The cuisine of Argentina is distinctive in South America because of its strong resemblance to Spanish, Italian, French and other European cuisines while the cuisine of the Argentine Northwest has more elements of Andean cuisine.
Another determining factor in Argentine cuisine is that the country is one of the world's major food producers. It is a major producer of meat (especially beef), wheat, corn, milk, beans, and since the 1970s, soybeans. Given the country's vast production of beef, red meat is an especially common part of the Argentine diet. Historically, Argentine annual consumption of beef averaged 100 kg (220 lbs) per capita,[1] approaching 180 kg (396 lbs) per capita during the 19th century; consumption averaged 67.7 kg (149 lbs) in 2007.[2] Similarly, the enormous quantities of domestically-harvested wheat have made white bread (made with wheat flour) the most commonly found on the table, the wheat-based Italian dishes popular, and Argentine pizza use more dough than Italian pizza.
Besides some regional disparities addressed in this article, there exist at least two other comparisons which are important in understanding Argentine cuisine: the first distinguishes a cuisine that is essentially urban and cosmopolitan (highly influenced by the "globalization" of food and eating patterns) from a more traditional, idiosyncratic rural cuisine. The second comparison is made on the basis of socioeconomic differences.
While certain foods can be found in all corners of the country (Asado, or barbecued meat; dulce de leche; empanadas; and yerba mate; in addition to all sorts of Italian, Spanish, and French dishes) one can map out four broad culinary regions based on major trends.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argentine_cuisine
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