Cañihua (Chenopodium pallidicaule) is an underutilized Andean pseudocereal of strategic interest for sustainable agriculture in high-altitude, climate-constrained environments, where its tolerance to frost, drought, and saline soils positions it as a potential climate-resilient crop. Despite its high nutritional value and potential for functional food applications, its research landscape remains fragmented and unevenly developed across agronomic, nutritional, and technological dimensions. This study aimed to systematically and bibliometrically analyze the scientific literature on cañihua published between 1995 and 2025. A total of 104 documents indexed in the Scopus database were evaluated following the PRISMA 2020 approach, including analyses of publication trends, geographic distribution, collaboration networks, and thematic structures, together with a qualitative critical appraisal of the included evidence. Results indicate a marked increase in scientific output since 2006, with research predominantly concentrated in food science and technology and limited development in agronomy, clinical nutrition, and socio-economic domains. Thematic analysis reveals a strong focus on bioactive compounds, nutritional composition, and processing technologies, while clinical, socio-economic, and large-scale agricultural studies remain limited. Processing strategies such as germination, malting, and fermentation enhance nutrient bioavailability, reduce antinutritional factors, and improve sensory properties, supporting the incorporation of cañihua into functional and gluten-free foods at levels of up to 25%. Significant gaps persist in clinical validation, agronomic standardization, production scalability, genetic improvement, and integration across research domains. Overall, cañihua shows strong potential to contribute to sustainable Andean agriculture, food security, and functional food innovation, although further interdisciplinary and translational research linking agricultural production with nutritional and technological outcomes is required to realize its full applied potential.

Cassava (Manihot esculenta) is an important tropical crop and a valuable source of starch for food processing. This study evaluated the effect of three cassava ecotypes from Cajamarca, Peru-Puerto Huallape (PHE), Las Naranjas (LNE), and Puerto Chinchipe (PCE), on the quality and technological properties of naturally fermented sour cassava starch. Native starches were subjected to spontaneous fermentation followed by solar drying, and their fermentation kinetics, physicochemical, thermal, functional, and pasting properties were evaluated. The ecotypes required 4 to 5 days of fermentation to reach the target acidity and pH, followed by approximately 7 h of solar drying. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were observed among ecotypes in yield, pH, titratable acidity, moisture, water activity, whiteness index, expansion capacity, water absorption and solubility indices, gelatinization parameters and pasting properties. PHE exhibited the highest expansion capacity and peak viscosity, indicating greater potential for bakery applications; LNE showed the highest water absorption index, greater paste stability, and stronger molecular reassociation during cooling, whereas PCE exhibited greater fermentation intensity and a higher gelatinization temperature. Principal component analysis identified expansion capacity, whiteness, moisture, and water activity as the main variables differentiating the ecotypes. Furthermore, the results demonstrate significant differences among sour cassava starches obtained from three Peruvian ecotypes via natural fermentation and sun drying, allowing for their physicochemical differentiation; this provides a basis for selecting raw materials according to specific technological requirements, particularly for gluten-free baking applications.