Saice (Spicy meat)

Saice is from Tarija, the southern-most state of Bolivia on the border with Argentina. It's a spicy meat dish cooked with peas, potatoes, and chili paste. It is typically served with chuño (dehydrated potatoes) and either rice or noodles, along with a salad of tomatoes, red onions, hot and peppers.

This YouTube video is in Spanish, but it will give you a chance to see what saice is supposed to look like.


https://youtu.be/3S3Liw_9q8k

Ingredients:

1 pound beef, cut into small piece
2-3 potatoes, already boiled and cubed
½ cup oil
1 cup green peas, peeled
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
1 spoonful salt
3 cups broth or cold water

For the sauce:

1 cup white onion, finely chopped or grated
1 cup tomato, peeled and finely chopped
½ teaspoon ground spicy red pepper
3-5 tablespoons of water

Make your sauce first by blending these ingredients

To serve:

Steamed rice or boiled noodles, or
Boiled noodles (usually short macaroni)
Chuño (dehydrated potatoes, boiled)
Prepare these in advance, before you begin cooking, and keep warm.

Easy salad mix to top it off:

Thinly sliced lettuce, sliced red onion, diced tomatoes. Prepare the salad in advance, before you begin cooking.

Instructions:

Cut the meat into very small pieces and fry it in the oil for 5-10 minutes.

In a large pot, place the meat, potatoes, peas, broth, salt, pepper, and cumin. Add in your spicy sauce, reserving a little for your table. Set to cook over high heat until it boils and later over low heat, for at least an half hour or until everything is very well cooked. If the preparation dries a little, add broth or hot water. It must be very juicy.

Serve in a shallow bowl over steamed rice or noodles, with a side of chuño and a little sauce. Top it with our salad mix.