Chivito

Significance

The Chivito, a steak and egg sandwich, is one of the most popular foods in Uruguay and can be found in countless restaurants and street food vendors. Chivito, which means little goat in Spanish, is a sandwich with a thin steak, egg, ham, bacon, lettuce, tomato, and mozzarella. The sandwich is traditionally topped with Salsa Golf which is a mixture of kethchup and mustard and served atop a plain white bun. Legend has it that the origin of this exclusively Uruguayan sandwich comes from the 1940s, when an Argentinian tourist asked for "Chivo" or goat at a popular restaurant in the coast town of Punta del Este. Not wanting to disappoint but not having any goat in the kitchen, the chef prepared a thin sliced of steak on a sandwich told the guest it was called a "Chivito". Since then it has been modified every which way so you will find many variations of this sandwich. Other toppings that are often added are olives or onions. This is an easy way to try something quintessentially Uruguayan and what better day to start than Uguruay Independence Day!?

Preparation:

1) Begin by frying the bacon in a pan until done to your liking.

2) Pour the bacon fat so that just enough is left to sear the steak in and bring the pan to very high heat.

3) Pound the steak thin with a meat mallet and cook it for about a minute on each side, or until done to your liking.

4) Add a little bacon fat back into the pan and fry the egg.

5) Mix the ketchup and mayonnaise and spread on the top and bottom of the bun.

6) Add the lettuce slices to the bottom, followed by the tomato slices, the fried egg, steak, cheese and bacon on top.

7) Slice the sandwich in half for easier eating, or dig into it whole!