Origin of name

There is no consensus on the origin of the name of this dish. It is popularly thought that when cooking the stew the water must evaporate until it reaches a degree of dryness, hence it must be "seco", although in reality all the variants of "seco" are usually quite juicy, and that the name "seco" is an ironic way of calling a soupy dish.^[12][13]

One of the most widely accepted references is that the name seco comes from the Santa Elena Peninsula, where at the beginning of the 20th century oil works were carried out in the Ecuadorian town of Ancón. At that time, Creole deer and goats abounded (in fact, the dried goat is native to the Guayas province) and a stew was prepared with them very simple that was accompanied by red rice, as in Ecuador it is customary to serve lunch with a soup of starter and a main course called the "second course" to which the English workers would say "second", which, by derivation, led to "seco".^[1]

However, this is a myth, since, according to Modesto Chávez Franco in his Chronicles of Guayaquil, there are records of this dish from 1820, almost a century before the English presence in the Santa Elena Peninsula.^[14]

In Ecuador

In general, the "seco" one in the highlands of Ecuador is accompanied by white rice or rice cooked with achiote,^[11] ripe plantains, potatoes and avocado, while on the coast (for example, the manabita stew) it is accompanied by yucas cooked or fried and a salad. According to the main meat that is added we have:

• 
  Chicken stew cooking
• 
  Chivo stew with white rice and plantain
• 
  Guanta stew with red rice, salad and patacones

• Chicken stew: As its name indicates, the main ingredient is chicken meat (in the form of quarters), although chicken can also be used,^[11] that is roasted in a pot along with tomato, onion, pepper, and spices such as mint or cilantro and the juice of naranjilla. It is considered a unique and festive dish that is served hot. The dried chicken is made in two stages, the first is the preparation of the meat, which is fried in a pot until it reaches goldenla. The chicken can be stir-fried with or without a marinade that is made in lemon juice. In the second phase (which we could say "wet") the golden chicken is cooked in a liquid formed by blending the other ingredients. The sour taste is achieved by adding beer or separately liquefied naranjilla juice, which should be added in the final stages of cooking. Among the Ecuadorian population abroad, naranjilla can be difficult to obtain, which has given rise to variants through substitute sour fruits, such as tamarind^[15] or the kiwi.
• Goat stew:^[8][16] It is a dish consumed in the provinces of Loja, Santa Elena and Guayas province. It is a stew that derives from the northern Peruvian dry kid.^[1] The meat is marinated with chicha de jora, although beer is preferably used to soften the strong flavor of the meat .^[1] In some cases, goat meat is replaced by lamb meat, although the dish is still called in the same way.
• Guanta stew: It is a typical dish of the Ecuadorian Amazon.^[17] Place the meat of the glove in pieces in a deep bowl mixed with the crushed garlic and cerveza. Separately, it is fried in the oil, with all the chopped ingredients (onion, pepper, coriander, peanuts, etc.) and the seasonings. Blend the kidney tomatoes together with the paiteña onion. Then, the meat is incorporated with the beer liquid, it is allowed to mix everything well and it is cooked over low heat until it is soft. This dish is usually served with rice and patacones fried plantain and yuca.^[18]
• Other stews: Other stews that are usually prepared in Ecuador are duck stew, goat or lamb stew, chicken stew, meat stew, lamb stew and fish stew.^{[19][20][21][22][23][24]}

In Peru

The Peruvian seco is a typical dish of the north coast and of the capital of the country.^[5][25][26] It is usually chicken, meat, kid, lamb, beef, chicken or fish,^[12][27] its main ingredient, and the one that gives it its characteristic flavor, is cilantro.

^[4][9] It is usually accompanied by beans cooked and white rice.^[26][13]

• 
  Kid stew accompanied by cooked yuccas, white rice, beans and Creole sauce
• 
  Lamb stew with mote
• 
  Chicken stew with rice and beans
• 
  Meat stew with white rice and beans

• Kid stew: Also called northern goat,^[28] is typical of the gastronomy of the Peruvian north coast,^[27][29][30] from the department of La Libertad to the border with Ecuador.^[31][32] It is made with milk goat marinated in chicha de jora and stewed with coriander, yellow pepper and loche squash.^[4][7][33] It is served with cooked yucas, criolla sauce, white rice and beans.^[29] In Piura it is customary to serve it with a tamale.^[28] A variant that is consumed replacing the kid is the lamb stew.^[12][34]
• Chabelo stew^[35] or chabelo stew with cecina:^[36] It is a typical dish of the region of Piura,^[37] that is sometimes served as a picking. It is made up of green plantains cooked in water or grilled, which is then pounded in a mortar and combined with roasted or dried beef (cecina), seasoned with chili, tomato, onion and, like all dried meats, with an acid ingredient, in this case chicha de jora.^[38]
• Other stews: In Peru they usually cook dried stews of different meats, among the most outstanding we have the chicken stew, the meat stew or tenderloin stew,^[4] the duck stew, the pork stew, the fish stew and the shrimp stew.^[39]