Hunger Killer

Argentina differs from most of South America when it comes to cuisine because unlike many of the other countries that have been inspired by European cuisines, Argentina draws a lot of its inspiration from the Andean people. Red meat is also more common in Argentine cuisine and each person eats about 70.2kg annually (Americans only consume about 45.3kg). So it's no surprise that many of their dishes are beef or contain beef and each dish contains high amounts of protein. Meat is eaten grilled, fried, rolled into sausages, put into pies - it's everywhere. Often meat dishes are accompanied by Chumichurri which is an herb, garlic, and vinegar type paste.

Beef isn't all though, Argentine cuisine is extensive and is definitely one of the more studied cuisines I've chosen. While European cuisines are more common in other South American countries, that's not to say they're forgotten in Argentina. In fact Italian favorites like pizza and pasta dishes have a substantial role in their cuisine along with the classic dulce de leche which is not only put in cakes, but spread on toast and ice cream. Argentina also draws inspiration from German pastries, French wine, Italian polenta, and Spanish classics like churros and flan. So you can only imagine just how vast Argentine cuisine stretches.

I wanted to stray away from the more European dishes though and find something more Argenitine or Andean to cook. I actually had quite a bit of fun making my chosen dish, mostly because I had the company of one of my fellow residents during the preparation. I have gotten so used to cooking in the kitchen (which I should add is in my dorm's basement) that it gets rather lonely rather quickly. Not this time though and I can say it was an amusing dish to make and talk about. Now first off, I don't cook beef very often in college. The main reason is that it's more expensive than chicken and isn't as good leftover. In fact the only time I buy beef is for fajitas and meatballs and even then I've been getting into the habit of buying chicken or ground turkey since the ground beef these days hasn't impressed me. However, it's been quite a while since I've had beef because of this cooking venture (I have mentioned my meatball cravings right?) so I went for it.

One of the main reasons that I decided to cook a beef dish called Matambre was that it was rolled with veggies. Sounded like the ideal full course meal rolled into one. No, I really do mean rolled into one since the beef is laid out into a thick "sheet" and stuffed with veggies before being rolled and tied up. This was a new experience for me, I don't roll meat and I have certainly never had to tie up meat. I'm not too skilled at it I've learned. Wrapping gifts I can do, wrapping up meat and keeping everything inside where it's supposed to be, not so much. I should also mention that oddly enough you stick hardboiled eggs inside too, which really don't like to stay put during the rolling process. I did accomplish the task though, determination is everything! Now I should also mention that 'mata' and 'hambre' apparently translates to "hunger killer" so I decided to see whether that was true.

Well one thick slice of this served with some peas and I can say the name suits it. The breadcrumbs definitely help in this area and all the protein in this will definitely fill you up. Aside from the egg part, I did like this, the egg was just too odd for me and made making it, cutting it, and serving it more difficult than it was worth. I'm not the biggest fan of harboiled eggs either so I may be a little biased. I should bring up how tender my meat was though and I'm not sure if that was from marinating it overnight in wine vinegar or the cooking process, but for such a "tough" cut of meat I couldn't really tell. Now I will say that I should have tied mine up better since the meat and veggies expand a little while it cooks and soaks up the juices and so some of my stuffing came out of the end, but it all tastes the same in the end even if it lacks the beauty of the well-tied up matambres I saw in photos. Overall, this dish was interesting and reminded me of those infomercials for the little syringe thing that injects herbs and spices into roasts. For just one person I wouldn't make it again since it doesn't make the most ideal leftovers, but the presentation reminds me a bit of the holidays. Sticking to Argentine culture, I also made Chumichurri which does add an extra boost of flavor to the dish, although it can be quite strong so very little is needed as an accent to the dish. This was definitely a filling and complete meal.