Oh, that locro was ¡que rico! But there was much more. Chef Chris moved us quickly along to the heart and soul of Argentine cuisine: meat. Up first, some sausages. The Argentines have perfected the condiment which brings out the best in their wonderful meat dishes, the equally deliciously named chimichurri (which has an intriguing etymology, see below). Hungry? Me, too. Read on…
Choripan
Choripan is a sandwich with chorizo sausage and bread (pan = bread in Spanish), hence the name. We had choripan as an appetizer with asado (grilled meats) at several parrillas, the ubiquitous “steak houses” throughout Buenos Aires. It reminds me of really good Italian sausages I have had outside Fenway Park before a Red Sox game, but without the peppers and onions or mustard. Similarly, choripan is eaten at Argentine football (or soccer) games. Argentine chorizo is normally made of pork or beef. Chorizo is often thought of as spicy but Argentine chorizo isn’t. Instead, red spicy chorizo is Spanish or Mexican chorizo.
Chorizo is cooked on an open flame grill and split down the middle lengthwise (butterflied). The high heat of the grill chars the meat and fat to delicious effect. It is served on a grilled (toasted) soft and chewy roll, sort of a cross between a hot dog bun or dinner roll. In general, the bread we had in BA was excellent and this was no different. The typical accompaniment is chimichurri which can be added sparingly or generously….very tasty! Chimichurri is made with garlic, olive oil, oregano, and white or red wine vinegar. The typical green chimichurri we see in the U.S. gets its color from an abundance of finely chopped parsley. The chimichurri we had in BA was often reddish from addition of minced red bell pepper.
Choripan
Serves 6-8
2 lbs uncooked Argentine chorizo sausage (we found at a local San Francisco grocery catering to Argentine products, Evergreen Market.)
8-12 rolls or hot dog style buns (we used dinner rolls from Acme Bread Co. purchased fresh at the Ferry Building along the Embarcadero in San Francisco, CA)
Chimichurri sauce (we brought back packets of dried chimichurri spices that we received on our Parrilla Tour in Buenos Aires and reconstituted with olive oil and vinegar).
Chimichurri
If you want to make from scratch here is a recipe from the blog Inside Buenos Aires posted by the Fierro Hotel Staff. They say that chimichurri is a traditional sauce made from herbs, garlic and vinegar that is used on meat at asados. It is said that the name of the sauce comes from the British. Allegedly, the English men associated the spice-based sauce with curry, so when they wanted it they said “give me curry” which was locally understood as chimichurri.
Ingredients:
1 cup water
¼ cup vinegar
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 Tbsp coarse salt
1 Tbsp dried oregano
1 Tbsp thyme
1 Tbsp ground chili pepper
1 Bay leaf
Fresh parsley
5 garlic cloves, chopped
Preparation:
Heat the water, vinegar and salt until they boil.
Mix all the other ingredients except for the oil and incorporate them to the water mixture.
Allow to cool at room temperature.
Add the oil.
Store covered in a glass jar. Make it a few days ahead to enhance the flavor.
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This post is part of the second Spicebox Supperclub, the Comida Porteño con Sabor Latino, celebrating the food and drink of Buenos Aires, Argentina. Come back next week for another delicioso recipe from Argentina!
Spicebox Supperclub 