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I did not expect to feel emotional about a Martha Stewart cooking show. But there I was, watching the newly-landed Netflix episode of Martha Cooks where she throws a full Argentine asado for her longtime employees, and something in me just… settled. There was the open fire. The cross of ribs staked into the ground beside it. Chimichurri getting spooned over meat that had clearly been tended to for hours, not minutes. It felt like watching something from my own family’s backyard get put on one of the biggest streaming platforms in the world.
I’m Chilean, so even Argentine asado is close enough to universal in my family back in Chile, that I don’t think I’ve been to a single real celebration — birthday, holiday, random Sunday — that didn’t involve someone standing over a fire for the better part of an afternoon. Seeing it treated with actual reverence, not as a “quirky international BBQ segment,” but as the main event, cooked by an actual Argentine chef, felt like a small, unexpected gift.
The occasion behind it makes it even better. Martha threw this asado to celebrate more than 60 people who had worked with her for 20 years or longer — which tracks completely with what asado actually is at its core. It’s not really a meal, it’s a gathering built around gratitude, and Martha said as much herself: everyone went back for seconds, and even thirds.
What Asado Actually Is (Because It’s Not Just “Argentine BBQ”)
Calling asado “BBQ” is a little like calling a wedding “a party.” Technically true, missing the point entirely. Asado is a slow, social, fire-first way of cooking meat that shows up across Argentina, Chile, Uruguay, and much of the Andes region, and the philosophy is the same everywhere it’s done well: low heat, real wood or charcoal, and time. Lots of time. This isn’t a fifteen-minute grill session — a proper asado can run three to five hours, with different cuts going onto the fire at different points depending on how long they need.
The person running the fire — the asador — has a specific job that isn’t just “cook the meat.” They’re managing coal placement, moving embers under different cuts, adjusting height, and reading the fire the way you’d read a room. It’s less like grilling and more like tending something.
Argentine vs. Chilean vs. Andean Asado: The Real Differences
They’re all built on the same bones, but there are real regional differences worth knowing:
Argentine asado leans heavily on beef — short ribs (tira de asado), flank, and various sausages like chorizo and morcilla (blood sausage) are staples. The cross-style grill, or asado a la cruz, where whole cuts are staked vertically beside an open flame rather than laid flat on a grate, is a distinctly Argentine (and Patagonian) technique for cooking larger cuts slowly and evenly.
Chilean asado shares the beef-and-fire backbone but tends to bring in more variety — chicken, pork, and choripán (a chorizo sandwich) show up constantly, and the sides skew toward things like pebre, a fresh tomato-cilantro-chili salsa that plays a similar role to chimichurri but with its own personality entirely.
Andean asado, found further up through Peru and Bolivia, often incorporates more varied proteins, including anticuchos (skewered, marinated meats, traditionally beef heart) grilled over open coals — a reminder that “asado” isn’t one fixed menu, it’s a technique that adapts to whatever region and tradition it’s rooted in.
What ties all of it together, no matter the country: fire, patience, and the fact that the meal is really an excuse to be together for several hours, not a quick dinner solution.
How to Get Your Asado Right at Home
You don’t need a Patagonian cattle ranch to do this reasonably well. A few things actually matter:
- Use real wood or charcoal, never gas. The smoke and slow heat are non-negotiable to the flavor and the whole point of the exercise.
- Build your fire ahead of time. You want a bed of glowing coals, not active flames, by the time meat goes on. This usually means starting your fire 45 minutes to an hour before you plan to cook.
- Salt is the only seasoning you need for the meat itself. Coarse salt, applied simply. Asado isn’t about complex marinades — the fire and the quality of the meat are doing the work.
- Cook low and slow, and move things around. Don’t set it and walk away. Shift cuts closer to or farther from the coals as needed, and give yourself real time — a couple of hours minimum for a proper spread.
- Make chimichurri fresh, not from a jar. Parsley, garlic, oregano, red wine vinegar, olive oil, and a little chili flake, all finely chopped, never blended into a paste. It should have texture.
- Don’t rush the rest. Let cuts rest before serving, the same as you would with any properly cooked piece of meat.
The Full Menu From the Episode
If you want to recreate what Martha and Chef Pablo Calandroni served, here’s the complete spread from the episode, straight off the asado grill:
The Main Feast
- Grilled whole salmon
- Rib-eye steak
- Beef short ribs
- Pork spare ribs
- Sweetbreads
- Chicken
- Morcilla sausage
Accompaniments (prepared by Chef Pierre Schaedelin of PS Tailored Events, plus Martha’s daughter Alexis)
- Homemade chimichurri sauce
- Alexis’s chopped salad (corn and jalapeño)
- Spanish criolla salad
- Black bean salad
- Three-color carrot slaw
- Potato salad
- Beet salad
Dessert
- Fruit-flavored ice pops
- Shortbread cookies
- Tres leches cupcakes
It’s a genuinely doable menu for a backyard version, even scaled down — pick two or three proteins instead of all seven, make the chimichurri and two or three of the salads, and you’ve got a real asado, not a Pinterest imitation of one. The tres leches cupcakes are a nice touch worth keeping regardless of how much you scale down — it’s the one dessert on the list that actually nods to the Latin American theme of the meal.
FAQ
What’s the difference between asado and regular barbecue? Asado relies on wood or charcoal fire and slow, hours-long cooking, often with meat positioned near (not directly over) glowing coals, rather than quick, high-heat grilling over an open flame.
What is asado a la cruz? It’s a traditional Argentine and Patagonian technique where large cuts of meat are staked vertically on a cross-shaped frame beside an open fire, allowing them to cook slowly and evenly from the radiant heat.
Is Martha Cooks on Netflix? Yes — the series, which originally aired on the Roku Channel, arrived on Netflix on August 25, 2026, alongside a video version of The Martha Stewart Podcast.