Salpicón de vaca (Boiled Beef with Vinegar)
Cold boiled beef, sliced and marinated in vinegar, onion and olive oil: a tangy cold supper that extends the leftovers of the *olla*.
Cold boiled beef, sliced and marinated in vinegar, onion and olive oil: a tangy cold supper that extends the leftovers of the *olla*.
Nothing goes to waste at the table of a man of little means, believe me. The boiled meat left from dinner, I would cut it fine in the evening, douse it with good vinegar and oil, add raw onion and a little salt: that is the *salpicón*. The acid keeps the meat fresh another day and awakens a tired appetite. It is the supper of soldier and penniless writer — but he who scorns it has never known hunger.
- •Leftover boiled beef — what remains from the *olla* (base)
- •Wine vinegar — a splash (acidity and preservation)
- •Raw onion — one, sliced (bite)
- •Olive oil — a drizzle (binder)
- •Salt — a pinch (seasoning)
Salpicón de vaca (Boiled Beef with Vinegar)
Cold boiled beef, sliced and marinated in vinegar, onion and olive oil: a tangy cold supper that extends the leftovers of the *olla*.
Why this dish? Cervantes, again on the first page of *Don Quixote*, notes « salpicón las más noches »: most evenings, a *salpicón*. It was the way to dress and keep boiled meat from midday for another day, with vinegar and onion — the economy of a poor scholar.
Nothing goes to waste at the table of a man of little means, believe me. The boiled meat left from dinner, I would cut it fine in the evening, douse it with good vinegar and oil, add raw onion and a little salt: that is the *salpicón*. The acid keeps the meat fresh another day and awakens a tired appetite. It is the supper of soldier and penniless writer — but he who scorns it has never known hunger.
Ingredients (period version)
- Leftover boiled beef — what remains from the *olla* (base)
- Wine vinegar — a splash (acidity and preservation)
- Raw onion — one, sliced (bite)
- Olive oil — a drizzle (binder)
- Salt — a pinch (seasoning)
Ingredients
- Boiled beef (leftover from pot-au-feu) — 300 g (base)
- Red wine vinegar — 3 tbsp (acidity)
- Extra virgin olive oil — 4 tbsp (binder)
- Onion — 1 small, finely sliced (bite)
- Flat-leaf parsley — a few sprigs (freshness (optional))
- Salt — to taste (seasoning)
Method
- Finely slice the cold boiled beef.
- Mix vinegar, olive oil and salt in a bowl.
- Add sliced onion and meat; toss to coat well.
- Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour (ideally a few hours).
- Sprinkle with parsley and serve cold, with bread.
How it was made : In the Golden Age, *salpicón* referred to a preparation of cold minced meat, seasoned with vinegar, onion and oil. Before refrigeration, the acidity of vinegar allowed cooked meat to keep an extra day: it was a dish of domestic economy as much as a light weekday supper.
The contemporary twist : Served in small verrines with a fine julienne of pickled red onion, a tapas-style nod to a four-hundred-year-old leftover dish.
Sources : Miguel de Cervantes, *Don Quixote*, I, 1 (1605) · Sebastián de Covarrubias, *Tesoro de la lengua castellana* (1611), entry « salpicón »
Miguel de Cervantes · Charactorium