Latin America & Caribbean

Argentine Asado: Charcoal Grilled Beef at Home with Chimichurri and Salsa Criolla

Name: Argentine Asado: Charcoal Grilled Beef at Home with Chimichurri and Salsa Criolla
Prep time: 45 min
Cook time: 55 min
Total time: 1 h 40 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Argentine
Ingredients: 700 g Bone-in beef short rib; 500 g Beef skirt steak or rump; 4 (about 320 g) Thick chorizo; 2 tbsp Coarse salt; 1/2 tsp Black pepper; 1 tbsp Olive oil; 35 g Flat-leaf parsley; 2 cloves (about 12 g) Garlic; 1 tbsp Dried oregano; 1/2 tsp Crushed red pepper; 60 ml Red wine vinegar; 90 ml Olive oil; 2/3 tsp Salt; 2 (about 300 g) Tomatoes; 1/2 (about 100 g) Onion; 1 Green bell pepper; 2 tbsp White wine vinegar; 2 tbsp Olive oil; 1/3 tsp Salt

How to recreate Argentine asado in a home kitchen: bone-in short ribs, skirt steak and chorizo, chimichurri, salsa criolla, managing charcoal or grill-pan heat, cut substitutions and storage.

Published: October 24, 2026Total: 1 hr 40 minLevel: Intermediate

Cooking flow

Cooking steps

STEP 11 / 8

Bring the meat up to temperature and dry it

35 min

Patting the surface of bone-in short rib and skirt steak dry with paper towels — Drying the meat before grilling keeps it from steaming the moment it hits the grill and helps it brown

Take the bone-in short rib and skirt steak out of the refrigerator and leave them at room temperature for 30 minutes. Pat the surface dry with paper towels, trim the skirt to about 3 cm (1 in) thick, and cut the bone-in ribs into 4–5 cm (1.5–2 in) widths along the bone. If the meat is cold, only the surface firms up first and the center stays cold.

STEP 22 / 8

Season heavily with coarse salt

5 min

Sprinkling coarse salt on the surface of the beef, with the salt grains staying on the meat as asado seasoning — Salt right before grilling. The bigger the grains, the more they stay on the surface instead of going too far into the meat

Ten minutes before cooking, sprinkle 2 tbsp coarse salt and 1/2 tsp black pepper over both sides of the meat. Fine salt penetrates quickly and is easy to over-salt, so use less. Coarse salt stays on the surface and, mixing with the meat's juices during cooking, gives just the right saltiness.

STEP 33 / 8

Prepare the chimichurri and salsa

20 min

Chopping parsley, garlic, tomato and onion to prepare chimichurri and salsa criolla — Make the sauces first and let them rest. By the time the meat is done, the vinegar, oil and aromatics have blended

Finely chop 35 g parsley and 2 cloves garlic, and mix in 1 tbsp dried oregano rehydrated in warm water, the chili, 60 ml red wine vinegar, 90 ml olive oil and the salt. Cut the tomatoes, onion and green pepper into 5 mm (1/4 in) dice and toss with the vinegar and oil. The chimichurri should have finely chopped herbs floating on the oil, with distinct pieces when scooped with a spoon. Let both rest for 10 minutes to round out the acidity.

STEP 44 / 8

Preheat the charcoal or grill pan

15 min

White-ashed charcoal and a home cast-iron grill pan being preheated, preparing the fire bed for asado — Whether charcoal or grill pan, prepare heat that sears the surface first

For charcoal, wait until the coals are covered with white ash and your hand held 10 cm (4 in) above the grate feels hot after 3 seconds. Push the coals to one side to make a high-heat zone and a low-heat zone. For a grill pan, preheat over medium-high heat for 5 minutes until the surface reaches 220–240°C (430–465°F). It's ready when a water drop evaporates instantly and the grate or pan surface is dry. The heat to aim for is one that makes a loud sizzle the moment meat goes on.

STEP 55 / 8

Start the chorizo and the bone-in ribs

15 min

Chorizo and bone-in short rib on a charcoal grill, the fat starting to bubble — Chorizo is the starter to eat first. Place the bone-in meat bone side down and let the fat settle

Cook the chorizo over the medium zone, rolling it for 12–15 minutes, and take it off first when the skin is taut and browned. Place the bone-in short ribs bone side down toward the high heat and grill 3 minutes without moving. Turn when the fat bubbles and the side touching the grate turns dark brown. If flames flare up, shift to the low-heat zone.

STEP 66 / 8

Grill the skirt and move it to the cool side

18 min

Moving skirt steak and bone-in meat to the low-heat side of the charcoal grill to cook slowly — High heat for color, low heat for the center. Pushing everything over high heat leaves only the outside hard

Grill the skirt over high heat for 3 minutes per side to build a deep sear. Then move it to the low-heat zone and warm it through to the center over another 8–10 minutes. On a grill pan, a guide is 3 minutes per side over medium-high, then 4 minutes per side over medium. Stop when it springs back slightly when pressed and nearly clear juices come from the cut surface.

STEP 77 / 8

Rest and check the center

10 min

Resting the cooked beef and checking doneness with a probe thermometer — The resting time lets the juices settle. A thermometer makes it hard to go wrong with thick cuts

Move the cooked meat to a wooden board, cover loosely with aluminum foil and rest for 8–10 minutes. Insert a thermometer into the thickest part and check that the center is 63°C (145°F) or above and the juices run nearly clear rather than red and cloudy. When serving to small children, older adults, pregnant people or anyone with a weakened immune system, don't leave any red and cook another 2–4 minutes.

STEP 88 / 8

Cut across the grain and serve

5 min

Slicing grilled beef across the grain and serving it with chimichurri, the finishing step of asado — Simply cutting across the grain changes how easy the same meat is to chew

Cut the skirt across the grain at a right angle, 8 mm to 1 cm (1/3 to 1/2 in) thick. Cut the bone-in ribs between the bones and shave off thin slices where it's fatty. Spoon 1 tbsp chimichurri over the cut meat and serve the salsa criolla alongside. Don't pile the plate; serving in the order it's done is the asado way of eating.

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Ingredients

1 / 3

Meat and seasoning

Ingredient	Amount	Substitutes & notes
Bone-in beef short rib	700 g	Cut across the bone (flanken style) or thick-cut spare ribs also work
Beef skirt steak or rump	500 g	Skirt, rump or a round roast cut 3 cm (1 in) thick
Thick chorizo	4 (about 320 g)	A mild coarse-ground sausage also works
Coarse salt	2 tbsp	Coarse grains that stay on the meat's surface. With fine table salt, reduce to 2 tsp
Black pepper	1/2 tsp	Freshly ground is more aromatic
Olive oil	1 tbsp	Brush thinly only when using a grill pan

2 / 3

Chimichurri

Ingredient	Amount	Substitutes & notes
Flat-leaf parsley	35 g	If using curly parsley, remove the stems
Garlic	2 cloves (about 12 g)	2 tsp if from a tube
Dried oregano	1 tbsp	Rehydrate in 2 tbsp warm water
Crushed red pepper	1/2 tsp	1/4 tsp for less heat
Red wine vinegar	60 ml	45 ml rice vinegar plus 15 ml lemon juice also works
Olive oil	90 ml	If the aroma is too strong, mix in 30 ml neutral oil
Salt	2/3 tsp	Kept light because the meat is salted heavily

3 / 3

Salsa criolla

Ingredient	Amount	Substitutes & notes
Tomatoes	2 (about 300 g)	Cut in 5 mm (1/4 in) dice
Onion	1/2 (about 100 g)	Cut in 5 mm dice and soak in water for 5 minutes
Green bell pepper	1	1/3 red bell pepper also works
White wine vinegar	2 tbsp	Red wine vinegar also works
Olive oil	2 tbsp	A light neutral oil also works
Salt	1/3 tsp	Adjust at the end, since the tomato's liquid dilutes it

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Asado begins on an evening when the meat isn't rushed

When you cook meat in the kitchen, it's tempting to turn up the heat and be done. But in Argentine asado, the waiting is part of the cooking. You watch the coals turn white, grill the chorizo first, and move the beef patiently to the cooler side. It feels less like grilling meat than like a table being gradually set beside the fire.

Asado is a charcoal-grilled meat tradition loved in Argentina and Uruguay. It is both the name of the dish and the weekend meal itself, when family and friends gather. Even in Argentine tourism-board material, asado is treated not as simple grilled meat but as a culture that includes the time around the fire, the conversation and even how the meat is carved.

Setting up a full parrilla (an iron-grate grill) is a lot for most home cooks. So this article separates the days you can use a charcoal grill from the days you cook on a broiler or cast-iron grill pan, and brings it down to home scale around bone-in short ribs, skirt steak and chorizo. Finish with the chimichurri (in Japanese) covered in detail in an earlier article; pair it with empanadas (in Japanese) as a starter and revuelto gramajo (in Japanese) for a potato dish, and the Argentine table connects naturally.

On the terms

In Spanish, "asado" means "grilled" or "the act of grilling." As a dish it is asado, the person who grills is the asador, the grill is the parrilla, and bone-in beef short rib is called tira de asado. This article uses "asado" as the main term.

What is asado?

Argentine asado: beef and chorizo grilled on a charcoal parrilla, with bread, chimichurri and salsa laid out on the table — Asado is a dish of grilled meat, and also the time of carrying each piece to the table as it's done

Asado is the food culture of the Río de la Plata region, in which beef, chorizo, morcilla, offal, chicken and vegetables are grilled over charcoal. In Argentina it is a symbol of beef culture, and on a weekend from midday into the evening, people eat a little at a time in the order the meat is done. A typical sequence is choripán first (chorizo in bread), then thinner cuts, and finally the large bone-in cuts.

It resembles Brazilian churrasco (in Japanese), but the philosophy is a little different. Churrasco is known for large skewers and rodízio service, while Argentine asado places meat on a flat iron grate and cooks it while adjusting the coal bed. Seasoning centers on salt, and chimichurri or salsa criolla is added at the table.

Point	Asado	Churrasco
Main region	Argentina, Uruguay	Brazil
Equipment	Parrilla, iron grate, coal bed	Skewers, charcoal, churrasqueira
Seasoning	Coarse salt, chimichurri, salsa criolla	Coarse salt, vinagrete, farofa
How it's eaten	Brought to the table in the order it's cooked	Often carved from the skewer

For a home version, it works better to choose thicknesses that are easy to control rather than forcing yourself toward huge cuts. What matters is not "cooking everything through over high heat" but "building color first, then letting the meat settle over medium to low heat."

Ingredients to gather

Bone-in short rib, skirt steak, chorizo, coarse salt, herbs and red wine vinegar laid out in a kitchen as asado ingredients — Asado has few ingredients, so the choice of cut, salt, vinegar and herbs decides the taste

The part of shopping for asado that causes the most confusion is the beef cuts. In Argentina, tira de asado is bone-in beef short rib cut thin across the bones, vacío is a lean cut from the flank side, and entraña is close to skirt steak. Because names differ at stores, think in terms of the substitutions below and you'll find them more easily.

Allergies and food safety

This recipe uses sausage that contains beef and pork. Depending on the product, sausage may contain wheat, egg or dairy, so check the label. Sear the surface of the beef well and measure the internal temperature of thick cuts to be safe. US food safety guidance sets a standard of resting beef steaks and roasts at around 63°C (145°F), but at home, give priority to cooking thoroughly according to the thickness you carve and the health of those eating.

What to look for when shopping

You'll buy the meat, tomatoes, onion and parsley locally. The items worth a closer look are those that serve asado's character and prevent failure: red wine vinegar gives chimichurri its outline, dried oregano gives the South American aroma, a probe thermometer reassures you on thick meat, and a grill raises how close you can get to charcoal.

Heat control that gets you closer to the real thing at home

What makes asado is the use of heat more than the kind of meat. On an authentic parrilla, the coals are made in one spot and moved little by little under the grill to adjust the heat. At home you can't be that precise, but the idea is the same: build the surface with strong heat and warm the center with gentle heat.

Cooking setup	Suitable meat	Heat	Where it goes wrong
Charcoal grill	Bone-in short rib, chorizo, skirt	Separate high and low heat zones	Burning from flames, starting while the coals are still red
Cast-iron grill pan	Skirt, rump, thinner bone-in cuts	Strong preheat, medium-low in the middle	Meat steams in its own juices
Broiler (fish grill)	Chorizo, thin short rib	Medium to high, turning midway	Fat drips and flares
Oven as well	Thick rump, round roast	Sear the surface, then 200°C (400°F) for 8–12 minutes	Cutting without resting lets the juices run out

Grilled asado at the center of the table with chimichurri, salsa criolla, bread and salad — Don't let asado stand on meat alone; sauce, bread and salad on the table bring it closer to the real atmosphere

In Argentine homes, the meat doesn't necessarily all come out at once. Grilled chorizo goes into bread first, then thinner cuts, and finally the bone-in cuts are carved. The eaters talk while they wait. At a Japanese table, too, serving in the order it is done is more satisfying than piling everything on a big platter and letting it cool.

Don't marinate the meat in chimichurri

Chimichurri is a sauce to spoon on at the table. Marinating for a long time before grilling lets the vinegar and garlic penetrate strongly, and the meat also browns less. If you must use it as a seasoning, limit it to a thin brushing of 1 tbsp 30 minutes before grilling.

Causes of failure and fixes

Asado's failures come from heat and moisture more than from seasoning. In home kitchens they happen in this order: weak charcoal, a grill pan that isn't hot enough, packing the meat in too tightly, and cutting without resting.

Failure	Cause	Fix
Surface gray and not fragrant	Moisture on the meat, insufficient heat, pan not preheated enough	Dry the meat and grill fewer pieces at a time
Burnt outside, cold inside	Pushed through on high heat	Move to the low-heat zone after browning
Too salty	Used fine salt in the same amount as coarse salt	Reduce table salt to 2 tsp
Tough	Cut along the grain, didn't rest	Cut thinly across the grain
Juices run out	Cut right after cooking	Rest for 8–10 minutes

If the meat is overcooked, slice it thin and add plenty of chimichurri. The acidity of the salsa criolla and the moisture of the vegetables make dry meat easier to eat. The next day, put it in bread for a sandwich and the overdone parts turn into toasty flavor.

Storage and what to do the next day

Leftover asado packed in a glass container, with chimichurri and salsa criolla stored separately in small jars — Store the meat and sauces separately. The next day, it works with bread, salad and eggs

Cool the grilled meat and refrigerate it within 2 hours. Keep the meat and sauces separate, put the meat in a shallow container, and plan on 3 days refrigerated or 1 month frozen. To reheat, put 1 tbsp water in a skillet, cover and warm over low heat for 3–4 minutes. In a microwave, allow 1 minute 30 seconds to 2 minutes per serving at 600 W. After heating, confirm it is steaming and warm through to the center.

The next day, sliced meat, chimichurri and salsa in bread make a choripán-style sandwich. Chopped meat fried with eggs also suits a potato dish like revuelto gramajo (in Japanese). Chopped firm fat can go into fried rice or fried noodles, where it keeps a trace of charcoal aroma.

FAQ

Sliced beef with a probe thermometer and chimichurri laid out, checking doneness — For thick meat, judge doneness by thermometer and resting time, not just the cut surface

Is it not asado without charcoal?

Charcoal is ideal, but a grill pan can reproduce the idea. Build color with strong preheating, warm the center over medium-low heat, and rest before cutting. The charcoal aroma will be weaker, but with chimichurri and salsa criolla it's a perfectly good home version of an asado table.

What should I buy if I can't find bone-in short rib?

Skirt, rump and a round roast are easy to use. If you want a bone-in feel, look for thick-cut bone-in short ribs or spare ribs, not thin ones cut for Korean-style grilling. Thin-sliced short ribs can work too, but in that case grill only 1–2 minutes per side over high heat and treat it as a different dish, eaten right away with the salsa.

Can I make chimichurri ahead?

Plan on 4 days in the refrigerator. It's a sauce with garlic and herbs in oil, so it's important not to leave it at room temperature for long. For longer storage, freeze it in small portions and thaw only what you'll use in the refrigerator. The detailed formula is in how to make chimichurri (in Japanese).

Can I serve it to children or people who don't like spicy food?

Leave the chili out of the chimichurri and serve extra salsa criolla and it's easier to eat. Swap the chorizo for a mild coarse-ground sausage. Don't leave the meat too red; cook thick parts through to the center before carving.

What sides go with it?

Empanadas (in Japanese) as a starter, chimichurri (in Japanese) as the sauce, and to widen it into a South American table, the South American cuisine guide (in Japanese) lets you add ceviche or feijoada. Rather than a plate of only meat, putting out tangy vegetables and bread keeps it easy to eat to the end.

Sources

Ministerio de Turismo y Deportes Argentina. "Asado." https://www.argentina.gob.ar/jefatura/turismo/viaja-por-argentina/asado (accessed 2026)
Wikipedia contributors. "Asado." Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asado (accessed 2026)
Wikipedia contributors. "List of Argentine dishes." Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Argentine_dishes (accessed 2026)
FoodSafety.gov. "Safe Minimum Internal Temperatures." https://www.foodsafety.gov/food-safety-charts/safe-minimum-internal-temperatures (accessed 2026)
The Real Argentina. "A Guide to the Argentine Asado." https://therealargentina.com/en/a-guide-to-the-argentine-asado/ (accessed 2026)