Bolivian Spanish word
el pique macho
Other forms: pique a lo macho
Meaning: heaped beef-and-potato plate for the brave
Where it is said: Bolivian, and claimed by Cochabamba: a lunch house there counts it among its most cochabambino dishes. A Sucre comedor lists it as 'pique a lo macho'. The Diccionario de americanismos marks both names Bolivian.
Other meanings
- beef-and-sausage dish over fries
Start with lesson 1
Greeting at any hour and saying your nameLesson 1, level A0
Start lesson 1How it is used in Bolivia
Beef, sausage, fried potato, tomato, onion and locoto piled high, a Cochabamba invention whose 'macho' teases whoever dares the chili. Recipes vary house by house, which is exactly why '¿qué lleva?' is a real question here, and it's usually shared, not solo.
A hearty Bolivian favorite: sliced beef and sausage over fries with onion, tomato and locoto. Usually large and often shared, and, as here, worth checking for peanut in the sauce.
How to use it
Both names are in use and mean the same dish: 'pique macho' and 'pique a lo macho'. Once it is being discussed at the table, people shorten it to 'el pique'.
Every house has its own version, so locals ask '¿qué lleva?' before ordering too. Ask about the heat as well: at the Cochabamba lunch house the dish is not very spicy, the locoto can be set aside, and the llajua comes on the side.
Examples
¿Qué es el pique a lo macho?
What is pique a lo macho?
¿El pique a lo macho lleva maní?
Does the pique a lo macho have peanut?
Aquí todo es de la casa, pero lo más cochabambino: el silpancho, el pique macho y la sopa de maní.
Everything here is homemade, but the most cochabambino: the silpancho, the pique macho and the peanut soup.
A real exchange
At a lunch house in Cochabamba
You
Ese pique macho se ve serio. ¿Qué lleva exactamente, y cómo lo preparan aquí en la casa?
That pique macho looks serious. What exactly does it have in it, and how do you make it here at the house?
Waiter
Lleva carne de res, salchicha, papa frita, tomate, cebolla y su locoto. La doña lo saltea todo junto, a fuego fuerte, con su toquecito secreto. Sale bien servido, para valientes.
It has beef, sausage, fried potato, tomato, onion and its locoto. The doña sautés it all together over high heat, with her little secret touch. It comes generously served, for the brave.
What to avoid
- Don't assume it is peanut-free: at a Sucre comedor the señora says the pique has ground peanut in the sauce. With an allergy, say so first and have the kitchen confirm.
- Don't order one each by reflex: one pique can be enough for two, even three if you have a soup first.
Good to know
- Origin
- According to Wikipedia, the cooks Honorato Quiñones Andia and Evangelina Rojas Vargas created it in Cochabamba in the mid-1970s. Locals tell competing stories, but most place its birth in a Cochabamba restaurant.
- Not to be confused with
- In the Diccionario de americanismos, pique alone also has other Bolivian senses, such as a mine shaft. At the table, 'el pique' is simply the dish.
Questions people ask
What is pique macho made of?
The Diccionario de americanismos defines it as sausages, beef and chicken in a spiced onion, locoto and tomato sauce. The Cochabamba version above has no chicken but adds fried potato.
Why is it called pique macho?
According to Wikipedia, the owner told some workers 'Piquen si son machos', roughly 'eat it if you're man enough', because of the heat.
Sources
What this page says beyond the chapters of the course comes from these sources.
- ASALE, Diccionario de americanismos: piqueaccessed 21 October 2026
- Wikipedia: Pique machoaccessed 21 October 2026
Learn it in a real situation
Explore Cochabamba