, with a deep undercurrent of umami. Fresh tomatoes, red onions and ribbons of scallion play bright counterpoint. Underneath it all, crisp golden fries soak up the juicy goodness, with a mound of fragrant rice standing ready to mop up any stray bits.

The mom-and-pop culinary duo turn out a fine rotisserie chicken, too. Roasted in an authentic Peruvian charcoal oven, the bird is moist (even the breast) under a bronze, gently spiced skin. Offered as a whole, half or quarter chicken, it’s served with your choice of two sides (fried sweet plantains are a must) and the traditional pungent huacatay sauce for dipping. The chicken is also available for takeout, with or without sides. Take one home, and it will permanently spoil you for those overcooked rotisserie chickens in grocery stores.

Ceviche, on the other hand, can be hit or miss. A recent order of ceviche mixto was marred by a mushy jumbo shrimp that shared the plate with an otherwise fine medley of fresh fish, mussels and a single scallop in its shell. Leche de tigre, a classic spicy seafood cocktail, missed the mark only because of the stingy portion of seafood.

If you’re craving ceviche, consider opting instead for choros a la chalaca: steamed mussels, cooled before being tossed with diced tomatoes, onions and a chewy Peruvian field corn known as choclos in a ceviche-like dressing of lime and cilantro. Served cold in the shell with a garnishing shower of crunchy cancha (Peruvian corn nuts), it ought to hit the spot.

The menu also offers a number of opportunities to explore less familiar Peruvian fare. Seco de res, for one, a cilantro-seasoned beef pot roast served with canary beans (white kidney beans) and rice. And tacu tacu, a freeform pan-fried cake of rice and beans topped with an egg sunny side up.

Yet another is causa de pollo, a cold dish featuring a salad of pulled chicken, corn, peas and carrots sandwiched between layers of chilled mashed potato that’s been amped up with Peruvian yellow aji chile. Topped with a creamy lime-spiked mayonnaise dressing, half a hard-boiled egg and a black olive, the combination sounds odd. Rest assured that it grows on you.

An unusually solid dessert selection presents a dilemma for the sweet tooth. Do you go with the creamy, cinnamon-dusted rice pudding? Or a wedge of flan that rates among the best in town? I vote for both. And while you’re at it, might as well get a couple of those addictive South American dulce de leche-filled sandwich cookies called alfajores to take home.

Located in a strip mall in the South Square area, Mi Peru is decorated on a shoestring budget. A friendly, eager-to-please wait staff account for much of the restaurant’s welcoming vibe, greeting you with a complimentary dish of cancha as soon as you’re seated. They’re a tasty nibble while you’re looking over the menu.

As for me, I don’t think I’ll need a menu next time. I’ll have the lomo saltado, please.

This story was originally published July 9, 2015 at 7:00 AM with the headline "Dining review: Mi Peru nails traditional Peruvian dishes."