Fiambre

Name: Fiambre
Prep time: 120 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 180 min
Yield: 20 servings
Cuisine: Guatemalan
Ingredients: 200g green beans, blanched; 200g beets, cooked and cubed; 200g cauliflower florets, blanched; 200g carrots, julienned; 200g cabbage, shredded; 200g beef deli slices or beef cold cuts; 200g fresh cheese, cubed; 100g pickled baby corn; 100g pickled onions; 100g olives; 4 hard-boiled eggs, quartered; 1 cup curtido (pickled cabbage); Dressing: 1 cup olive oil, 1/2 cup white vinegar, 2 tbsp mustard, salt, pepper

Fiambre (fee-AHM-breh)

All Saints' Day Salad

⏱ Prep Time 120 min

📈 Difficulty Hard

👥 Servings

🔥 Calories 380 kcal

A monumental cold salad of dozens of ingredients including sausages (beef), pickled vegetables, cheeses, and cold cuts assembled only once a year for Guatemala's Day of the Dead.

Nutrition & Info

Protein 22.0g

Carbs 28.0g

Fat 20.0g

Protein Carbs Fat

Dietary

gluten-free nut-free

Allergen Warnings

⚠ dairy ⚠ mustard

Equipment Needed

very large serving platter multiple bowls cutting board

Presentation Guide

Vessel: enormous oval platter

Garnishes: hard-boiled eggs, olives, parsley

Accompaniments: bread, tortillas

Ingredients

200g green beans, blanched
200g beets, cooked and cubed
200g cauliflower florets, blanched
200g carrots, julienned
200g cabbage, shredded
200g beef deli slices or beef cold cuts
200g fresh cheese, cubed
100g pickled baby corn
100g pickled onions
100g olives
4 hard-boiled eggs, quartered
1 cup curtido (pickled cabbage)
Dressing: 1 cup olive oil, 1/2 cup white vinegar, 2 tbsp mustard, salt, pepper

Instructions

1
Prepare all vegetables: blanch green beans, cauliflower; cook beets; julienne carrots; shred cabbage.
2
Slice beef cold cuts and cube cheese into uniform pieces.
3
Prepare the dressing by whisking olive oil, vinegar, mustard, salt, and pepper.
4
On a massive platter, arrange vegetables in sections or layers. Add cold cuts and cheese.
5
Top with hard-boiled eggs, olives, pickled onions, and baby corn.
6
Drizzle dressing over the entire platter. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

💡

Did You Know?

Some elaborate fiambres contain over 50 ingredients, and every family guards their recipe like a state secret, competing silently with neighbors each November 1st.

Chef's Notes

Equipment Tips

very large serving platter
multiple bowls
cutting board

Garnishing

hard-boiled eggs, olives, parsley

Accompaniments

bread, tortillas

The Story Behind Fiambre

Fiambre is Guatemala's most extraordinary culinary tradition, served exclusively on November 1 to honor the dead. Families carry platters of fiambre to cemeteries to eat alongside their departed loved ones. The dish blends indigenous, Spanish, and German immigrant influences into a cold salad of staggering complexity. Preparing fiambre can take two full days.

🕐 Traditionally enjoyed november 1, all saints' day 📜 Origins: Colonial era, 18th century

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