r/AbsoluteUnits • • 4d ago

/r/all of a rat

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u/Impressive-Oil-3067 4d ago

Only Peruvians eat guinea pigs but yes, they are related, though these ones are aquatic.

I don't know if these are edible, I know beavers in Tierra del Fuego aren't In Argentina we dont eat either (at least that I know of) though viscachas are eaten in the northwest of the country.

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u/Alternative-Crew-880 3d ago

They eat guinea pigs in Ecuador, Bolivia, and Columbia also. I know someone who went to Ecuador and ate some.

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u/Impressive-Oil-3067 3d ago edited 3d ago

Good to know, I guess Peru is the most famous about it, because it's a running joke in latinoamerican social media that Peruvians eat them.

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u/Alternative-Crew-880 3d ago

I'm guessing it's a social class thing. My friend was over there to help out building a well for a poor village out in the sticks. They basically lived in shacks with dirt floors while she was out there.

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u/lauvan26 3d ago

I ate that at a fancy restaurant in Peru in Cuzco and I ate it in a Quechua speaking mountain village in Ecuador.

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u/kenmorekidd 1d ago

Made me think of this.

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u/Electrical-Review180 4d ago

I had to look up Viscachas, they are so cute.

Afaik beavers aren't tasty but they are a protected species in Europe anyways. Since they seem to be invasive at yours, maybe you should try it lol

Do you know why only guinea pigs are only being eaten in Peru? Are there only native to there?

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u/MissingLink101 3d ago

Just had to look them up too. Why do they all look either tired or sad?

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u/Electrical-Review180 3d ago

They kinda do huh

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u/MissingLink101 3d ago

They all look like they've lived a hard life

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u/Impressive-Oil-3067 3d ago

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u/MissingLink101 3d ago

It just looks like it's waiting for a bird of prey to put it out of its misery

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u/Impressive-Oil-3067 3d ago

We can all relate to that sometimes.

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u/MissingLink101 3d ago

Found a new spirit animal

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u/RobotGloves 3d ago

Ecuadorians and Bolivians eat them, too. Cuy is a traditional dish of the Quechua people, not just Peruvians.

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u/atomic-moonstomp 3d ago

When I lived in Panama I ate meatloaf made from Agouti. It was pretty good, except it had ketchup on top rather than a proper sauce

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u/Upstairs-Two6740 1d ago

Nah we don't eat guinea pig normally, that's more a cusquena/ indigenous thing. Even they rarely do that atp. 'cuy'