Espetada

Ingredients

Meat

• 1.5 kgbeef rump or sirloin, in 4 cm cubes
• 3 tbspcoarse salt
• 4 clovesgarlic, crushed
• 2bay leaves, crumbled
• olive oil

To serve

• piri-piri sauce
• bread
• cold lager

Equipment

• metal or bay-wood skewers

Directions

1. Cut the beef into large cubes with some fat left on them, which is what keeps them from drying out over a hard fire.
2. Toss the cubes with the coarse salt, garlic and crumbled bay and leave them for 30 minutes.
3. Coarse salt and very little else. Espetada is a salt-and-fire dish, and an elaborate marinade is a departure from what it actually is.
4. Thread the cubes onto skewers, pressing them up against one another rather than spacing them out.
5. Pack them tight. Meat that touches on the skewer stays juicy in the middle, whereas spaced cubes dry out on every side.
6. Build a charcoal fire and let it burn down to grey coals with a red heart.
7. Grill the skewers about 15 cm above the coals for 10 to 12 minutes, turning them every couple of minutes.
8. Brush with a little olive oil as they cook if they start to look dry.
9. Rest them for 5 minutes, still on the skewer, before serving.
10. Serve with piri-piri, bread and very cold beer.
11. Portuguese skewer grilling took root in Maputo’s beer halls, and that is still where it is best eaten.

Technique

• Bay-wood skewers are the Madeiran original and they perfume the meat as it cooks. Metal works and gives you none of that.
• Do not trim the fat. It is what bastes the cubes over a fierce fire.
• Serve it on the skewer. Half the pleasure is pulling the cubes off yourself.

Substitutions

• Rosemary branches stripped to a point, if you have no bay wood.
• Any well-marbled beef cut into large cubes.

Variations

• With onion and pepper threaded between the cubes.
• Made with goat, which is common in Mozambique.
• The Madeiran version, hung from a stand at the table.

History

Portuguese skewer grilling took root in Maputo’s beer halls, where it is served with piri-piri sauce and cold lager.

Frequently asked questions

What is Espetada?

Espetada is a street food from Mozambique: chunks of beef threaded on a skewer, salted and grilled over coals. Portuguese skewer grilling took root in Maputo’s beer halls, where it is served with piri-piri sauce and cold lager.

How long does Espetada take to make?

Espetada takes 15 min plus 30 min salting of preparation and 15 min of cooking. The recipe makes 6 servings. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Espetada?

Yes, within limits. Rosemary branches stripped to a point, if you have no bay wood. Any well-marbled beef cut into large cubes.

What is the most important thing to get right in Espetada?

Thread the cubes onto skewers, pressing them up against one another rather than spacing them out.