On any menu of the day and in any restaurant, no matter the flag, it is now very common to find entrana or steak, two of the different Argentine cuts of meat that have come to stay.
The phenomenon of Argentine meats is explained, above all, by a migratory, cultural and, therefore, gastronomic issue. The constant increase in the number of Argentines residing in Spain, which the National Institute of Statistics figures at 373,064 people, brings with it an indispensable tradition: the barbecue. Ritual feast if there is one, Argentines do not conceive of an “asadero” from time to time, and for this you have to provide the means, that is, the meats and other food necessary to celebrate it.
Since 1988, the importer Euro Campa has introduced beef to Spain to free Argentine emigrants from nostalgia and at the same time seduce national palates in restaurants such as La Pampa, in Castelldefels, which has been in business for 35 years. In the last 15 years, a storm of Argentine empanadas has hit different Spanish capitals and, more recently, a broader representation of the gastronomy of the country of the River and Boca has arrived in the form of steakhouses and restaurants willing to raise a tail of rump as an emblem.
One of them is Brasero Atlántico, a space that it shares with the Florería Atlántico cocktail bar in the confines of the Born neighborhood, in Barcelona. Juan Manuel Vázquez, its head chef, believes that the rise of Argentine cuts is due to two reasons: “because of the technique, both what has to do with the genetics of the beef and its breeding, the cutting of the animal ( ancestral heritage and local preference of Argentine livestock communities) and its preparation; and for something sociocultural, that is, for the passion and dedication of Argentines that revolves around cuts of beef, especially those intended for roasting.”
For Vázquez, what makes the difference between Argentine cuts of meat and others is, precisely, the way of cutting: “it respects the natural layout of the muscle fiber, which allows the meat to have different properties when it comes to being cooked”. On the other hand, the calves, whose current breeds derive from crosses between British and Scottish calves with local specimens, also have their weight in the final result that has earned so much recognition throughout the globe. And he remembers: “the barbecue is the number one cultural activity of Argentines throughout their lives.”
For Luis Miguel Garayar Oria, owner of Cárnicas Luismi, supplier to Martín Berasategui’s restaurants, tradition rules: “We stick to the usual cuts, the ones my father taught me and we work with national products, slaughtered in Bandeira (Galicia). . “This is all what we want to be known for.” Despite everything, he affirms that the introduction of other forms of cutting is something that he considers “very positive and a great learning experience,” and he finds it motivating to be able to go to a restaurant and order “a part of the animal that you would not even imagine.”
From the Delicatessen Argentina store, its owner, David Parrado, with 16 years of experience behind him, believes that the diffusion of Argentine cuts is due to the global recognition of its meat. “It is also important to highlight that after the Spanish Civil War, Argentina played a fundamental role as a meat supplier, feeding the European population.” Furthermore, they add that the massive success of football idols such as Maradona or Messi, “has enhanced Argentine culture and positioned it as a center of international attention.” The ritual of roasting and the passion for meat, which are part of the country’s identity, did the rest.
Garayar Oria reasons that if the Argentine nomenclature of meat cuts has spread so much, it is because of the great fame that Argentine restaurants have acquired. “They are professionals, they believe in their land and their cuts, and they have achieved a great reputation and a good market niche with their beef, which is usually younger than ours due to a matter of taste.” For him, the difference lies in a question of performance. “While we have focused more on the chop and sirloin, in Argentina they have been able to get good performance from the entire animal. This use, at the beginning, was out of necessity, but they have made a lot of good out of this.” The butcher emphasizes that this is possible if the product is of quality: “if the animal is good, all the parts are good.”
For Delicatessen Argentina too, the introduction of a new nomenclature is also beneficial. “New cuts such as entrail, previously used for minced meat, are now valued on their own, avoiding waste and maximizing the value of the animal. In Argentina we have many cuts that are used, such as matambre, which is a 100% Argentine cut that It has also become very popular.”
Regarding the typology of the cuts, he points out that the famous entraña in Spanish is the so-called ‘entrecula’, a cut unknown in our country until the arrival of the Argentines. For his part, Vázquez points out that there are no equivalent cuts in the Argentine and Spanish butcher traditions. “We can find anatomically similar cuts, which are from the same parts of the animal. However, since they are cut in different ways, most cuts end up not being the same.” For example, according to the cook, the Argentine lomo would be our sirloin; the chorizo ??steak, our high loin and the peceto is the round one. “In Catalonia I have worked on a cut called ‘tall que es pela’, which is what most resembles the entrails,” says Vázquez.
