MAIN INGREDIENTS
Tasty, easy to prepare, and quite inexpensive, cazuela de ave is a Chilean chicken stew consisting of chicken pieces, chicken stock, onions, carrots, pumpkin or squash, potatoes, rice, and pieces of corn. The stew is most commonly flavored with garlic, salt, pepper, coriander, and paprika powder.
After it has been prepared, cazuela de ave is traditionally served in a red clay pot known as greda. The succulent chicken should fall off the bone, while the vegetables should be sweet and soft, almost melting in the mouth. It is believed that this dish was derived from the indigenous Mapuche soup known as corri.
MOST ICONIC Cazuela de ave
MAIN INGREDIENTS
Chile's favorite home-cooked meal, the soft and creamy pastel de choclo is a casserole-like pie that is also popular in Peru, Argentina and Bolivia. It consists of ground beef, chicken, black olives, onions, hard-boiled eggs, and dough made from fresh grinded corn called choclo.
Corn plays a key role in the dish, and unsurprisingly so – it was worshipped by the ancient Incas whose most important god was the Corn God. Corn was so important to Incas that their chief, believed to be a descendant of the gods, planted the first corn seeds every year.
MOST ICONIC Pastel de choclo
Cordero al palo is a traditional lamb specialty that involves roasting a whole lamb on a spit, a cooking technique which has long been practiced in Chile and Argentina (especially Patagonia). The lamb is slowly cooked for several hours over a wood fire, all the while basting in its own juices and fat, resulting in succulent and tender meat surrounded by crispy skin.
While cooking, the meat is often enhanced with a mixture of warm water, salt, and garlic. The dish can be found on the menus of numerous restaurants throughout the region, and it is typically served with pebre, a popular Chilean condiment.
Other typical accompaniments to this dish include boiled potatoes, fresh salads, bread, and lots of fine red wine.