7 must-try food in Argentina

If I had to name an Argentine food, I would immediately say the 'steak'. And could I name more? Probably not. But imagine those so many emigrants coming in to the country and the great variety of food they brought with them. There are much more than the steak, here I named seven.





The first thing I had to get used to was the timetable of eating in Argentina. Back at home I am the 'exemplar' of 'how to eat healthy'. I eat more for breakfast, something healthy for lunch and dinner, and strictly nothing after 7-ish. On the other side of the world its upside down. In Argentina, people eat almost nothing or coffee for breakfast (which again I rarely drink). The lunchtime is late in the afternoon and the huge dinner starts at 9pm. So it happened many times that I had to sit in empty restaurants at 6pm because I could not survive. Even though they eat heavy food, they are not fat. So what exactly do they eat? 

1) Steak
Of course the steak can not be missed from the list. However, despite I speak Spanish,  when I tried to read the menu, I was lost with those thousands of steaks and another thousand ways of their preparation. (I will collect and publish these terms soon.) Maybe my expectations were too high, but the steak I tried was nothing better or worse than any of them I tried in my life. It was huge and heavy and I felt full after a few bites. There is nothing better than a garden BBQ - here called asado -, where steak is accompanied with soft bread and tomatoe.

In the backyard the steak is ready to eat

2) Milanesa
From the name, this meat comes from Italy. A huge slice of beef or pork covered with cheese, sauce or other topping. Seriously, sometimes they can eat it with no garnish.
This is one portion of Milanesa

3) Panqueque
Comes from the word pancake. Another heavy food which is a thick, salty pancake filled with meat, cheese, vegetables, egg, onion, or any combination of these. Try the ones with heavy filling, otherwise you will feel like eating only the dough.

In the Carlitos restaurant chain one can get the biggest variety of panqueque
4) Empanada
Every region states that they have the best empanada. One thing is certain, that the classic one is filled, of course, with beef. Since I am a cheese-lover, my favourite was the one filled with mozzarella. It is such a popular food that there are also empanada deliveries in cities. You can choose between several fillings - meat, ham, mozzarella, roquefort, corn, spinage, etc. -, and when they deliver the food, you get a little guide with the help of which you can guess about the filling based on the side crinckles.


Those tasty and warm empanadas

5) Pizza
Did you know that pizza is one of the most popular foods in Argentina? I even wrote a separate section dedicated only for pizza. The Italian emigrants brought those tasty recipes here. My friend modestly whispered to me that they were much better than the Italian ones. I could not wait to try my first pizza. In Argentina an Italian restaurant and a pizzeria are two different things. You can eat pasta in a restaurant and pizza in a pizzeria. No mixing of the two. If you are in Buenos Aires, the Pizzeria Güerrin is an authentic place, where generations grew up on pizza. Where the dough and cheese is thick and where you have all varieties to choose from. I loved their four-cheese pizza!

Four-cheese pizza in Güerrín Pizzeria
6) Ice-cream
Same with the ice-cream. Coming from Italy, old and tasty recipes and huge portions. If you like sweet, you have to try them. For me it was a bit too sweet, so one time was perfectly enough.

Happy with my huge ice-cream

7) Alfajor
Before I traveled to Argentina, all my insider friends asked me to bring them alfajor. I had no clue what it was and how to pronounce it. However, when I arrived I could not miss it. Alfajor is the most popular sweet which you can find even in the smallest shops. It is two cookies with 'dulce de leche' in between - which is like caramel -, and this whole is covered with chocolate. This sweet, just like most of the food, is heavy. Try one at once, but always with different filling.

I was hesitating which alfajor to try

About Tiny Girl With Big Bag

Hobby writer and autodidact photographer whose passion is to travel and get to know new people and cultures. She has been on 4 continents and 30 countries, and the outcome is this travel blog where she shares travel stories, thoughts, tips and photography always through a subjective eye.

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2 comments:

  1. mmm all that food looks so yummy! I must remember to try all of those when I eventually get to argentina sometime! thanks for sharing! :)

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    1. Thanks Jessica! And I wrote this post only after my first visit.. after my second I should expand it, you would be surprised, food here is just... mmmm!! :)

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