Name: Olluquito con charqui
Prep time: 25 min
Cook time: 78 min
Total time: 163 min
Cuisine: Peruvian cuisine
Ingredients: 220 g charqui — commercially dried beef or llama, shredded after cooking; 900 ml water — 600 ml for soaking, 300 ml for meat simmer; discard used liquid; 900 g olluco — scrubbed and cut into matchsticks; 160 g red onion — finely diced; 180 g tomato — grated; 16 g garlic — crushed; 50 g ají panca paste — unsweetened; 22 g sunflower oil; 2 g ground cumin; 18 g flat-leaf parsley — chopped

Yield 4 servings

Prep time 25 minutes

Cook time 78 minutes

Passive time 60 minutes

Total time 163 minutes

Ingredients ↓

Overview

Olluquito con charqui with ají panca

Olluquito con charqui combines olluco, a glossy Andean tuber, with charqui, salted dried meat. The tuber has a pleasantly firm, moist bite, while the meat lends savoury depth. Across the Andes, local preparations differ in the seasoning and sometimes include extra meat.

Here, charqui is used rather than replaced with fresh beef. The preserved meat needs careful soaking and a full simmer; its salt content is unpredictable, so there is no further salt in the measured ingredient list.

Olluco releases moisture quickly. Add it after the onion and ají base has developed, then simmer just long enough to tenderise the strips without losing their shape. Finish with chopped parsley and serve while the dish is moist but not soupy.

Ingredients

Dried meat

220 g charqui — commercially dried beef or llama, shredded after cooking
900 ml water — 600 ml for soaking, 300 ml for meat simmer; discard used liquid

Olluco and seasoning

900 g olluco — scrubbed and cut into matchsticks
160 g red onion — finely diced
180 g tomato — grated
16 g garlic — crushed
50 g ají panca paste — unsweetened
22 g sunflower oil
2 g ground cumin
18 g flat-leaf parsley — chopped

Method

Soak the charqui.Rinse charqui, then soak covered in 600 ml cold water in the refrigerator for 60 minutes; drain and discard the soaking water. The strips bend when flexed instead of cracking. Cold-soak below 4 °C, not on the counter.
Cook and shred charqui.Simmer the drained meat with the remaining 300 ml water in a small pan for 35 minutes; drain, pull into thin strands and reserve. The meat tears with a fork and feels tender rather than leathery. Verify the rehydrated charqui reaches 74 °C before mixing into the sauce.
Prepare the ají dressing.Heat oil in a broad pan and gently fry onion, garlic, ají panca and cumin for 10 minutes. The paste darkens slightly and loses its raw, sharp aroma.
Reduce tomato and meat.Add grated tomato and shredded charqui; cook for 8 minutes, stirring until the base becomes thick and glossy. The meat is evenly coated and the tomato water has reduced.
Simmer the olluco strips.Add the cut olluco, cover and simmer 18 minutes, stirring once or twice; uncover for another 5 minutes if too wet. The olluco strips are tender when bitten yet hold their narrow shape. Check heat remains gentle and meat is hot throughout.
Finish with parsley.Fold in parsley and serve straight from the pan. The dish looks moist, with separate strips and no puddle of sauce. Refrigerate cooked leftovers promptly.

Practical

Success points

Cook the preserved meat fully first and avoid adding salt until the actual charqui has been tasted.

Practical guidance

Both charqui and olluco are defining ingredients. Fresh beef changes the named preparation, while potato lacks olluco’s distinctive sheen and moisture; neither is presented as a direct equivalent. The finished pan may need no added salt at all. Cured meat levels vary, so taste it after boiling rather than seasoning at the start. Cool promptly after cooking, refrigerate for three to four days at most and reheat to 74 °C. Avoid reducing the sauce until it becomes dry and catches under the tuber strips.

Control points

The dish is saltier than expectedThe dried meat had a high curing load. Next time soak and rinse thoroughly and use no added salt.
The olluco turns mushyThe strips were too fine or cooked too long. Cut them consistently and stop once they are tender but intact.

Nutrition per 1 of 4 servings

Serving size1 of 4 servings
Calories435 kcal
Carbohydrate48 g
Protein37 g
Fat9 g
Fibre6 g
Sodium1070 mg

Allergens and food safety

Charqui salt concentration is variable and can remain high even after soaking. Cold soak and heat charqui to 74 °C; do not treat dried meat as sterile. Reheat to 74 °C and refrigerate within two hours.

Closing

What to expect: Soft but distinct olluco strips surround shredded charqui in a glossy ají-tomato sauce.
Key control: Cook the preserved meat fully first and avoid adding salt until the actual charqui has been tasted.