Mapuche seasoning

The treasure of Tierra del Fuego.

It was Magellan who in the 16th century, was the first European to discover this archipelago at the other end of the world. He called it "Tierra del fuego" due to the sightings from the ocean of the many bonfires that the Amerindians built along the coast.

This wild and inhospitable land which is now divided between Chile and Argentina, had been inhabited by nomadic Amerindian hunter-fishermen for 12,000 years. The name Mapuche comes from "mapu" which means land and "che" which means people.

Dried chilli peppers, coriander and salt are used in the Mapuche Indian traditional recipe. They were fearless warriors who were renowned for their ferocious resistance when attacked. They pushed back the attacks of the Incas who wanted to colonize their land and defeated the conquistadors for many centuries. According to pure Mapuche tradition, only 70 families still make this mix! Just like the Espelette chilli pepper, the goat horn (la corna de cabra) is dried and smoked then ground down to a powder. However, it is much stronger than Espelette so use it sparingly then wait for the Land of fire to light up your palate! The heat explodes only to release wondrous waves of smoky flavours.