Pit cookery is familiar all over the world: in Hawaii, there is the luau, the Maya have the pib, and we have curanto. Curanto has always been part of a coming-of-age rite of the Tehuelche people of Patagonia. Traditionally, it began when the chief took his place, surrounded by the bare-breasted maidens of the tribe. To attract the attention and win the favor of the young ladies, the young men danced and engaged in feats of horsemanship. All in attendance sipped a fermented corn beverage. Over the course of eight days of drinking and dancing and even animal sacrifice (involving removing the beating heart from a prize mare), people whipped themselves into an ecstatic and inebriated state. The communal meal was a curanto of potatoes, corn, squashes, guanaco (a cousin to the llama), rhea (ostrich), and, in later times, lamb, beef, and pork. In a less wild form, this rite is still practiced by the Tehuelche to mark the first full moon of spring.
This curanto calls for lamb, but it could just as easily include a whole salmon fillet, a chicken or two, or any large cut of meat. How much you can make depends on how much your fire pit will hold. If you do include chicken or salmon, serve Salsa Criolla or Parsley, Olive Oil, and Garlic Sauce along with the chimichurri.
The Tehuelche prepare their curantos in a deep pit dug especially for the occasion, but for this recipe, we prepared our curanto in a wheelbarrowówhich is a lot more practical for most people! To avoid melting the wheel on your wheelbarrow, take it off and prop up the wheelbarrow with cinder blocks or a log.
Ingredients
1 leg of lamb, 6 to 7 pounds
1 lamb shoulder, about 4 pounds (optional)
4 large potatoes, scrubbed
8 medium beets, trimmed but not peeled
4 fennel bulbs
8 large carrots, unpeeled
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
Chimichurri
Instructions
11:30 a.m.
1. Put a 2- to 3-inch layer of earth in the bottom of a wheelbarrow, then cover with a layer of rocks 6 to 8 inches in diameter. Start the fire with about 6 logs; as it burns down, add 6 more logs and throw more rocks on top to warm them (never use wet rocksóthe steam that results as wet rocks heat up can cause them to explode).
1:00 p.m. or so
2. When fire has burned down completely, fill the spaces between the hot rocks with coals and embers. Shovel another layer of earth, about 2 inches deep, on top of the rocks.
3. Lay a large piece of burlap or muslin, or a cotton sheet, over the earth. The fabric should be dense enough to protect the food from dirt and large enough so that it can completely envelop the food. Put the lamb and vegetables on the cloth. Season with salt and pepper, and fold the cloth over. Lay another cloth over the first one, covering the food completely. Shovel a final layer of earth over it, filling the wheelbarrow and extending a few inches above the rim. Your objective is to have enough earth to trap all the heat.
6:00 p.m.
4. Carefully remove the top layer of earth, and just as carefully lift the cloth from the foodótake your time, making sure to keep the earth away from the food. Transfer the food to platters, and serve the lamb with the chimichurri.
From Seven Fires: Grilling the Argentine Way by Francis Mallmann. Copyright 2009, Francis Mallmann. From the September 12, 2009 episode.
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