Vegetables

• The Inca used vegetables to make soups and stews.Photos.com/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  The Inca civilization consumed a number of vegetables, including tomatoes, sweet potatoes, maize (corn), avocados, beans and quinoa. However, the Incas relied on potatoes as a large part of their diet because it could withstand the freezing temperatures of the mountainous regions the Inca often inhabited.
  
  

Meats

• Incas consumed fish located near the coast of South America.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  The Inca civilization also consumed meats, but as a smaller portion of their diet. The Incas also ate guinea pigs and fish and consumed llamas and alpacas, which they also raised for wool and labor.
  
  

Beverages

• The Inca never drank water, unless chicha was unavailable.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  The main drink among the Inca was chicha, or a fermented alcoholic beverage made from maize. This was the drink of choice, as the Incas consumed it at most meals and also during celebrations and rituals.
  
  

Storehouses

• Freeze-dried food was easier for the Incas to transport around the empire.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  The Inca people maintained their selective diet due to their use of storehouses. They filled the storehouses with freeze-dried foods, like potatoes and meat, or what has come be known today as beef jerky. The storehouses were located around the empire, making the food widely available.