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Huacatay

Huacatay is an aromatic herb used fresh or blended into sauces and seasonings, especially in Andean cooking.

Huacatay — illustrative ingredient image

About Huacatay

Huacatay is an aromatic herb used in Andean cooking, valued as leafy fresh material in sauces, marinades, soups, stews, and dishes featuring potatoes, grains, vegetables, or meats. It may be chopped, bruised, blended, or incorporated into a seasoning paste.

Its strongly scented flavour can suggest mint, anise, citrus, or other pungent herbal notes. Fresh material consists of slender green leaves, while blending or bruising breaks down the leafy texture and distributes the aroma through a sauce or paste.

It is sold fresh, dried, or processed into bottled or blended sauces. Drying makes the herb darker and less bulky, while bottled preparations may differ in colour, salt, oil, texture, and added ingredients; these forms no longer retain the same distinct fresh-leaf texture.

Ingredient type
whole food

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Where huacatay appears

5 linked foods

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Sides

Soups

Sauces

Ingredient connections awaiting review · Coverage is still growing, including packaged snacks.

Name examples awaiting language review. Confirm the specific food or product.

Local names for huacatay

Names and romanised forms to recognise on menus and labels.

English

black mint

English

huacatay

Available names only. Languages may be spoken in other countries; a name alone does not identify every ingredient in a dish.

Huacatay nutrition & diet

Huacatay nutritional value

Huacatay leaves, without stems — B 48

Per 100 g of the edible portion in the named food form.

Calories
50kcal
Protein
5.0g
Carbs
8.8g
Fat
0.8g

Per 100 g edible portion, as recorded in Tablas Peruanas de Composición de Alimentos 2017. Carbohydrate is total carbohydrate (CHOCDF), not available carbohydrate. Values apply to this form, not prepared dishes, sauces or extracts.

Portions & preparation

Confirm the botanical identity and local form of huacatay before using a reference, since fresh leaves, dried herb, paste, oil infusion, and seasoning blends are not interchangeable. Record the edible leaf or prepared portion and note salt, oil, acid, or other additions.

Compare the right form: Match the confirmed huacatay identity and exact fresh leaf, dried herb, paste, infusion, or blend form, including recipe additions.

Diet considerations

Huacatay is generally understood as a plant-derived Andean herb, but blended pastes and sauces require ingredient review. Oil, dairy, animal-based seasonings, sweeteners, cereal thickeners, or coatings can change compatibility. Plain herb contributes a portion-dependent carbohydrate pattern distinct from prepared condiments.

AI-authored reading notes · Awaiting editorial review. Measured values, where available, have a separate source above.

Dietary compatibility

  • Vegan
    Not established
  • Vegetarian
    Not established
  • Pescatarian
    Not established
  • Keto
    Not established
  • Paleo
    Not established
  • Low-carb
    Not established
  • Halal
    Not established
  • Kosher
    Not established
What these diet assessments mean
Vegan · Not established
The available profile does not establish the full composition or processing for this dietary pattern.
Vegetarian · Not established
The available profile does not establish the full composition or processing for this dietary pattern.
Pescatarian · Not established
The available profile does not establish the full composition or processing for this dietary pattern.
Keto · Not established
A defined serving and sourced carbohydrate data are needed before assessing this dietary pattern.
Paleo · Not established
The ingredient form and processing have not been assessed against this dietary pattern.
Low-carb · Not established
A defined serving and sourced carbohydrate data are needed before assessing this dietary pattern.
Halal · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish halal status.
Kosher · Not established
Sourcing, processing and any applicable certification have not been verified. A food name alone does not establish kosher status.

For the plain ingredient · Awaiting review. Diet compatibility is not allergy suitability or halal/kosher certification. Keto and low-carb depend on the portion.

Reviewed ingredient entryIngredient reference · Preparations vary

AI-generated illustration for visual context. It does not identify a particular product or establish allergen content.

Sources & review

Nutrition reference: Peruvian Food Composition Tables 2017 — B 48 ↗. Values are scaled from 100 g of the recorded edible form. Individual portions have no assumed fixed weight.

Expanded overview, name examples and nutrition notes are database drafts awaiting editorial review. Numeric nutrition values, where shown, have their own source and food-form reference.

The ingredient description and dish connections come from the draft catalogue and may change after review.

Last recorded verification: .