Asado does not mean Barbecue

Asado is considered to be the traditional dish of Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, Chile and southern Brazil. I had heard about it and read about it but I had not experienced one. On one of my last days in Baradero I heard we were going to be having an asado for lunch. I asked Agustin if this was the Argentine barbecue that I'd heard about. He agreed that it was somewhat like a barbecue but advised that it was best not to compare it to a barbecue as some Argentines may take offense to this!


So what is an Asado? There appears to be a cut of beef that is called asado but it is also a way of cooking and is somewhat like a barbecue but after seeing the amount of work and effort that goes into preparing an asado I can see why people may get offended when someone says "oh its a barbecue".


Preparations for the asado started early on Sunday morning. A wood fire was started and constantly topped up with firewood as the morning progressed. Close by a small pit was prepared and a grill was setup. The grill appeared to be an old metal frame from a bed but I maybe wrong on that!

Preparing the asado

The meat was not marniated just well seasoned with salt. There were lots of different cuts of meat (all beef) and also some chorizo like that used in choripan. I got a picture of the last few cuts of beef before they went on the asado.

Beef for the asado

The cooking process lasted for 3 or 4 hours. New coals were taken from the fire and placed under the grill as required whilte the meat slowly cooked.

Asado coals and the asado grill

There was always someone tending to the asado ensuring the temperature was correct and everything was in order. The result was some really tender, juicy steak.

beef cooking over the coals

More beef!

Almost ready!

Tables and chairs were moved out to the garden and about 25 of us had a lunch that lasted about 3 hours! I never got a photo of this :(

Almost Famous in Argentina

One of the last tasks I did in Baradero was to paint their logo on a big tank. Daniel knew I liked sketched so he asked if I’d like to do it. It was challenging due to the size and height of the tank. Normally I sketch on paper so sketching on the side of a tank while on top of a ladder was quite different. Once I was happy with the sketch I painted the design in white.

Work in Progress

The end piece worked out quite well and is visible from almost everywhere on the site. In hindsight it probably would have been much easier to have sketched the design on paper and created a stencil to paint the design on the tank.

Swimming pool and sports grounds with Logo visible in background

After a week I left Baradero returned to Buenos Aires, moved into my apartment and started Spanish school. My intention was to return to Baradero for their official opening which was a weekend a few weeks later. I went to the bus station after Spanish class on the Friday to get a bus ticket but they were all sold out. Baradero isn’t a popular tourist destination, actually I should say it isn’t a tourist destination so this was surprising. Turns out the weekend in question was a long weekend in Argentina so the same as in Ireland everyone goes away from the long weekend. All buses for Friday and Saturday were booked out so the earliest I could get was Sunday morning. I’d miss half of the party but seeing as it was a long weekend it wasn’t too bad. When I got to Baradero I saw their invite/flyer for their opening party. I am now famous in Baradero.

Almost Famous

One week volunteering in Argentina

I spent a week in Baradero, working on a range of different tasks each day. They are very flexible in relation to what work you do. You don’t have to do anything you don't want to do and if there was something you interested in then you can ask to work at that.

Some days I was working in the vegetable garden and feeding the animals, another day I cleaned out a room, helped lay carpet and assemble the gym equipment. The room is now the gym! Another two days were spent digging a trench around the swimming pool and another day I helped with some tree’s that needed to be cut down.

Emptying the trailer!

Feeding the Chanchos (pigs)

My time in Baradero was a great introduction to the way of life in Argentina. I was introduced to Mate (This deserves a blog post of its own), how people greet each other (again maybe a blog post in itself), food and meal times.

From the time I had spent in Buenos Aires I knew it was common for people to have dinner late at night. For example many restaurants are full of people eating dinner at 12am in Buenos Aires. Breakfast isn’t really a meal in Argentina, well not like it is in Ireland. Generally people will have a drink such as tea, coffee or mate and maybe a pastry. Lunch is usually around midday and in Baradero was a large meal. Then around 5 or 6pm people generally have an afternoon snack (biscuits or pastries) again accompanied by tea, coffee or mate. And finally dinner is normally around 9pm or later and it is a big meal.