Typical Colombian foodTypical Colombian food varies from region to region. This is a very fertile country that has a lot to offer, especially in terms of meat, fruit and vegetables. Medellin and Antioquia are know for the Bandeja Paisa. A huge concoction of arepa, ground beef, beans, rice, avocado, an egg and chicharron. It's a huge dish better suited to people who work manually as opposed to sit around in front of a computer every day. 
Sancocho is another favorite of Antioquia. There's no hard and fast rule as to its ingredients but generally, it's a meat, with yuca, vegetables, plantain, and a piece of corn. Bogota is famous for its Ajiaco that is somewhat similar to Sancocho. It contains chicked, potato, corn and herbs.
Food being prepared on the pareira (grill) in the back of a house in Armenia in the coffee region
Plantain and red meat. A good meal is being prepared here because they have visitors. The plantain is also fried, baked or deep fried but personally, I'm not a great fan. You can't eat them without preparation.
Another dish that is one of my favorites is the Tamale. The ones that I'm used to are prepared my my wife's aunt Lucero who makes them with either chicken or pork, carrots, peas and corn flour. The ingredients are wrapped inside a palm leaf and she steams them very gently for several hours. They're delicious! Another favorite is Mondongo. I find this one a little scary personally but my wife loves it. Essentially, it's a tripe soup with spicing and cilantro.
Other examples of typical Colombian food include empanadas, corn flower pies filled with ground beef or potato, onion, tomato, salt, garlic and cilantro which is a very typical ingredient here. These are a great snack. Along the Caribbean coast, you find a lot of deep fried fish with "arroz con coco" which is coconut rice that I really like. The coastal food is a bit more spicy in flavor than inland. Necessity is key. Naturally, where there is fish you eat it and where you have plantains, you eat them. It is also said that the indigenous who lived inland could survive on nearly only corn foods that also contain protein. Below is a picture of the tasty Patacon - fried, green plaintains that have been fried, then crushed and then fried again. Sounds a bit oily, but they're delicious and a touch crunchy.
There's even the Colombian hot dog. These are huge, consisting mainly of filling with a small sausage inside. You can buy them from street vendors and they usually include cole slaw, ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise, pineapple sauce and potato chips that are crushed and placed on top. Delicious after a night on the town. Pandebono is another favorite, often served during Christmas. A type of round cheese bread made from cornmeal, cheese and eggs and then baked or deep fried. The food is fairly tasty but the amount of deep frying that goes on just can't be healthy to be honest. Another thing is that the monotony of typical Colombian food catches up with you pretty quickly but in the bigger cities that's not a problem with the variety of other options on hand. A lot of Colombians really do prefer what they're used to though, so don't expect too much enthusiasm for change.
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