Peruvian Grilled Beef Hearts

Peruvian Grilled Beef Hearts

Ingredients:

1 beef heart, approximately 4 lbs
16 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1 Tbsp red or green hot chili peppers, finely chopped
1 Tbsp ground cumin
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 cup red wine vinegar

Sauce preparation:

1/4 cup dried, hot red pepper
1 Tbsp ground annatto seeds
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
Salt to taste

Trim the heart of fat and sinew and cut into 1-inch cubes. Place the heart pieces in a large bowl and add the garlic, hot peppers, cumin, salt, pepper and vinegar. Add more vinegar if necessary to cover. Marinate refrigerated 24 hours. Drain the heart pieces and reserve both the heart pieces and the marinade.

For the sauce:

Remove and discard the seeds and soak the dried peppers in enough hot water to cover for 30 minutes. Drain the peppers and place in an electric blender along with the annatto seeds, oil and about 3/4 cup of the reserved marinade. Blend until smooth; the sauce should be very thickened.

Thread the heart pieces on skewers and brush with the sauce. Broil over a charcoal fire or under an electric or gas broiler, turning to cook all sides, for about 5 minutes. Serve with additional sauce on the side.

Serves up 8 to 10.