Chile Forum

Can't hurt to ask. Can I get propane cylinders filled in Chile? I'd like to bring my favorite small grill but it occured to me that I might run into probs getting propane.
Any grillers in the group? How do you grill? Wood, charcoal, propane?
Is this perhaps the dumbest question so far?

OK...does anyone BBQ at home at all?

swdchile wrote:OK...does anyone BBQ at home at all?

Some do:



but this is more typical ... find a 55 gallon drum previously used to store toxic chemicals and turn it into a chulengo

The first pit looks like my brothers and me in Texas. Anyone know what they are cookin' and what type wood are they cooking with? Thanks for the great pic. I think I may have found my first Chilean hobby.
The second pit looks ok, but I never really liked the chemical container cooking crate method.

swdchile wrote:The first pit looks like my brothers and me in Texas. Anyone know what they are cookin' and what type wood are they cooking with? Thanks for the great pic. I think I may have found my first Chilean hobby.
The second pit looks ok, but I never really liked the chemical container cooking crate method.

Here is video of typical patagonia "asado al palo" as the main focus with some parilla action on the side. It's in English and done in Argentina (Bariloche) but the southern Chile patagonian style is very similar. The long cooking period melts away a lot of the fat. You will see restaurants in CL and AR and not just in the Patagonia, which have these carcasses cooking away in the window. If this asado al palo is your thing then you belong in the Patagonia. As far as the wood, locally we use lenga but coihue works as well and probably others.

There are books in English available on Amazon about how to do these asados.

Example: Secrets of the Patagonian Barbecue by Roberto Marin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9iuhbDH ... re=related

patagoniax wrote:

swdchile wrote:The first pit looks like my brothers and me in Texas. Anyone know what they are cookin' and what type wood are they cooking with? Thanks for the great pic. I think I may have found my first Chilean hobby.
The second pit looks ok, but I never really liked the chemical container cooking crate method.

Here is video of typical patagonia "asado al palo" as the main focus with some parilla action on the side. It's in English and done in Argentina (Bariloche) but the southern Chile patagonian style is very similar. The long cooking period melts away a lot of the fat. You will see restaurants in CL and AR and not just in the Patagonia, which have these carcasses cooking away in the window. If this asado al palo is your thing then you belong in the Patagonia. As far as the wood, locally we use lenga but coihue works as well and probably others.

There are books in English available on Amazon about how to do these asados.

Example: Secrets of the Patagonian Barbecue by Roberto Marin

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e9iuhbDH ... re=related

I have very fond memories of asado a palo from when I was a kid, parrilladas, etc. If someone is interested in Argentinian style meat preparation I highly recommend the book 7 Fires by Franciss Mallman. Beautifully shot too.... It received rave reviews and James Beard recommendations. Awesome recipes all over real wood.
http://www.eatmedaily.com/2009/07/burni ... -mallmann/

I myself tend to find preparation very basic in many Chilean homes.... In most cases just salt. But that can be sublime with great meat. And I like some of the south American cuts.

Living in Canada I prefer BBQ. Shame on OP for referring to grilling as 'cue .... Just kidding. We did a whole hog cinder block pit BBQ last year.... I usually run vertical smokers but currently looking for a real BBQ trailer rig on eBay..... Love it all..... brisket, pork shoulder and ribs, whole hog.... Starting to get my own rubs to where I like them..... prefer vinegar sauces to tomato..... Currently working on a white sauce a la Big Bob Gibson.....

But yeah..... Ain't ever tested anything like real cue in Chile. No better way to take a humble cut and turn it into heaven on a plate.

Maybe I need to buy a cue rig and haul it down to CHile and teach the folks at California cantina about real US regional cuisine..... Another thing I would love to have in Chile is Cajun and creole cooking......

My asado a palo is bigger than your asado a palo:

http://www.amazon.com/Seven-Fires-Grill ... 1579653545

Since arriving in Chile, I've been using charcoal to grill and it does the trick. But I'm used to hardwoods such as oak or mesquite for grilling because I love the flavor these woods give the meat. I know oak and mesquite don't exist in Chile, but is there any type wood here that comes close?
Where I'm from, I'd be shot if I were caught grilling with eucalyptus or pine.

swdchile wrote:Since arriving in Chile, I've been using charcoal to grill and it does the trick. But I'm used to hardwoods such as oak or mesquite for grilling because I love the flavor these woods give the meat. I know oak and mesquite don't exist in Chile, but is there any type wood here that comes close?
Where I'm from, I'd be shot if I were caught grilling with eucalyptus or pine.

At times it's hard to guess what the charcoal (carbón vegetal) in a particular area is made from. Yes, some is made from pine and that is usually not admitted and labeled but it may be. I have seen places that advertise pine charcoal. The better "native" (not imported) stuff in the north seems to be made from "espino" wood and in some places it's even packaged and printed with the word "espino." In places where there is no espino you may not know what you are getting and of course vendors will lie to you and anyway they will sell you the bag of charcoal dust and splinters rather than big chunks because you are the gringo.

Espino in Chile means the Acacia caven tree, a type of acacia similar to what grows in the southwest in the US.

I've seen packages of charcoal in Rancagua labeled as being imported from Paraguay, also "quebracho argentino" which I think they still sell in paper bags of about 3 kg which is what we used for asados when I lived there. Around Rancagua they used to make their own charcoal from wine-grape wood as well as from espino.

Other suitable wood types from which decent carbón vegetal is made, depending on region or import source: algarrobo negro, quebracho blanco, and roble (roble also called hualle -- has a nice hard, red wood used for furniture. Roble is Nothofagus obliqua) . BTW, quebracho is a pretty hard wood and the name comes from quebrar hacha which means to break your axe. So if you are looking for hardwood charcoal then quebracho or roble/hualle may be what you are looking for. If you are in La Serena there should be "quebracho argentino" sold in bags there.

So now you are armed to ask. But expect attempts to deceive, and chamullo.