Charquicán is a very seasonal dish in Chile. That is, if it is summer and green beans are in season, they go in. The same with other vegetables like peas and corn. Nowadays, I used frozen vegetables during winter, and I enjoy Charquican year around.
The name derives from the use of charqui in the preparation. Charqui is any smoked and dried meat. It could be horse, beef, or even fish. Now it is most commonly made with ground beef, but feel free to use ground chicken or turkey. In most houses is served with a fried egg on top.
You may also be interested in the recipe: Chilean Beef Stew
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Chilean Charquican
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 6 1x
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Stove-cooked
- Cuisine: Chilean
Description
One of the oldest Chilean dishes on record.
Scale
Ingredients
- 1 small yellow onion, diced small
- 1 pound ground beef
- 2 cups (1/2 pound) of winter squash (kabocha, butternut, or similar), peeled, cubed
- 5 red potatoes, peeled, cubed
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
- pinch of cumin
- 2 cup vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup each corn, green peas, or green beans (frozen is fine)
- salt, pepper, oil
- 6 eggs, to serve, optional
Instructions
- In a medium skillet over medium heat, put one tablespoon of oil. Add the onion and cook for 6-8 minutes, until soft.
- Add the meat and saute for 6 minutes.
- Add the squash, potatoes, salt, pepper, oregano, cumin, and paprika. Stir. Add the broth and cook cover for 15 minutes, simmering. Reduce the heat if need it.
- With a fork, mash the potatoes and squash.
- Add corn, peas, and green beans. Stir and cook for 3-4 minutes until hot.
- Fried the eggs if using.
- Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve hot with a fried egg on top.
Keywords: Chilean Charquican
me encantan tus recetas me ayudan much gracias pillar des de Canada
Evelyn
Que bueno. Saludos.
I love charquican. Thank you for the recipe. Finally recepies that really work
So happy that you are cooking with me. Welcome, and let me know if you have any questions.
hi your foto has a lot of white onion frying but recipe calls for 1 green onion?
Hi Susan. Sorry about that. I re-wrote the recipe to make it more traditional and align with the pictures.
Your recipe is the real thing as I remember it.
Thanks! My family is from Central Chile, so my cooking is from that area too.
Thanks for the recipe Pilar.
My kids tried it and fell in love with the dish. Just like I did when my mum used to make it!
That’s so sweet. Love it!
Hi Pilar, I was wondering if there is any particular type of squash that it normally uses? Could I use butternut?
I love your web site–I come here frequently to find recipes to make for my husband, who is Chilean! 🙂
I usually mix 50/50 pumpkin (any orange pumpkin or canned puree) and butternut. Just butternut is too sweet.
helllo!
Hello!
Made this tonight and everyone loved it including my Chilean son in law. Thank you!
Fabulous!! Congrats.
The traditional Chilean dish isn’t prepared with eggs or frozen food. You posted on your ingredients “ground beef”, but used minced instead. The traditional dish its made with minced beef or llama jerky. Often people add carrots to the dish (not mentioned on your recipe), and french cut style green beans besides the pees. Lastly, there’s no reason to smash the potatoes if you cook them long enough. Cheers!
Cheers! Thanks for commenting.
Love charquicán! Your ‘delicious’ picture and recipe make me want to prepare it today. I feel that is a perfect dish for the cool weather we’re having now. Did you know that the word jerky comes from charqui? Have a great day Pilar!
Yes, I knew. Thanks for commenting and please try the recipe and let me know what you think.