Eating habits
In hotels, breakfast is usually served between 7:30 and 10:00 am with coffee or tea, fruit juice, toasted bread, butter, jam or ham and cheese sandwich. The locals, for their part, prefer paila: scrambled eggs with ham or cheese. Lunch, between 14h and 15h, is the real meal of the day. Moreover, most restaurants offer menus often consisting of a starter(cazuela or caldillo), a main course (fried fish, grilled chicken, pork chops, etc.) accompanied by chips and sometimes mashed potatoes, rice or salad, and a dessert (fresh fruit, rice cake, jelly.). In Chilean Patagonia snacking is a very important break, called las ounce. If "ounce" means "eleven" in Spanish, it's simply because Chileans borrowed this term from the Spaniards for whom las once is a snack taken around 11am between breakfast and lunch. It can consist of a piece of cake, an ice cream sundae or a completo (hot dog) with fruit juice or a hot drink. Dinner, at 9pm, is rather light and often sweet: coffee or tea with a whole bunch of snacks. Nowadays, many Chileans don't know the difference between las ounce and dinner.
A land of carnivores
Many of the dishes eaten in Patagonia are classics of Argentinean and Chilean cuisine. There are also Patagonian dishes that have become popular in the rest of the country.
A good example of a dish that is eaten in both Argentina and Chile,asado refers to anything that can be grilled slowly on a parrilla (grill). The secret of a good asado lies in the way the meat is cut and the way the heat from the embers is maintained. The pieces, previously salted, are placed horizontally on a grill or a la criolla (vertically, on stakes) over hot coals. Patience is needed, as the meat will not be removed until an hour or more later. Indeed, Argentines and Chileans, unlike Europeans or North Americans, are not in love with bleeding meat. This method results in meat that is cooked thoroughly without burning it, and is very juicy. Argentines in particular are masters of this method, and have adapted their meat cuts to this form of cooking. You won't find the same cuts as in the French markets. Other specialties cookedasado are sausages (chorizo), red puddings (morcilla), tripe (chinchulines) and cheeses (provoleta), themselves grilled on embers. Among the most common cuts is the bife of chorizo, a sirloin cooked on its own fat. The bife de lomo is a very thick and tender fillet, cut in the lower back, to be tested for the fans of bleeding meat, as it is usually served pinker than other pieces of meat. All Argentines, and to a lesser extent Chileans, regions and social classes combined, prepare their asados. Many apartments are equipped with parrillas (in the garden or on the balcony), as are the campsites. You will also see many improvisedasados on the side of a road or in parks. Theasado, like the mate, represents a social bond. Gathering around an asado
on Sunday means getting together, talking and taking the time for the meat to cook.It should be noted that other types ofasados are still organized in the countryside: theasado con cuero for example, where a calf cut into pieces is buried in a pit, which is covered with zinc sheets on which embers are placed and kept hot for several hours. And of course, although beef is now much more accessible in Patagonia, mutton and lamb were traditionally the region's staple meats. So, try the cordero patagonico al palo
, the emblematic dish of Patagonia. The meat is cooked outside, on a metal cross, for a whole day, making the skin crispy and the meat melting like butter. And to accompany all this, the unmistakable chimichurri sauce, made with olive oil, parsley, chilli pepper, garlic and vinegar. There are also other meat recipes such as matambre, which translates as " appetite-killer ", a kind of beef, pork or veal roll with vegetables. Otherwise, guanaco meat has been consumed by the Tehuelche people of Patagonia since time immemorial, and it is known to have provided food for the tribes throughout the exceptionally harsh winters of Patagonia. As is the norm with indigenous cuisines, the Tehuelche used to feast on all the guanaco, including the fat and entrails, although nowadays you will find mainly lean cuts and steaks on Patagonian menus.Fish in the spotlight
Together, Chile and Argentina have nearly 12,000 km of coastline with some of the world's richest fish stocks, thanks to cold currents coming from Antarctica. This means that the choice and quality of seafood is unparalleled. In general, it is advisable to order fish a la plancha to make sure it is fresh, unlike dishes with sauce, which can mask the age of a fish caught three days earlier. In addition to the large specialist restaurants, you can also visit the municipal markets in the large port cities. The fish there is often excellent for ridiculous prices. The ubiquitous fish are congrio (conger), atún (tuna), corvina (sea bass), lenguado (sole) and of course the succulent merluza negra (toothfish). As far as mariscos or seafood is concerned, here again it is Byzantium: camarones (shrimps), erizos (sea urchins), ostiones (scallops), pulpos (octopus), calamares (squid), mejillón (mussels). There are not necessarily dozens of recipes, here we enjoy the freshness of the product which is prepared simply grilled - in this case order a parrillada de mariscos - or sometimes even raw. This is the case with ceviche. This dish, which is very widespread in South America, traditionally comes from Peru and Chile. Made from cubes of raw fish or seafood marinated in lemon juice, onions and coriander, it is reputed to cure chuchaki
, the hangover.Near rivers and lakes, rush out and try the generally cheap truchas (trout) and salmones (salmon). The trucha patagonica can be prepared in many ways, including grilled, pan-fried, roasted and in creamy stews. Even further south, in Tierra del Fuego, the chupe de centolla
will thrill all shellfish lovers. Imagine a creamy king crab stew, topped with breadcrumbs and cheese and gratinated to perfection. A delight! For those who hesitate between meat and fish, there is a Patagonian dish that could satisfy everyone. Curanto is a traditional dish from the Chiloé archipelago in Chile, prepared for thousands of years by the Mapuche Indians. It is cooked in a hole dug one meter in diameter directly in the ground and covered with stones that are heated by a wood fire. Seafood, meat, sausages, potatoes, corn and chapaleles - cakes made from potato and wheat flour - are wrapped in nalca (Chilean rhubarb) leaves. More simply, curanto can also be prepared in a large stewpot, which can be heated over a wood fire or on the grill of a barbecue. This simmered curanto is called pulmay in central Chile.Empanadas and breads
For a little hunger of course we can't miss an emblem of the Chilean-Argentine cuisine: the empanada. These half-moon-shaped turnovers can be filled with any kind of filling, although meat predominates. In Patagonia, of course, mutton is the main ingredient. The empanadas de cordero contain a filling prepared with the succulent roasted lamb of Patagonia. Another specialty to be enjoyed on the go, the choripan is a hot sandwich of chorizo, which in this case is a large spicy sausage and not a dry sausage like the Spanish chorizo. It is served with salsa criollo, which is made of red onions with vinegar, and chimichurri sauce.
Because of its rather harsh climate, Patagonia is primarily a land of livestock, not of crops. Cereals and vegetables are grown quite locally and most often imported from the north of Chile and Argentina, which enjoy more favorable climatic conditions. Bakers and supermarkets offer large quantities of bread, rarely sold as a baguette, but often in the form of small loaves: el pan francés or marraqueta (a kind of four mini-baguettes) or el pan italiano (more oily and crispy). You can find white bread, brown bread, cereal bread and, if you are lucky, olive or nut bread. It is worth noting that Chile is the second largest consumer of bread in the world, after Germany. The milcao, traditional bread whose dough is a mixture of flour and potatoes. Potatoes are very popular and French fries are the most common accompaniment to meat in both Argentina and Chile.The desserts
Once again, Patagonia is not a very fertile agricultural land, especially in the southernmost regions, so sweet preparations are traditionally quite rare. Chile and Argentina have huge orchards, especially in the center of these two countries, where you can find all sorts of fruits. Nevertheless, some not too desolate regions of Patagonia allow the cultivation of fruit trees producing, among others, peaches (melocotón), apricots (albaricoque), nectarines (durazno), apples (manzana) and excellent melons (melón) and watermelons (sandia). The Argentine town of Los Antiguos even has its own cherry festival. The woods offer a variety of berries such as strawberries (frutilla), blackberries (mora), blueberries (mirtillo), etc. The Chilean strawberry tree, which grows naturally in the humid forests of the south of the country, is the origin of strawberry trees cultivated all over the world. Those who are curious can pick in Patagonia the acidic berries of the calafate or berberis, which are usually consumed in juice, jam or even ice cream.
The many waves of immigration have strongly influenced the region's cuisine and especially the pastry industry. In Chile, for example, the German influence is very strong and Chileans enjoy kuchens as a snack. One thinks of strudels, filled with apple, cherries, cottage cheese and dried fruits or the copious fruit tarts. The very popular brazo de reina is a rolled cake filled with dulce de leche and sprinkled with powdered sugar. Emblematic of both Argentina and Chile, dulce de leche or milk jam is sometimes called manjar.Hot drinks and sweets
In the province of Chubut, Argentina, the Welsh community is known for its tea houses that offer scones and torta negra, a type of cake made with brown sugar, walnuts, orange peel, candied fruit and cinnamon. The miga sandwiches are delicate sandwiches made with white bread, peeled and buttered, which resemble the English cucumber sandwiches served for tea. Here they are also topped with very thin slices of cold cuts, cheese, hard-boiled egg and lettuce. The alfajores are small shortbread cookies filled with dulce de leche or jam and covered with a chocolate shell.
Chocolate is a noble heir of German immigration and is very popular in the region. San Carlos de Bariloche, Argentina, is often referred to as the Chocolate Capital of South America. There are many chocolate makers in the area, not to mention the ice cream shops, whose ice cream is said to be the best in Argentina. Hot chocolate is popular, although Argentines prefer coffee. And with a heritage that is part Italian, part Spanish and part Germanic, there is no reason to be deprived, as coffee in Argentina is often considered excellent. However, coffee lovers visiting Chilean Patagonia may be a little more disappointed, as the coffee is rarely good, as it is often prepared with instant powder.
But if there is an infusion that puts everyone in agreement in the region, it is the mate. Made from yerba mate, an indigenous plant found as far south as Brazil, it has been consumed for thousands of years in the region. Very good cardiac tonic, it is sipped all day long. Traditionally it is brewed in a small calabash (a kind of emptied and dried gourd) while sucking the juice through a filtering straw called bombilla. More than a drink, mate allows Argentines and Chileans to socialize, meet and discuss. The gauchos follow a precise ritual to consume mate: sitting in a circle, they pass the drink from hand to hand in a clockwise direction.Wines and beers
Although the cultivation of vines is only possible in the more temperate regions of northern Patagonia, this does not prevent wine from being an extremely popular product in both Argentina and Chile, which are respectively the 6th and 7th largest producers in the world. If Argentine wine does not yet have the international reputation of its Chilean neighbor, it is because Argentine bodegas are only now maturing to offer excellent wines of consistent quality. Introduced by the Spaniards, the vine has been developed by generations of producers, mostly of Italian and Spanish origin, in a strip of more than 2,000 km that follows the Andes mountain range and extends into the valleys created by the melting snow. The region that produces 80% of Argentina's wine is located between the cities of San Juan and Mendoza. As for Patagonia, production is concentrated in the north, in the valleys of the Río Negro province, especially in San Patricio del Chañar, near Neuquén. The star grape variety of Argentina is malbec, which is not very popular in its native Bordeaux. On the red side, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah are also used extensively, and Argentine production also offers the full range of grape varieties used for white wine, from Chardonnay or Chablis to Riesling and Gewurztraminer.
Chile is known worldwide for its fine and exquisite wines, which are exported abroad, but also mainly in Patagonia, the wines are closer to the European vintages, compared to the varieties of the central and northern regions of Argentina, due to its cooler climate and higher latitude. Red wine is successfully made in Patagonia under the name of Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Merlot, Pinot Noir and, again, a star variety not known in its native Bordeaux, Carménère. Chardonnay, gewurztraminer, sauvignon blanc and riesling wines best represent the cool climate of the region. It was in the middle of the 19th century that the first French grape varieties were introduced in Chile, before their export was prohibited. But it seems that the conquistadors were already growing vines long before that. Because it is true that in Chile all the conditions are met for this type of plantation: temperate climate, four distinct seasons and a fertile land. The quality of Chilean wines has been rewarded many times, but it is above all the openness to foreign markets that has made it famous and the first exporter of wines in Latin America.
Beer. But in Argentina, as in Chile, one never refuses a cerveza (beer) and microbreweries flourish in Patagonia. The best in the region are Sholken Negra (El Calafate), Tropera (Coyhaique), Bagules (Puerto Natales near Torres del Paine) and more than a dozen distinct micro-cervezerias in the city of Bariloche alone. There is even the Beagle brewery in Ushuaïa. Otherwise, among the other local beers - often very light - is the Quilmes
Strong spirits. Of Italian origin, Fernet-Branca is very popular in Argentina. This herbal liqueur is usually mixed with Coca-Cola and lots of ice. On the Chilean side, the pisco sour is considered the national drink. This cocktail is made with pisco, grape brandy, lemon, sugar and sometimes an egg white. The drink was popularized in Chile, although it was the Peruvians who invented the pisco sour.
