Chilean whitewater adventure sparks appetite for asado

0 Comments | Oakland Tribune, Apr 26, 2006 | by Laurel Miller, CONTRIBUTOR

IARRIVED in Chilean Patagonia with a jones for meat -- not the machismo kind, but the animal variety.

Specifically, I was in search of asado, the traditional Argentine and Chilean barbecue. In this mountainous southern region, asado generally consists of a butterflied lamb carcass tied to an asador, or metal cross, that is propped upright before a fire pit. The un- marinated, salted meat is then slowly roasted before the flames, to retain the natural juices and tenderness.

My other reason for being in Patagonia, besides a longing to indulge my carnivorous proclivities and visit regional family farms, was to raft Chile's Class V Futaleufu River with Truckee-based eco- outfitter Bio Bio Expeditions.

Co-founded in 1991 by rafting guides and San Francisco natives Laurence Alvarez-Roos and Marc Goddard, Bio Bio is named after Chile's legendary whitewater river that was dammed by Endesa, a Chilean hydroelectric company (displacing the region's endangered flora and fauna, as well as it's indigenous Mapuche people).

Alvarez-Roos and Goddard have since moved south to running the Futaleufu in Northern Patagonia's Region X (10), and have expanded their company to include rafting, kayaking, horseback riding, and fly fishing trips throughout Latin America, Africa, Nepal, Siberia, and California.

Unfortunately, the future of the remote Futaleufu, ranked one of the world's top five navigable rivers in terms of difficulty and scenic attributes, looks grim. Within the next two years, Endesa plans to dam the Fu', which will put much of the valley underwater, forever altering this pristine, alpine landscape of old-growth forest, glacial lakes, and lush farmland. The damming of the Fu' is much more than just a loss to outdoor enthusiasts and entrepreneurial gringo eco-outfitters; it will be taking away the agrarian livelihood of the valley's fewer than 3,000 residents, most of whom have been in the region for generations.

The resident Chilenos who don't earn their living farming or as huasos (cowboys) are happily working in tourism, which bolsters the area's economy. They are employed by companies such as Bio Bio, or run their own fly fishing lodges or outdoor adventure companies.

My interest in Bio Bio's Fu' trip was sparked when I discovered their riverside base camp (think rustic luxury: tents on platforms, massage studio/sauna, yoga studio, hot tub, and bar), is on land leased from an organic farmer, Rolando Diocares. Rolando is a gifted carpenter, and built all of the structures on the camp by hand. He and his wife, Nellie, grow many of the ingredients used by Bio Bio's talented resident chef, Cristin Vargas. The Diocares' grow vegetables and fruit in their market garden and greenhouse -- a necessity in a region with such a short growing season -- as well as raise sheep, chickens, cows, and pigs. They also ferment their own chicha, or hard apple cider.

Rolando, like most local farmers, uses oxen to help him with farm work and to transport gear and kayaks up to Bio Bio's smaller La Cascada camp, on the Rio Azul tributary. Nellie, herself an accomplished cook, prepares the baked goods for Bio Bio guests, including regional specialties such as sopapillas -- fried dough eaten with mild farmer's cheese, local honey, or manjar, a sweet, caramelized milk spread. Vargas rounds out meals with everything from fresh fruit smoothies and Spanish-style tortillas brimming with potatoes and chorizo for breakfast, to sophisticated, multi-course, Latin-influenced dinners prepared in their entirety on a single propane burner and a parilla, or grill.

One of the things that makes Bio Bio stand out among other eco- outfitters is their honest commitment to preserving the ecological and cultural integrity of the regions they visit. The employment of a dedicated camp chef also sets them apart, as most companies have their guides prepare meals to cut costs.

"We're trying to support the local community by using it's products and hiring them as employees," Vargas says. "Nearly every farmstead makes their own cheese and butter, grows their own produce and meat. It's not always cost effective or possible in terms of supply to purchase everything locally, but we do as much as we can. It's why clients come here -- to experience the place, and it's food and culture. We want to have a sense of what's grown and produced here. And Nellie and I love to have guests watch or help us cook, and take home recipes."

Asado is one of those culinary experiences that is intrinsically cultural, an authentic way of cooking developed by Argentina's gauchos, before being adopted by Chilean huasos. I visited Rolando at the quincho, or barbecue house, as he prepared a freshly slaughtered, three-month old milk- and grass-fed lamb. He tied the butterflied carcass to the asador, securing the spine and legs with wire. After massaging a homemade rub of garlic, salt, oregano, and mequen, a pulverized native red pepper, into the meat, he planted the asador before a fire fueled by lea de maio, a regional hardwood.