I’ve Died and Gone to Bife Cielo

I think the time has arrived to talk about the beef situation in Argentina. Before continuing, I would like to thank Moving to Argentina for their detailed outline of beef cuts and types of beef, which I have used in this post. Also, this post is NSFV/V (Not Safe for Vegetarians/Vegans). You’ve been warned.

In 2006, The Washington Post published a pretty funny article, “In Argentina, They’ve Got a Beef”, in which they stated that Argentines eat more beef than do people in any other country -- about 140 pounds a year per person, or about 50 percent more than the average American. In 2006, former President Kirchner (who recently died of a heart attack and was the husband of current President Cristina Fernandez) suggested that Argentines eat less steak in an attempt to curb inflation, his citizens were aghast.

One mother was interviewed and asked what would happen if she were to cook something else, like fish, for her family, and her response was simple: her family would starve to death. With that kind of dramatic response, she is obviously one of the 25 million Argentines of Italian descent. Anyways, it is clear that a juicy slab of marbled steak is more than a meal for many of Argentina's 39 million citizens; it's part of their national identity. Well, we are attempting to make steak grilled jugoso, or juicy, part of our national identity. So far, we are doing pretty well.

After we moved into our departamento, or apartment for all my Gringos, we headed down to the local Disco to purchase some groceries. You may be thinking we were confused because Disco sounds more like a dance club than a supermercado, but in fact it is not. Not in Argentina, at least. Disco may appear to be your average supermercado, yet it is not.

However, I want it noted that I make no claims of Disco’s greatness. While it is very convenient, the fruits and breads are lacking and I’ve been told by many Porteños that it is not the place to buy anything fresh, meat included. It is preferable to visit the small stores, like queserias, panaderias and carnicierias rather than a supermercado. Nonetheless, we continue to visit Disco for its educational meat section.

I’m sure we look like crazy foreigners to the other shoppers. Well, we kind of are. We like to take our time and linger over all of the freshly packaged meats, attempting to decipher the name of each cut and from what part of the cow it comes from. You can’t do this at a carniceria as there is always a line and you need to be ready with your order. And, the sheer number of beef cuts in this country is out of control and a little overwhelming. Before we go over the cuts, let’s first take a look at why Argentine beef is simply the best. Ever.

Why Argentine Beef Tastes Different

The taste of Argentine beef is quite different from that produced in the United States. Also, there are more than 12 distinct breed of cows raised in Argentina, each with its own distinct flavor. The beef is leaner, less fatty and has a distinctive flavor. This is because the cows here are not just grass fed, but Pampas grass fed. I think Idle Words (one of my *favorite* blogs) sums it up pretty well:

“All you need to know about the quality of pasture in the pampas is that cows went feral in Argentina. You can still see them grazing pretty much anywhere there is a horizontal patch of grass, all now firmly back in the hand of man, but still with a happy grassy glint in their eye.

This most docile, placid, and passive of large herbivores stepped off the boat, took one nibble at the pampas and made a run for it. It knew that it wanted to spend the rest of its life eating the pampas grass, without outside interference. And the settlers, once they caught some of the early escapees, began to feel the same way about the beef.”

So there you have it. Now let’s move on to one other important flavor factor before finishing up with the cuts.

Age of Beef

The age of the cow obviously makes a big difference. Personally, I do not support the consumption of veal. I have eaten veal before, but now I am in veal rehab and doing my best to never eat it again. But, I have to include it in this table for reference. Here are the typical categories, from youngest to oldest:

Peceto Ternera - veal round steak

Ternera - veal

Vaquillona - slightly older

Novillito - young steer

Novillo - the most popular cut

Vaca - older beef

And now, to the cuts.

Guide to Cortes de Carne de Vaca

You have been previously warned that the number of cuts is overhwhelming (I believe I used the word “sheer” for emphasis), therefore I am not responsible for any overhwhelming feelings you may experience while reading my neatly organized columns of cuts. Here it goes:

Aguja - Chuck Roast Asado - Short Ribs, Roast Prime Rib Bife Ancho - Prime Rib, Rib Eye Bife Angosto – Porterhouse/Strip Steak Bife a la Rueda - Round Steak Bife de Alcatra - Sirloin Steak Bife de Costilla (con lomo) - T-Bone Steaks Bife de Chorizo - Sirloin Rump Steaks Bife de Vacio - Flank Steak Bola de Lomo - Sirloin Tip Carnaza - Stew Beef Carne Picada Comun - Ground Beef with Fat Carne Picada Especial - Ground Beef without Fat Chinchulin - Lower Intestines Chorizo - Sausage Churrasco de Paleta - Pot Roast Cogote - Neck Colita de Cuadril - Rump Steak Corazon - Heart Costillas - Rib Roast Cuadrada - Bottom Round Cuadril - Rump Roast or Rump Steak Entrana - Skirt Steak Falda - Flank Steak

Higado - Liver Lengua - Tongue Lomo - Tenderloin Marucha - Short Ribs Matambre - Flank Steak Milanesa - Minute Steak Mollejas - Sweetbreads Morcilla - Blood Sausage Nalga - Beef Round for Stew Osobuso - Osso Busco Paleta - Pot Roast Palomita - Shoulder Roast in Butterfly Cut Peceto - Beef Round Steaks, Roast Eye of Round Pecho - Brisket Rabo - Oxtail Rinones - Kidneys Ros Bif - Roast Beef Sesos - Brains Tapa de Asado - Rib Cap Roast Tira de Asado - Short Ribs Tapa de Nalga - Cap of Round Roast Tapa de Cuadril - Cap of Rump Roast Tripa Gorda - Tripe Ubre - Udder Vacio - Flank Steak

So now maybe you understand why we like to spend many educational hours at our local Disco. And don’t forget to read Idle Word’s hilarious post Argentina on Two Steaks a Day.

We’re hoping the next time we go to the Carniceria we don’t end up with a package of meat that directly translates into English as “Lean Ground Anus Beef”. And no, I didn't mean to type "Angus".

-A