National Dishes of the World

EN PL

Asado
Photo: author: see the file page, Attribution, Wikimedia Commons

main dish

Asado

Beef ribs, sausages and offal slowly grilled over embers, served with herby chimichurri and a simple salad.

Eaten in: Argentina, Uruguay

Prep
30 min
Cooking
2 h
Resting
1 h
Total
3 h 30 min
Servings
6

Jump to recipe

About the dish

An asado is more than grilled meat – it is a Sunday gathering of family and friends that lasts the whole afternoon. On a grill called a parrilla, over wood or charcoal embers, beef short ribs (tira de asado), flank (vacío), chorizo, blood sausage (morcilla) and offal known as achuras cook slowly. The meat is seasoned with nothing but coarse salt; the flavour comes from smoke and the patience of the asador, who keeps the embers even. Sausages in bread (choripán) and offal reach the table first, the large cuts later. Asado is served with chimichurri made from parsley, garlic and vinegar, a tomato and onion salsa criolla, and simple salads.

Main ingredients

  • beef short ribs
  • flank steak (vacío)
  • chorizo sausages
  • morcilla blood sausage
  • coarse salt
  • chimichurri

Argentina: The grill master is the asador, and a round of applause for him after the meal is a must.

Uruguay: In Uruguay meat is mostly cooked over wood embers, often with grilled provolone cheese and peppers alongside.

More: Wikipedia (pl) Wikipedia (en)

Recipe

Asado

https://foodmap.ominuvo.com/dish/asado

Ingredients

6 servings

6 servings

Method

  1. Make the chimichurri: finely chop the parsley and garlic, mix with the oregano, chilli, vinegar, oil and a pinch of salt. Leave for at least an hour.

  2. Light the wood or charcoal to one side of the grill and wait about 40 minutes until it turns into embers covered in white ash.

  3. Spread a thin layer of embers under the grate – a hand held 10 cm above the grate should bear the heat for about 8–10 seconds. Add more embers from the side as needed.

  4. Season the meat generously with coarse salt just before it goes on the grill.

  5. Lay the ribs bone side down with the flank alongside; grill for about 50 minutes, then turn and cook for another 20–30 minutes.

  6. Halfway through, add the chorizo and morcilla, turning every few minutes until browned and hot through (about 25 minutes).

  7. Serve the sausages first, for example in bread with chimichurri, then the meat sliced across the grain with the sauce and salad.

From the same kitchen