🇨🇱 Chilean Cuisine

Asado al Palo

Stake-Roasted Beef

Prep Time 30 min

Servings 10

Difficulty Hard

Calories 518 kcal

A whole beef rib or lamb roasted vertically on a metal cross (crucero) beside a wood fire, slowly basting in its own juices for hours — Chile's ultimate asado.

Ingredients

5kg beef ribs or whole lamb
Coarse salt
Firewood (native hardwood preferred)
Water for basting

Instructions

1 Secure the meat on the metal cross (crucero), spreading it open butterfly-style.
2 Build a large wood fire and let it burn down to glowing embers.
3 Plant the cross at an angle beside the fire, about 50cm from the embers.
4 Roast for 3-4 hours, rotating the cross periodically for even cooking.
5 Baste with salted water during cooking. Add more embers as needed.
6 Carve directly from the cross onto plates. Serve with pebre and ensalada chilena.

Did You Know?

During Fiestas Patrias in September, Santiago's Parque O'Higgins hosts hundreds of asado al palo cruceros, filling the city with woodsmoke and roasting meat.