Everyone has a version of meat on a stick, but this might be the first

The dish

Anticuchos, Peru

Plate up

There are certain culinary ideas so simple, so perfect, that they transcend cultural and geographical boundaries. Think meat wrapped in bread, versions of which appear across the globe. Or a basic starch used to form hearty porridge (congee, ugali, actual porridge). And then we have meat on skewers. You will find hunks of protein on pieces of wood in Japan (yakitori), Russia (shashlik), the Middle East (kebab) and Peru. Here the dish is known as anticuchos, and the classic presentation is slices of beef heart, skewered and roasted over hot coals, served up fresh at street-side stands and cheap restaurants across the nation.

Ox tongue anticuchos.Credit: Edwina Pickles

The meat here is often marinated in vinegar, garlic, cumin and local aji amarillo peppers, and it doesn’t always have to be heart – tour around the country, and you will find various cuts of beef, llama or alpaca meat, and sometimes even chicken. All are tasty and form a worthy entry to the global meat-on-sticks pantheon.

First serve

Anticuchos have been around for centuries. In fact, there’s a case for claiming these as the original meat-on-sticks snack. The history of anticuchos stretches back to Incan times, in pre-Columbian America. These early versions are thought to have been made using llama meat; with the arrival of Spanish conquistadors in the 16th century, Latin Americans began using beef hearts, as well as imported spices such as garlic. The name also stretches back to the Incas and their Quechua language: “anti” means east, and “kucho” means cut, so these skewers are translated as “cuts from the east”. Though they’re originally Peruvian, they’re popular now throughout Latin America.

Order there

This is an Andean dish, so why not try it in the Andes. In Cusco, order the alpaca anticuchos at Morena Peruvian Kitchen (grupomorena.com).

Order here

Sydneysiders, sample a range of Japanese-Peruvian fusion anticuchos at Callao (callao.com.au). Melburnians try morenarestaurant.com.au/melbourne. In Brisbane, check out Soko (sokobrisbane.com.au).

Cook it

Make them at home following the Jennifer Joyce recipe on this page from Good Food.

One more thing

Although we’ve listed restaurants as the place to sample anticuchos, in Latin America you’re far more likely to find these skewers served by “anticucheras” cooking by the roadside, particularly late at night. Good for what ails you after a few pisco sours.