“If you want to know what Lima smells like, it smells like anticuchos.”
— Diego Alcántara
Peru is South America’s third-largest country and divided into three contrasting topographical regions: the coast, the Andean highlands, and the Amazon rainforest. The country’s diverse climates have helped to make Peruvian food one of the most diverse in South America with the mountainous/highland diet closely resembling that of the Inca, the largest pre-Columbian empire.
Anticuchos de Corazon, direct translation to “beef heart skewer”, is a popular and economical Peruvian street food that originated in the Andes and its inception can be traced as far back as the 16th century Inca Empire when the same dish was cooked with llama meat. After Inca’s encounter with the Spanish conquistadors, beef replaced llama meat, and for much of their history, and until fairly recently, Anticuchos were primarily made with beef heart. The Americanized versions of Anticuchos are sometimes made of non-organ meats.
What makes this dish special and gives it a distinctive flavor is the marinade, a sauce relatively easy to make at home, and the most challenging part is sourcing Aji Panca, the fruity and slightly smoky Peruvian chile. This ingredient is the backbone of the sauce, and if you skip it, your food becomes just an ordinary dish. If local stores don’t carry it, try Amazon.
For the risk-averse or heat-averse this pepper does not taste hot, rather has very subtle berrylike overtones.
This recipe is relatively easy, with cleaning out the heart being the most arduous task. It includes a bit of a dark beer (Mountain Man Scotch Ale) in the sauce, not because we like to stick it in every recipe, but because, some versions of the original recipe actually call for it. That’s our story and we are sticking to it. We personalized the concoction to best flavor the heart before cubing it up to grill over a fire like kebabs.
These Anticuchos have traveled a long way from the streets of Lima to North America, to your computer screen, and hopefully to your plate. We hope you are uninhibited and won’t pass up the opportunity for an exciting and tasty *Hearty* meal.
The overall meal has a slightly smoky and fruity tone, with a deep red color, and a rich intense meaty taste thanks to the nutrient-rich cardiac muscle. Compared to a filet mignon, beef tongue is leaner, and has a bolder and beefier flavor with a slight hint of a gamey texture.
We enjoyed this exotic culinary experience with a side of Peruvian-style Cesar salad, a perfect complement to a pleasantly warm sunny afternoon on our porch.
