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    Home / Dinner / Asado Paraguayo

    Asado Paraguayo

    The Paraguayan barbecue: beef ribs salted and grilled over glowing coals for hours, served with boiled mandioca — the country’s true daily bread.

    ⏱ 20 minPrep time
    🔥 2 hrsCook time
    🍽 6Servings
    🏷 DinnerCategory
    ☆☆☆☆☆No ratings yet

    In Paraguay, the asado is not a meal but a social institution — a long afternoon of fire, conversation, and tereré, where the parrillero tends the coals while the meat slowly turns mahogany. Unlike its Argentine cousin, the Paraguayan asado is almost always accompanied by boiled mandioca rather than bread, which soaks up the juices like nothing else.

    Fire, salt, and a mountain of mandioca

    The beauty is in the restraint: good beef, coarse salt, and slow heat over wood coals. The ribs come out deeply browned and smoky at the edges, with rosy, juicy meat that pulls cleanly from the bones — and a side of soft, starchy mandioca to mop up every drop.

    Paraguayan recipes →

    Step by stepInstructions

    1. Light the charcoal in a chimney starter and let it burn until the coals are glowing with a light gray ash, about 30 minutes.
    2. Push the coals to one side of the grill to create a cooler indirect zone and let the grate heat for 10 minutes.
    3. Season the ribs generously with coarse salt on both sides.
    4. Lay the ribs bone-side down on the cooler side of the grill, cover loosely, and cook for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, turning once, until deeply browned and tender.
    5. Meanwhile, boil the mandioca in salted water for 25 to 30 minutes until fork-tender, then drain and keep warm.
    6. For the last 10 minutes, move the ribs over the hot coals to crisp the edges.
    7. Rest the meat 10 minutes, slice between the bones, and serve with the mandioca and chimichurri or lemon wedges.

    💡 Chef tips & storage

    Keep the fire gentle and resist flipping — Paraguayan asado cooks mostly untouched. The mandioca should be creamy-soft, never crunchy: it's the starch that makes the meal. Leftover meat keeps 3 days refrigerated and makes incredible sandwiches.

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    Recipe details

    Prep20 min
    Cook2 hrs
    Servings6
    CategoryDinner
    PublishedAugust 17, 2026
    Emily — the cook behind My Comfort Recipes

    Hi, I'm Emily 🧡

    Hi, I'm Emily — the cook behind My Comfort Recipes. Simple, tested comfort food for real weeknights, written down the way grandma would. Pull up a chair. More about me →

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