Foods of Argentina

The reputation for Argentina’s, or specifically Buenos Aires’, culinary cuisine had preceded itself long before our actual arrival to the country.  During our months of traveling around South America, we had met many people who talked highly of Buenos Aires especially in the gastronomy department. Because my life revolves around food, I was pretty excited to get to the Buenos Aires part of our trip and try it all.

Food in Buenos Aires is plentiful and one can eat at any time of the day.  It is not unusual to see groups of Argentinians enjoying meals at street side cafes well past midnight.  The first thing to know about Argentinians is that they love their beef and you will see this meat everywhere!  The second thing to know is that you will see a ton of European influence in Argentinian food.  For a pasta lover (like me), you will be in heaven.

Here is a breakdown of the special dishes/foods that Argentina is known for…

On the cheap:

Super Panchos-Foot-long hot dogs can be ordered at street stands for super cheap.  You can have your choice of toppings and sauces…if you can decipher the menu.  ”Salsa golf” is a sauce that looks like Thousand Island salad dressing, but tastes like mayonnaise with a kick.

Milanesa-Breaded, thinly sliced beef that resembles Texas chicken-fried steak.  Like super panchos, we could order milanesa sandwiches at street stands for cheap.  Usually the meat was twice the size of the bread.

Lomito-Like milanesa, but not breaded.

Chorizo-When in Buenos Aires, we saw big grills set up to bbq these pork sausages.  We ate ours in a sandwich and bypassed the spicy veggie fillings that we could have put on them (for the most part).

Empanadas-Our favorite hand-held snack full of anything from meat to cheese to potatoes and even fruit!  Each South American country has their own way of making empanadas, but we found Argentina’s to be the prettiest.

Giant bread thing-Not sure what this was called, but it was yummy with melted cheese, oregano, and tomatoes stuffed inside.  We got our stuffed roll from a man selling them out of a basket at the busy market in San Telmo neighborhood.

Best Around:

Beef-It is world-famous here and it deserves it’s standing.

Parrilla-A small grill on which parts of the animal (i.e. intestines, kidneys, etc.) along with the meat are served.  We were able to have parrilla, but not with the grill as you can see in the picture.  :(

Provoleta-Fried provolone cheese that can be an appetizer before parrilla.  De-lish for cheese lovers!

Italian Food-I haven’t been to Italy, yet, but I found the pizza and pasta in Argentina to be quite tasty.  If you’re a gnocchi fan, you’ll find this at many restaurants.

Sweets:

Dulce de Leche-This creamy, carameley tasting stuff is everywhere!  Why not?  It originates here and they’re proud of it.  Instead of vanilla and chocolate ice cream flavors, you can find vanilla and dulce de leche instead.

Submarinos-Imagine the best cup of hot chocolate you’ve ever had and multiply this by 100.  You are served a frothy, hot cup of milk with a stick of chocolate, packets of sugar, and a long spoon to stir it all together.  The fun is in watching the chocolate stick melt in the milk.  I couldn’t get enough of these!

Alfajores-This circular dessert is like an Oreo, but its dulce de leche filling is sandwiched between two circular cakes instead of cookies.  It also has an outer chocolate shell.  You’ll see it in the picture next to the submarino.

Flan con crema-This custard-flavored dessert can be found in many South American countries, but it is fantastic with cream.  The cream resembles whipped cream, but not the processed kind.  It makes for a fantastic end to any meal.

This list is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the foods of Argentina.  If you are a foodie, put Buenos Aires at the top of your list as you will be in culinary paradise!