Asado

Asado(Spanish:[aˈsaðo]) is the technique and the social event of having or attending abarbecuein variousSouth Americancountries: especiallyArgentina,Brazil(Rio Grande do Sul),Chile,Colombia,Paraguay,Peru, andUruguaywhere it is also a traditional event. Anasadousually consists ofbeef,pork,chicken,chorizo, andmorcilla; all of which are cooked using an open fire or agrill, called aparrilla. Usually,red wineand side dishes such assaladsaccompany the main meats, which are prepared by a designated cook called theasadororparrillero.
Usually theasadorbegins by igniting the charcoal, which is often made of native trees, avoiding pines and eucalyptus as they have strong-smelling resins. In more sophisticatedasadosthe charcoal is of a specific tree or made on the coal of recently burned wood, which is also commonplace when having anasadoin a campfire. In Uruguay, charcoal is not used, but instead direct embers or hot coals.
Cooking can be doneal asadorora la parrilla. In the first case, a fire is lit on the ground or in a fire pit and surrounded by metal crosses (asadores) that hold the entire carcass of an animal splayed open to receive the heat from the fire. In the second case, a fire is made and after the charcoal has formed, a grill with the meat is placed over it.
In manyasados,chorizos,morcillas(black pudding),chinchulines(cowchitterlings),mollejas(sweetbreads), and otherorgans, often accompanied byprovoleta,would be served first while the cuts that require longer preparations are still on the grill. Sometimes these are served on a charcoalbrasero.Chorizosmay be served withpan felipeor baguette bread, often calledchoripán.
After appetizers,costillasorasado de tira(ribs) can be served. Next comesvacío(flank steak),matambreand possibly chicken andchivito(goatling). Dishes such aspamplona, pork, and Patagonian lamb are becoming more frequent, particularly in restaurants. Anasadoalso includes bread, a simple mixed salad of, for instance, lettuce, tomato, and onions, or it could be accompanied withverdurajo(grilled vegetables), a mixture made of potatoes, corn, onion, and eggplant cooked on the grill and seasoned with olive oil and salt. Beer, wine, soft drink, and other beverages are common. Dessert is usually fresh fruit.
Another traditional form to mainly roast the meat, used in Patagonia, is with the whole animal (especially lamb and pork) in a wood stick nailed in the ground and exposed to the heat of live coals, calledasado al palo.
The meat for anasadois notmarinated, the only preparation being the application of salt before or during the cooking period.Also, the heat and distance from the coals are controlled to provide a slow cooking; it usually takes around two hours to cookasado. Further, grease from the meat is not encouraged to fall on the coals and create smoke which would adversely flavour the meat. In someasadosthe area directly under the meat is kept clear of coals.
Theasadois usually placed in a tray to be immediately served, but it can also be placed on a brasero right on the table to keep the meat warm.Chimichurri, a sauce of chopped parsley, dried oregano, garlic, salt, black pepper, onion, and paprika with olive oil, orsalsa criolla, a sauce of tomato and onion in vinegar, are common accompaniments to anasado, where they are traditionally used on the offal, but not the steaks.
Food is often accompanied by salads, which inasadogatherings are traditionally made by women on site or brought to theasadofrom their homes while the men focus on the meats.Salad Olivier(ensalada rusa) is one of the most common salads served atasados.In Paraguaychipa guasu,sopa paraguayaand boiledmaniocas a side dish are also served.
In Chile, the normal versioncordero al palo(whole roast lamb) is usually accompanied withpebre, a fresh dip-style salad made from diced tomatoes, coriander, garlic, and hot peppers. This lamb dish is typical of southern Chile and is served hot accompanied by salads. A whole lamb is tied to a spit and is then roasted perpendicular on a wood fire. The preparation lasts around 5 hours since cooking must be constant and on a low heat.
In Brazil,asadois calledchurrasco, although the cooking is usually faster. Grilled and salted meat in Brazil is generally called "carne assada" and is often cut into small strips and served on a plate or cutting board in the middle of the table for all to partake. Various grilled meats, pork, sausages and occasionally chicken are also passed around from table to table on a spit and a slice is offered to each person. This is called "rodizio" because each person partakes in turn. Charcoal is predominantly used instead ofembersofwood, and Brazilians tend to cook the meat onskewersor grills. The meat of Rozidio is usually seasoned with salt alone.
In Mexico, there is similar tradition of asparrilladasorcarne asadas, which incorporates various marinated cuts of meat, including steaks, chicken, and sausages (chorizo,longaniza, andmorongabeing especially popular). These are all grilled over wood charcoal. Vegetables are also placed over the grill, especially green onions (cebollitas),nopales, and corn (elote).
Again, in Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay, some alternatives are theasado al discoandasado al horno de barro, especially in the countryside. The recipe does not change, only the way of cooking. In theasado al disco(the worn-out disc of aplough) is used. Being metallic and concave, three or four metallic legs are welded and with hot coal or lumber below it is easily transformed into an effective grill. Food is put in a spiral, in such a way that the fat naturally slips to the center, preserving the meat for being fried.Bell peppersand onions are usually put next to the edge, so that they gradually release their juices on the meat. Theasado al horno de barrodiffers from tradition, as an adobehorno(oven, calledtatakuain Paraguay) is used. These ovens are a common view in Argentine and Paraguayanestancias; their primary function is to bake bread,chipa guasuandsopa paraguaya, but they are well suited for roasting meat.Porksuckling and, less commonly,lambare served, as they are more unlikely to become dry. Another way of cooking the asado is inside achulengo, an oil barrel (or similar) cut in half, inside which the grill is placed to protect both the meat and fire from heavy winds. This makes thechulengoespecially useful in thePatagoniaregion, although it is also used in other areas for practicality and the ability to move it around.
South Americanasadoshould not be confused withasadoin thePhilippines, which refers to two differentbraiseddishes:asado de carajay, which is braised meat with vegetables in a savory stew; andporkasado, which is a sweet braised version ofchar siu. The equivalent of Latin Americanasadobarbecues in Philippine cuisine would be the variousinihawdishes (also known assinugbaorinasal).
InPortugal, a roasted fish dish served with sausages and bacon is also known asassado.
InGoa, roast beef is calledassad, from Portugueseassado.
InSouth Africa, a whole meat carcass cooked with theal asadormethod is called asado spit braai orspit roast.