A week goes by in Mendoza

Another week in Mendoza has passed and this time with a couple of friends that we met in Arequipa, Peru. Jo and Paul came in early Monday morning. Now, for a little perspective, Mendoza is incredibly hot this time of year with temps in the mid to high 30's aka 90 to 100F. And Monday was no exception. So, after we all got settled, we went out to our friend Martin's place. He is house sitting a beautiful home with a pool and the quick dip in cool water is just what we all needed. It was great. We all hung out around the pool, drank some beer, relaxed, and eventually decided a bbq was in order.

I have heard rumors of the traditional Argentine asado. The ultimate element of life in Argentina, well, that and Yerba Mate. Martin went to the store and bought the essentials.

As he cut veggies, marinated meat, boiled pasta, and basically dominated kitchen activity, we sat back and took notes on how an asado is prepared. The first observation was the slab of beef marinating in a lot of lemon juice with a ton of salt and pepper. And then, there was the chorizo, the blood sausage, and more slabs of beef. The sheer amount of meat was incredible.

Now, the marinating is not the only difference in bbq style. Here, they have a rack that is used to create coals. And these coals are then pushed under the rack to very slowly, it took forever, cook the meat.

Think wide and shallow concrete grill slab. A little different but with the same generally bbqing concept. Whether it was the lemon juice marinade or the slow cooking, I don't care, this meat melted in my mouth with a taste like no other I have tasted. And, I have been lucky enough to grow up with beautiful KC bbq. The meat just kept coming. Martin did a great job and kept pushing the meat. I think I hummed a low, mmm, with each bite. Oh, yea, this meal was enjoyed at the late hour of 12:30am.

Well, that was night one with Paul and Joe. It was a wonderful treat to finally experience the asado. I will happily attend any other asado I am invited to. Anyway, after that the temperature in Mendoza just kept rising. We took Paul and Joe to our new favorite place, The Vines of Mendoza, where we all enjoyed some crisp wine before rolling home to a classic American casserole. Another 12am meal. The next night we were treated to Jo's risotto, made with brown rice. A new experience for me and it was delicious. We traded cooking tips and music while she tediously stirred in each cup of broth. We did manage dinner before midnight, but barely.

The rest of the week we all chilled, watched Heroes and tried to beat the heat. It was a great week and an excellent treat to have some buddies staying with us. Now, it is Saturday morning. Todd and I had our first sweat free night in awhile. This morning we have finished two pots of coffee and are enjoying a moderately temperate day here in Mendoza. A much needed break from the heat. I think it is going to be a good weekend.