In a cathedral in Cusco in Peru hangs a replica of Leonardo Da Vinci’s Last Supper with Christ and the 12 disciples seated around a platter of guinea pig.

The picture says much about the country’s faith in food.

“In Peru we are obsessed with food,” says Martin Morales. “We talk about food more than love, sex and politics.”

Cuy, as it is locally known, is as common in Peru as fish and chips in the UK, and you’re never far from a place with a spit-roasted rodent turning under a grill.

But the delicacy is as much a reflection of the South American nation’s cuisine as fish and chips represents British gastronomy.

“It’s a really exciting place for gastronomy,” adds Morales, a chef who grew up in the Peruvian capital Lima and turned his pop-up Peruvian restaurant into a permanent fixture on the London scene last year.

“A lot of the top chefs from around the world are going to Peru to find out about our cuisine because it is so varied, exciting and flavour-packed.”

Peruvian food has become the taste to try for hip food lovers.

“This is the hottest new cuisine right now across the world – in San Francisco, in New York, in Paris, in Madrid.”

Its time may have come but food has long been treasured in Peru: there are more culinary schools than any other country in the world and it is in the Guinness Book Of Records as having the most national dishes: 491.

The reason is 2,000 years of Inca rule was followed by 500 years of Spanish rule and waves of immigration from Africa, Asia and other European countries.

“The multiculturalism has created a fusion you will find nowhere else in the world,” believes Morales.

Dish with history

He's named his London kitchen and touring masterclasses, which are coming to Brighton on July 3, after another dish with a place in Peruvians’ hearts and bellies: ceviche.

It is raw fish taken from the bountiful waters off the country’s western coast and marinated in citrus juice. The acid cooks the fish, which is usually spiced with red onion and aji pepper and served with sweet potato. Its origins have been traced back 2,500 years to the Moche culture in northern Peru.

Morales’ great aunt, Carmela, taught him the dish when he was a child.

“She was like a mother to me. She taught me all her recipes. I would stay with her at weekends and I would spend most of my time in the kitchen watching her cook, helping her chop, peeling the potatoes, getting bits of stone out of rice, separating the lentils. It was not only cooking she taught me but also hospitality.”

Morales has put both to good use in Ceviche, which he launched as a supper club and pop-up restaurant two years ago. So big was its following, the events would sell out after only one Tweet by Morales at the end of each event.

His restaurant opened in March 2012 – and now he has a cookbook to share across the 15-date pop-up UK tour.

“We love to cook, we cook with love and we love to share. I know it sounds cheesy but it’s true.”

His family are originally from the Andes, where his grandmother lived.

“I would spend a lot of time travelling to the Andes to visit my grandma in the north, to understand and to taste the wonderful Andean recipes.”

He’s brought many of them to England, where he has lived since his teens.

He has teamed up with Brighton’s Moshimo restaurant for the Sussex leg of the tour.

Guests will learn how to prepare Ceviche’s sea bass dish, Don Ceviche, followed by dinner and dishes from the book, Ceviche Peruvian Kitchen.

Accessible to all

“It’s about bringing wonderful cuisine to different parts of UK. We want to share our recipes and our ethos of cooking with people and cooking for people – and we think anyone can do it.

“So we said let’s do something original. Let’s not just put a book out and stay in London. Let’s risk this and see if it works.”

He likes a risk. The former founding member of iTunes Europe and director of Disney Music quit his job to launch Ceviche.

“The time came when I said to myself I can’t deny this is where my true passion lies. So I’ve sold my house to make it work.”

He’s even launched a record label selling vintage Peruvian music – named after his ceviche marinade, Tiger’s Milk – and draws up Spotify playlists before the classes.

“It’s a social gathering. We gather round the kitchen and then round the table, with our pots and pans, with our implements and ingredients, to make some wonderful dishes.

“They are so much fun and we have a right giggle – and at the end of it people make some delicious dishes which they are proud of.”

  • Ceviche comes to Moshimo, Bartholomew Square, Brighton, on Wednesday, July 3.
  • Dinner and a copy of the Ceviche Peruvian Kitchen book costs £48.
  • The masterclass, dinner and a copy of the Ceviche Peruvian Kitchen book costs £75. Tickets available from cevicheuk.com/brighton