My dad grew up on the Iron Range of Minnesota, an area known as “up north” that holds a special place in my heart from the many summer vacations I spent there. When I heard about Come, You Taste, a new cookbook filled with family recipes from the Iron Range, I ordered it for my dad right away.
I remember Dad telling me about South Americans, a popular bar snack back in his day, so I was excited to see a recipe for them in the book. Legend has it that locals would make up dozens of these sandwiches and travel from bar to bar each night selling them to hungry patrons. And apparently they were also a popular “morning after” antidote from a night of over-imbibing.
South Americans are a great way to use up the bounty of tomatoes and peppers at the end of summer. But now that fresh produce is available year round, you can make these any time of year. And trust me–you will want these around all the time!
Be warned: the recipe below makes a LOT of filling, so either cut the recipe in half, throw a giant party (these would be a great Super Bowl party food!) or plan to can or freeze a lot of it.
South Americans
Recipe below, adapted from about Come, You Taste, yields about 7 quarts (28 cups) of filling
½ C to 1 C canola oil
¼ pounds thick-cut bacon, diced into 1/4 inch pieces
6-8 oz pepperoni
1 pound lean ground beef
1 pound ground pork (or cooked pork shoulder)
4 large green bell peppers
2-3 red bell peppers (1 pound)
4 pounds tomatillos or green tomatoes
4 pounds red, ripe tomatoes
1 bunch celery
3-4 yellow onions (1 pound)
8 oz cremini/baby bella mushrooms (optional)
1-3 fresh jalapenos (adjust quantity to taste; remove seeds for less spicy, keep seeds for more spicy)
1 head escarole or endive
1 bunch curly parsley, minced
Salt and pepper
Heat ½ C oil with the diced bacon in a large skillet over medium heat until lightly browned. Pulse the pepperoni in a food processor until finely minced and add to bacon. Stir to combine, then add ground beef and pork, breaking up larger chunks, cooking until evenly browned. If the mixture seems dry, add the rest of the oil.
Transfer to a very large pot or stockpot (approx. 10 quart capacity) and keep over medium heat.
Using the food processor, pulse the vegetables in the order listed above, up through the jalapenos, emptying each one into the stockpot when minced.
Simmer 2-3 hours, tasting several times and adjusting salt and pepper.
When most of the liquid has cooked off, remove from heat and stir in chopped escarole/endive.
Spoon onto sliced baguette, Italian bread or a bun and top with minced parsley. Enjoy!
Yield: 7 quarts/28 cups
Step by Step Instructions
Brown the meat as directed above, cooking until evenly browned. The original recipe called for ground pork, but when I realized I didn’t have any, I used some leftover pulled pork instead, and it was terrific!
If the mixture seems dry, add the rest of the oil. It may seem like a lot now, but after you add all the veggies, you’ll never even notice it.
Transfer browned meat to a very large pot or stockpot and keep over medium heat. I tried making this in a 5-quart pot but ran out of room about halfway through the vegetables. I got by after filling a second pan with it, but I don’t recommend doing that. Just use a huge pot (10 quart capacity or more) from the start.
Using the food processor, pulse the vegetables in the order listed above, up through the jalapenos, emptying each one into the stockpot when minced.
Simmer 2-3 hours, tasting several times and adjusting salt and pepper.
When most of the liquid has cooked off, remove from heat and stir in chopped escarole/endive and parsley.
I think these taste best served open faced on a toasted sliced baguette or Italian bread, but you can certainly use them as a filling for a bun or bread. Enjoy!
Diane's Food Blog 
WOW! This sounds fantastic – just the thing for a hungry crowd on a cold day! Thanks!
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It is hard to find this recipe, I’m originally an iron ranger and grew up eating this. It’s been awhile since I’ve made it. Last time I cheated and used salsa instead of cutting up vegetables and no one knew the difference. As I brought it home for Christmas. We also have always used spinach instead of endive and hard roll bums. Thanks for the reminder of ingredients it’s been awhile.
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Sounds like your shortcut could save a lot of time prepping (and maybe cut down on the huuuuge batch it makes!). Thanks for sharing your memory of them!
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I grew up on the range and remember these well, I’m making this now for Halloween before Tricks & Treats, it smells wonderful! Now I just need a good easy recipe for Pasties, I miss them so much! is that recipe in the cook book, Come, You Taste, too??
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I hope they taste every bit as good as you remember! I don’t know if Come, You Taste has a pasty recipe or not. I got the book for my dad, so no longer have access to it. My grandma made them with homemade dough (or just use pie crusts) with chopped sirloin, carrots, onions and potatoes. I wish I had more to offer, but it seems that pasty recipes can have a lot of variation, so it comes down to what you grew up with. Enjoy your South Americans!
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i cant wait to try this. it was a family tradition when i was growing up and the whole family was involved (10 uncles and aunts)..the men drank beer and were the official taste testers… unfortunately all have since passed and there was never a written down recipe but this seems to be about how the made it
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What a great memory of a fun family tradition. I hope this recipe comes close to theirs!
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My mom was from Virginia, MN (“Queen of the Iron Range” as she claimed it was called) and we’d have these when we’d visit there. One year when my aunts and uncles came “down” (SE WI) they made them at our house. I can still see the women in the kitchen chopping (pre-food processor days), stirring, and canning and the men in the living room watching TV and drinking beer, and hear the “up nort'” accents. We were eating these for ages because it was such a huge batch! I might give it a whirl, but will definitely cut the recipe down. Thanks for the memories!
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Oh, I love memories like this! I hope this recipe brings back even more fond memories from Da Range 🙂
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I haven’t canned this, so I’m not comfortable providing canning guidelines. I freeze mine instead. Sorry!
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I’m so excited to find this rec receipe! Thank you, I too am from the Range and remember my grandmother, mom and aunts making it. The was more labor intensive as they roasted roasts and used the grinder. Lol, it was a two day affair but so delicious. All have passed but I can still taste the efforts and love they cooked it with. They canned it also. So the supply last through the winter.
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I came across this on 7/22/2025. I am from the Iron Range like most of those who commented. I was thinking about how much I loved eating South Americans, but I really had no idea what they were. I remember eating them at a cabin or some other place friends gathered to drink and be merry. Thank you for sharing this. Without even knowing it, you brought some joy to a small group of Iron Ranger’s by kick starting a memory that reminded them of the old days.
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Dina, thank you so much for your comment! It warms my heart knowing my post (and hopefully the recipe, too!) brought back such fond memories. Another Iron Range friend knew these as Sloppy Joe’s and said they tasted just like he remembered growing up on “da Range.” Please let me know if you make some!
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