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Ecuadorian churrasco {Steak with fried egg}

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Ecuadorian churrasco plate: steak with fried egg, rice, fries, salad, avocado, and plantains

Most people know churrasco as a grilled thick cut of beef, very popular in Brazil, where they have specialty restaurants called churasqueiras, as well as in Argentina and Uruguay where churrascos are part of the popular asados or parrilladas. Ecuadorian churrasco is sort of the poorer cousin of the Brazilian, Argentinean and Uruguayan churrasco. It is made with a thin cut of steak, and it actually refers to an entire plate of food: a grilled, or sometimes fried with onions and peppers, steak topped with a fried egg served with rice, French fries, ripe plantains, a small salad, avocado slices and hot sauce.

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Ecuadorian churrasco
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Yield: For 4-6 people

Ecuadorian churrasco

Ecuadorian churrasco is a traditional dish made with steaks, grilled , or sometimes fried in an onion and pepper sauce, topped with a fried egg and served with rice, fries, plantains and salad.

Ingredients

  • 2 lb thin beef steaks - skirts, flank or hanger type steaks are a good choice, for a higher end version of this dish you can also use sirloin, ribeye or tenderloin steaks
  • 8-12 garlic cloves, crushed
  • 1 tbs ground cumin
  • Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

  1. Mix the crushed garlic, cumin, salt and pepper together to make a marinade for the meat.
  2. Rub the garlic cumin marinade on the thin steaks and let marinate for a couple of hours.
  3. Grill or fry the steaks over high heat to desired doneness; since they are relatively thin they won’t take too long to cook.
  4. Serve the steaks with a crispy fried egg or two on top and accompanied by rice, homemade fries, fried ripe plantains, tomato and onion curtido, lettuce, cucumber slices, avocado slices and aji criollo.

Most restaurants that serve national or traditional Ecuadorian food will have a version of churrasco on their menu. It is a pretty big plate of food, which is typical of an Ecuadorian almuerzo or lunch – consisting of a soup as a first course, large plate of rice with meat, small salad, sides like yuca or cassava, potatoes, and plantains as a second course, and a small dessert or fruit as a final course. An almuerzo is a lot of food, you can ask for just the soup or just the second course if you feel it is too much. Even just the churrasco plate is a good amount of food with double carbs and double protein, I try to make on those days when we really deserve it (i.e. after hiking the whole day). I like the way it allows you to combine flavors, a bite of egg and meat with some avocado or a bite of meat and potato with some pickled onion. It’s also a good plate for kids because it gives them a lot of different options, even a picky kid will find something to eat on a churrasco plate.

Churrasco ecuatoriano

Churrasco plate components:

Grilled or sauteed/fried steaks (recipe below)

Fried eggs

Ecuadorian style white rice

Homemade fries, can also be replaced with menestra bean stew for a healthier alternative

Fried ripe plantains

Tomato and onion curtido salsa or a small salad

Aji criollo

Avocado slices

Ecuadorian churrasco steak

Churrasco preparationChurrasco ecuatoriano

Homemade fries for Ecuadorian churrasco Churrasco de Ecuador

Ecuadorian churrasco Ecuadorian churrasco plate

Ecuadorian churrasco or steak with egg Churrasco steak with menestra bean stew Churrasco steak and egg

Reader Interactions

Comments

  2. Michelle says

    January 4, 2010 at 9:11 am

    Gracias! Vivia en Quito por un ratito y queria preparar un plato tipico para mi papi en los EEUU. Gracias!

    Reply

  4. Matthew says

    July 28, 2009 at 7:43 am

    Whoa, it’s a lot of food!
    When we were in Quito a little while ago, we had this along with Locro (potato, cheese and avocado soup), some pasty-like appetisers, and ice cream afterwards. We could barely walk!

    Reply

  5. beejamin says

    February 21, 2009 at 1:02 pm

    I agree – this is brilliant post-hiking food – I think the best one I ate was at La Terraza in Vilcabamba, but I pretty much ordered one whenever I could.

    Seemed like the egg was less common further south, especially once you hit Peru – most places we went were happy to add it if you ask. Let’s face it – the fried egg is vital!

    Completely agree on that, it wouldn’t be a proper churrasco without the fried egg!

    Reply

  6. Zoila says

    January 10, 2009 at 1:07 pm

    I really enjoy your wedsite . I enjoy cooking your food.

    What a fabulous meal, I love the combination of foods included. I love visiting your blog.

    Reply

  7. Miguel says

    October 27, 2008 at 12:49 am

    Hey! esta bueno el website y las fotos de los platos estan exelentes, vivo en Shanghai en china y ya extraño la rica comida de Ecuador! soy quiteño, sin embargo te recomiendo mejorar la categorizacion de los platos pues los encuentro un poco en desorden, espero poder dar uso de todas estas magnificas recetas, good luck with the site!!!

    Miggs

    Reply

  8. Andrew says

    October 14, 2008 at 10:11 am

    When I was in Quito earlier this year, I had a fabulous steak… and that looks just as good. I never had it with an egg, but I’m sure it will work well.

    Really enjoy the blog.

    Reply

  13. We Are Never Full says

    June 4, 2008 at 2:39 pm

    This is so similar to the Columbian meal Bandeja paisa – and definitely not much of a ‘richer cousin’ since the meal is similar, except for the addition of chicharron and beans. VERY hearty and VERY delicious. Top anything with a fried egg and I’m there!

    Reply

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