In early 19th-century Chile, meals were not thought of as 'starter, main, dessert' but followed the rhythm of the home and the countryside: the midday *almuerzo* (cazuelas, guisos, and empanadas), the afternoon *onces* (bread and a hot or sweet drink), and, for soldiers marching towards Chacabuco and Maipú, the *rancho* — the harsh camp ration of charqui, mote, and ash-baked flatbread. Sweet and sour notes came from dried fruits and grape must, not from a separate course.

Two markers of the Chilean taste of the time: *harina tostada* (dry-toasted wheat flour, which perfumes flatbreads and drinks with a roasted hazelnut note) and *ají*, the native mildly spicy chili that enlivens meats and sauces. In Chile, land of the Americas, these New World products are at home — no anachronism.