This type of food is very typical in South America, mainly in Argentina. You can grill in three different ways:
Over the grill
On the spit
On the plow disc

They way of cooking is the same for the three of them. The meal will get cooked directly over the coal without smoke or toxic elements.

Beef is mainly the most common, but this doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy this extraordinary way of cooking for other meats like chicken or fish, or even vegetables like peppers, onions or potatoes or stews as well.

* Over the grill: This is the most common way to prepare a garden “asado”. It’s a great excuse to meet with a bunch of friends or family for a birthday, a national holiday party or just on a Saturday night to enjoy the nice weather among the people we like and care about, all gathered around the fire.

While the fire is getting ready, a good bottle of wine or some cold beers are the perfect ingredient to warm up our souls and prepare ourselves to enjoy a delicious meal.

The different ways and tricks to prepare a Grill Asado are endless, but there are a few basic rules everyone must follow.

You should use the burning coal heat to cook, never the fire flame.
When cooking beef, it’s important to put first the part of the beef that has the fat on the side where the heat comes. This way all the taste and flavour of the burning coal will penetrate inside the meat.
Patience is the main ingredient while preparing this kind of asado to get it full of taste. Mainly when you are trying to prepare an “asado con cuero”. This type of asado consists in placing over the grill half a cow with the hair still on one side. You should put the hairy side facing the heat and cook it slowly checking that the hair is not burning. This might take between 8 and 10 hours. This way you will get an extra tasty and tender meat. This is recommended only for experts!

* On the spit: This is the traditional way the asado is prepared all along the Argentinean territory.

You can use this technique while cooking meat, lamb or pork. The only things you will need are a couple of stakes forming a cross, some good burning coal and even more patience.

This is not an easy task and it is definitively not recommended for beginners. There are a few techniques you must follow to be able to get the meat cooked slowly altogether, not letting it burn or overcook.

Once the fire is burning strongly and having placed a good amount of burning coal underneath the “cross”, now is time to place the meat on the “cross” and tighten it with strength to avoid it falling. Then the “cross” must be nailed inside the earth and inclined to a certain angle to be able to get the right amount of heat over the meat. You should always face the bonny side of the meat to the fire, that way the meat will get slowly cooked without getting burnt. Only by the end you should turn the cross over and face the other side to the fire to get it gild before being served.

This is a very special moment. The beauty of the scene, the ancient tradition, the crackling of the burning coals, the talking, the glass of wine on one hand and sharing this with friends or family…all of this make the “asado” one special moment.

* On the plow disc: This is a nowadays sophistication than thank God is still used and integrates the “gaucho’s” folklore.

Here, although it is still cooked over the burning coals, the main thing is getting other ingredient’s flavours, juices and textures to fuse with the meat inside the plow disc specially designed for the occasion.

The plow disc has three legs that allow it to stand still at a certain distance over the burning coal to get the heat cook the ingredients in it.

The difference between this way of grilling and the other two (over the burning coal and on the spit) is that with the plow disc we allow the juices of every ingredient to fuse altogether in an exquisite combination on flavours.

The shape of the plow disc is extremely important in terms of distributing the heat in exact proportion. This is the key to enjoy a modern and sophisticated meal cooked with the tools and techniques of our ancestors.