Lucuma smoothie
Lúcuma is an amazing Superfood from Peru, it’s full of potassium with bright yellow coloured flesh and tastes a bit like maple syrup! So much so that it’s often used as a natural sweetener… Lúcuma has a very low Glycemic index,…
Bacalhoada do Christiano (Christiano's Bacalhoada)
Easter and the onset of spring means only one thing in Brazil...eating Salt Cod! The practice of salting and drying cod has been around for 500 years and is said to have been discovered by the Vikings, who used the method to…
Seeing Double in Central America - Part 1
In his two part series on Central America, Russell Maddicks revels in the undiscovered joys of Central America from swimming in volcanoes in El Salvador to snorkeling the Mesoamerican Reef in Honduras
Mexican Mambo
Widely regarded as one of the most influential Mexican music bands of all time, La Sonora Santanera’s unique big band style with elements of mambo, cha cha cha, bolero, cumbia and merengue, has made it popular all over Latin…
Marlon’s Lechona
Colombians love pork, and this stuffed pork, presented with a whole head attached, is the ultimate party feature served for Christmas, birthdays and any special occasion. It’s filled with pigeon peas and cooked rice (deliciously…
The Trailblazers of Latin Hit-Making
From Perez Prado and Vinicius de Moraes to Carlos Santana and Emilio and Gloria Estevan, in our series of articles on Latin-hit-making in the UK, we recognize the heavyweights from Latin America and the Latin diaspora, whose…
West Side Story @ Manchester Royal Exchange
Mexican actress Gabriela Garcia's performance is worth a trip to Manchester, says Elizabeth Mistry
Birdsong in Quechua
Considered one of the most important indigenous singers to emerge out of South America over the last 50 years, through her 25 albums Luzmila Carpio has inspired millions while singing in both her native Aymara-Quechua language…
New Kid on the Block Enthralls with his Films
Chino Moya's ‘Undergods’ (2020) is an impressive sci-fi thriller opera prima that reveals much talent. It is a good omen that the Ridley Scott Creative Group have been supporting this production throughout, allowing Moya and…
'Mujer de Soldado' Dir. Patricia Wiesse Risso
In the sleepy Andean town of Manta in Peru’s Huancavelica province, the wounds of the internal civil conflict between the Shining Path, the paramilitaries and the armed forces continue to bleed. Mujer de Soldado is a documentary…
Tropical Mince Pies
These Tropical Mince Pies are guaranteed to impress your guests as you proudly tell them that they use pure Latin flavours. No apples or raisins in these! Mango replaces the apple and an assortment of dried tropical fruit…
Remembering...Pablo Milanés (1943-2022)
Where Poetry and patriotism meet sublime musicality. Any Latin American will know the angelic voice of one of Cuba's most well known singer-song writers, who stands tall amidst a plethora of Cuban musical legends. Love songs…
London's Top Latin Food Stalls
FOODIE ALERT!!! From Ceviche, bandeja paisa, empandas and churros to tacos, paella, pan de bono and cholados, London has some of the best Latin American street food in Europe. Recently we picked the best of the crop to come and…
BELFONSO - A Story of Love and Betrayal
Belfonso is a powerful tableau-video tale of love, jealousy, rage and betrayal played out between three dwarf characters. It is the result of an artistic collaboration between Argentine painter Ricardo Cinalli and the Argentine…
Latinx Films at The 37th BFI Flare Film Festival 2023
With an array of exciting films from 41 countries, as varied as Morocco & South Korea to Latin America, the biggest LGBTIQ+ film festival in Europe 1(5- 26 March) aims to expand our perspectives, not only with films, but also…
Favourite Sambas
My father lead and played in a carnival band for more than 30 years and most of the time, this band rehearsed at our home. They played in clubs for the four nights of carnival parties and the weeks that preceded them. Outside…
Not So ‘Pura Vida’
Sun and sea yes, but sex tourism, in Costa Rica? Behind the image of the Caribbean’s cleanest and most civilised tourist hotspot, lies a murky world, fed by foreign sex tourists, of exploitation and poverty.
Away from Tacos and Sombresos: CASA Latin American Theatre Festival
The CASA Festival remains the only theatre event dedicated to bringing Latin theatre to the UK. Now in it 5th year, this week the festival embarks on its usual ambitious feat of 45 events, seducing an eclectic London audience…
Escocesa
A marriage made in heaven as Spain 'a la Escocesa' finds its niche in Stoke Newington
Azor (2021) by Andreas Fontana
‘Smell Fear like a Dog’. Andreas Fontana’s film AZOR (2021) showing at the BFI London Film Festival is a slow-burning thriller that enters the murky waters of Private Banking in Argentina during the Dirty War.
Spotlight on…Rubén Blades
There are many great salsa tunes; ones that, when you hear them in a club and you’re dancing, you don’t want them to end. And then there is Rubén Blades; the Panamanian song-writing law student with an abundance of rhythm,…
Crossed Off the Map: A Writer Beguiled by Bolivia
Since leaving a desk job at the Evening Standard 15 years ago, Shafik Meghji has authored and co-authored over 40 guidebooks and visited all seven continents, but when it came to his first full-length travel narrative it was…
London’s Best Latin Restaurants
If your looking for tips on eating Latin in London from those who know the food best, then you could do worse than ask a LUKAS restaurant judge. Being the only Awards to send native experts to judge their own cuisine, you can…
From The Docks To The Decks: The Cumbia explosion
Cumbia, a Colombian musical genre whose humble beginnings lie in the port of Cartagena, is finding its way into the hands of enthralled DJs and producers across the world. Why is it, asks Olly West, that a genre celebrated…
10 Latino Places to Take your Valentine
For us Latinos, having a great Valentine's Day date is a must - a chance to impress your date with the best Latin American food followed by a very sexy party…showing him/her or they just how we do it. So without further ado…
Latino Short films at BFI FUTURE FILM FESTIVAL
This festival, despite being relatively modest, is sponsored by Netflix and has attracted 45 short films submitted to screen online on BFI Player (UK only). The Festival is highlighting an interesting selection of budding…
Fredman Herazo Padilla and the 40 Political Assassinations This Year
The Afro-Colombian community leader was assassinated on January 15. Fredman Herazo Padilla promoted Afro-Colombian music and culture and the language of Palenque, first free slave town in the Americas, well-known for its Afro-…
Latin Sports Stars To Watch out for In 2020
You may have heard of some of these megastars before and there may be some new names on the list, but they all have one thing in common – 2020 is going to be a big year for these Latin Sports stars.
BLACK ORPHEUS (Dir. Marcel Camus 1959 - new Blu-Ray release)
The classic 1959 Rio Carnival adaptation of the ancient Greek tale about Orpheus and Eurydice, two lovers meeting and falling in love, pursued by the macabre figure of Death, is brilliantly brought back to life in a new Blu-Ray…
Señor Ceviche
Carnaby Street, the funky epicenter of the swinging sixties, is the fitting setting for London's latest gastronomical fashion statement, says pioneer of Latin Cuisine in the UK, Esnayder Cuartas
La Vida es Sueño (Life is a Dream) by Pedro Calderón de la Barca at the Barbican Theatre.
Just as William Shakespeare was revolutionizing theatre in England, Spanish writers like Lope de Vega and Pedro Calderón de la Barca were shining bright in the Spanish 'Siglo de Oro'. 'Life is a Dream' is one…
THE FABULOUS QUINTEROS
In most families, being a world class musician would be the pride of the family, but if you belong to the Quinteros of San Agustín, Caracas, it is merely fulfilling the duty of a long line of stellar musicians. Amaranta Wright…
Watermelon & Tuna Ceviche
It’s September which means its officially the end of Summer….. boooooo! All the sad face emojis. I can’t let summer escape me with out making one last dish to celebrate the warmer seasons and that is my favourite new ceviche…
A Passion for Piazzolla
Astor Piazzolla has inspired many artists around the world, none more so than Ann Liebeck, creator of Violetta's Last Tango, the opera dance drama that premiered in Wilton’s Music Hall in 2017 and is streamed tonight. Here…
German Cornejo's Fantasy Island Tracks
If you were stranded on a desert island, which tracks would you absolutely need to get you through those times of despair? Our castaway, German Cornejo, choreographer and lead dancer of the smash hit dance show Tango Fire, is…