Seco (food)

Thesecois astewtypical of Ecuadorian and Peruvian cuisine. It can be made with any type of meat. According to an Ecuadorianpopular etymology, the name of seco comes from thePenínsula de Santa Elenain Ecuador, where at the beginning of the 20th century a camp English did oil work inAncón, when referring to the second course of food, in English "second", the Ecuadorians repeated deforming the word until they reached the current "seco",which has been widely disseminated, despite being a myth, since records of this dish have been found since 1820, almost a century before the English presence in the Santa Elena Peninsula. At that time, deer and Creole goats abounded (in fact, the dry goat is native to the province of Guayas). According to theDictionary of Peruvianismsof thePeruvian Wings University, seco is a «stew of beef,kidor another animal, macerated in vinegar, which is served accompanied by rice and a sauce ofají,huacatayandcilantro".Thus, its main characteristic is to marinate and cook the chosen meat with some type of sauceacid, such aschicha, beer,naranjillaor vinegar.
The place where it was created for the first time is not known exactly. According to culinary researcherGloria Hinostroza, the origin of this stew lies in theseco tajine,North African dishmade from lamb.His brother, the journalist andgourmetRodolfo Hinostroza, agrees that the origin would be in thetajinecarried by slaves from North Africa who traveled to thePacific coastof South America during the early years of theViceroyalty.
There are references that indicate that it could be a stew known in Peru and Ecuador as early as the 19th century,during his visit to Peru, theanthropologistGermanErnst Wilhelm Middendorfstated that:
A recipe for seco de cabrito, a typical dish of the gastronomy of the north coast of Peru, already appears in theNew Peruvian Cooking Manualof 1926.In the 1930 bookChronicles of Old Guayaquil,Modesto Chávez Francoreports that the dry chicken was already prepared in Ecuador since the beginning of the 19th century.
There is no consensus on the origin of the name of this dish. It is popularly thought that when cooking the stew the water must evaporate until it reaches a degree of dryness, hence it must be "seco", although in reality all the variants of "seco" are usually quite juicy, and that the name "seco" is an ironic way of calling a soupy dish.
One of the most widely accepted references is that the name seco comes from theSanta Elena Peninsula, where at the beginning of the 20th century oil works were carried out in the Ecuadorian town ofAncón. At that time, Creoledeerandgoatsabounded (in fact, the dried goat is native to theGuayas Province) and a stew was prepared with them very simple that was accompanied by red rice, as in Ecuador it is customary to serve lunch with asoupofstarterand a main course called the "second course" to which the English workers would say "second", which, by derivation, led to "seco".
However, this is a myth, since, according to Modesto Chávez Franco in his Chronicles of Guayaquil, there are records of this dish from 1820, almost a century before the English presence in the Santa Elena Peninsula.
The different ways of cooking "seco" depend on the main meat that is added to it.
In general, the "seco" one in the highlands of Ecuador is accompanied by white rice or rice cooked withachiote,ripe plantains,potatoesandavocado, while on the coast (for example, themanabita stew) it is accompanied byyucascooked or fried and a salad. According to the main meat that is added we have:
The Peruvian seco is a typical dish of the north coast and of thecapital of the country.It is usually chicken, meat, kid, lamb, beef, chicken or fish,its main ingredient, and the one that gives it its characteristic flavor, iscilantro.
It is usually accompanied bybeanscooked and white rice.