Chicha de Jora substitute

Best substitute

Dark or amber lager

Use the same amount plus 1 tsp sugar and 1 tsp cider vinegar per cup as the chicha de jora you are replacing

Best for seco de res

Close match

For braises like seco de res or adobo arequipeno, a dark or amber lager is the best 1:1 swap, plus a teaspoon of sugar and a splash of cider vinegar per cup to mimic chicha's sweet-sour edge. A sour beer such as a gose gets the lactic tang right with no adjustment at all. If you are avoiding alcohol, use three-quarters of a cup of beef broth with 2 tablespoons of cider vinegar and a teaspoon of brown sugar per cup.

Other chicha de jora substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Sour beer (gose, Berliner weisse or lambic)
Close match
Use the same amount
Chicha's defining tang comes from lactic fermentation, and a sour beer is lactic-fermented too, so this is the only common swap that gets the sourness without any adjustment.
What changes
Best for
seco de res, arroz con pato, braises, marinades
Choose a plain gose rather than a fruited one. A fruited sour will make the sauce taste of raspberry, which is not a mistake you can walk back once it is reduced.
3Light lager plus cider vinegar
Different texture
Use the same amount plus 1 tsp cider vinegar per cup
An ordinary corn-adjunct lager is a surprisingly close match for chicha's paleness, mildness and low alcohol; the vinegar supplies the fermented sour edge it lacks.
What changes
Best for
arroz con pato, pale braises, chicken dishes
This is the easiest option to buy anywhere. It is thinner and cleaner than chicha, so the finished sauce has slightly less body. A tablespoon of masa harina whisked in fixes that.
4Hard cider, dry
Different taste
Use the same amount
Dry cider has the light body, the low alcohol and the sweet-tart balance of chicha, which makes it work better in seco than most people expect.
What changes
Best for
seco de res, pork braises, duck
Distinctly appley, so the sauce tastes fruitier and brighter and less grainy. Choose the driest cider you can find, since a sweet one will make the braise taste like a glaze.
5Non-alcoholic: broth plus vinegar and brown sugar
Different taste
Use ¾ cup beef or chicken broth plus 2 tbsp cider vinegar plus 1 tsp brown sugar for every cup of chicha de jora
Reconstructs what chicha actually contributes to a braise, which is savoury liquid, mild acid and a little malty sweetness, without any alcohol.
What changes
Best for
alcohol-free seco, braises, family cooking
The one thing you cannot get this way is the sprouted-corn maltiness. Adding a tablespoon of dark malt extract or a crushed shortbread-like sweet cracker gets a little of it back if you happen to have either.
6Chicha morada
Taste and texture differ
Not recommended as a direct swap
Chicha morada is the purple corn drink, not a fermented one.
What changes
It is sweet, spiced with clove and cinnamon and heavily limed, so it is neither sour nor malty in the way chicha de jora is.
Best for
nothing savoury
Despite the shared name these are completely different drinks. Using chicha morada in seco makes a sweet, spiced, purplish sauce. If it is all you have, use half chicha morada and half broth and skip any sugar in the recipe.

What is Chicha de Jora?

Chicha de Jora is Chicha de jora is a cloudy, lightly alcoholic Andean corn beer fermented from jora, which is corn that has been sprouted and dried, and it is drunk in Peru and Bolivia as well as cooked with.

Cooking tips

In cooking, chicha de jora's job is acid plus malt plus liquid, not alcohol. It is usually only one to three percent alcohol and most of that boils off in a braise, which is why a non-alcoholic version built from broth, vinegar and a little sugar works honestly rather than as a compromise.
Chicha is a marinade as much as a braising liquid. In adobo arequipeno the pork sits in chicha with ground aji panca and garlic overnight, and the mild acidity is what tenderises the surface. If you substitute with plain beer and no vinegar, marinate a couple of hours longer to make up for the lost acid.
Taste your chicha before you cook with it if you did buy the real thing. Bottles vary from barely sour and sweetish to sharply acidic depending on how long they fermented, and a very sour bottle needs a pinch of sugar or the braise ends up puckering.
Add the liquid after browning the meat and after the aderezo, the fried base of onion, garlic and aji, has darkened. Chicha's sugars scorch if you pour it into a bare hot pan.
If you are making chicha de jora at home, note that jora is specifically sprouted and dried corn, not ordinary dried corn or cornmeal. Marjoram, which shares the first letters, has nothing to do with it and is a common search mix-up.

Frequently asked questions

Can I just leave chicha de jora out?

Not without replacing the liquid, since in seco and adobo it is most of the braising liquid. The workable minimum is an equal amount of broth plus a tablespoon of vinegar per cup, which keeps the sauce's acidity even though you lose the malty background.

Is beer a good substitute for chicha de jora?

Yes, and it is the usual substitution Peruvian cooks outside Peru make. Use a dark or amber lager rather than an ale, and add a teaspoon of sugar and a teaspoon of cider vinegar per cup so it lands closer to chicha's sweet-sour, low-bitterness character.

What does chicha de jora taste like?

Cloudy, mildly fizzy, faintly sweet from the sprouted corn and distinctly sour from lactic fermentation, with a grainy, almost porridge-like background. Think of a very lightly soured wheat beer with corn in place of the wheat and no hop bitterness.

Can I use chicha morada instead of chicha de jora?

They are not interchangeable. Chicha morada is an unfermented sweet purple corn drink flavoured with pineapple, cinnamon and clove, so it brings sugar and spice where chicha de jora brings acid and malt. In a pinch, dilute it half and half with broth and cut all other sugar in the recipe.

Is chicha de jora alcoholic?

Mildly. Traditional chicha is usually around one to three percent alcohol, similar to a very light beer, and it varies with how long it has fermented. In a long braise most of the alcohol cooks off, though not all of it, so use the broth-and-vinegar version if you need the dish to be genuinely alcohol-free.

Related substitutes

More alcohol & vinegars substitutes

Chicha de Jora substitute

Other chicha de jora substitutes

2Sour beer (gose, Berliner weisse or lambic)

3Light lager plus cider vinegar

4Hard cider, dry

5Non-alcoholic: broth plus vinegar and brown sugar

6Chicha morada