WASHINGTON (WUSA9) -- Let's face it, you can't cover the D.C. food scene without talking about food trucks. They are lined up across the DMV during every lunch hour. So, we stopped by one of the hottest in town -- just so hot, they named it el Fuego.
There's nothing subtle about what fuels the food truck. "Fire, spicy food, it all adds up to El Fuego," said Chef Manny Alvaro, the "keeper of the flame."
Born in Puerto Rico and tr
ained in Spain, he's now infusing Peruvian cuisine into D.C.'s food scene.
"On my trips to Peru, I fell in love with the people... with the culture.. also fell in love with the gastronomy," shared Alvaro.
Known for its spices and its sauces, El Fuego builds its menu around five peppers. Some of those peppers are imported straight from Peru, each serving their own purpose for your palate.
Alvaro explained, "Peppers have different feels on your tongue. Jalapenos habañero and all that, those are the type that hit right away at the tip of your tongue, as you're eating it. Rocoto hits at the back of the tongue, and Lima also in the middle. So, what that does, when you try it, you get a burn from the beginning...all the way to the end."
"There's a difference between enough heat to where you're crying and stuff like that, and then heat with flavor. I prefer the heat with flavor."
Highlighting the flavors of each region of Peru, el Fuego's signature dishes range from a beef stir-fry called Lomo Saltado to ceviche to a spicy Pork sandwich called Pan con Chicharron.
"I feel we have given our grain of salt to all of this by providing a little taste of Peruvian cuisine to a lot of people that never had that influence before," said Alvaro.
They are introducing that Peruvian cuisine to the District one stop at a time.
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