Arepas, soft, flat cornbreads, originate in Venezuela where local indigenous communities in the Andes. During Spanish colonization, the recipe migrated to neighboring Colombia where it has enjoyed a long status as a staple recipe.
This is a fairly straight forward, simple recipe with a wide variety of regional variations and differences. In some areas the arepa is made thick and wide to be sliced in half for sandwiches, in other areas coconut is added to the dough for a sweeter desert, or in even other spots smaller arepas are made with pulled chicken or beef in the dough.
The following presents a more traditional dough made with cheese, as well as a quick method of making these little treats in an even faster way (though I would never admit to my Colombian friends I make these this way).
Because this is such a versatile dough, you should try making these in a variety of different ways: with cilantro and lime, chipotle pulled chicken, or even some of the sobrebarriga, a shredded Colombian flank steak.
Besides two ways to make the dough, there are also two methods of shaping your breads; one is a great for making larger rolls, and the other is great for making small little patties.
The final thing to consider once you have chosen a style of dough, and your fillings, you will need to choose the cooking method: grilling, baking, or frying. It is also possible to make small little balls and deep fry them.
This recipe presents a pan frying method, but again, do not fear trying other cooking methods to see what works best for the fillings you use.
Arepas de Queso (Cheese Arepas)
Ingredients:
- 1 cup precooked corn flour
- 1/3 cup grated cheese
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 1 cup boiling water
- 1/2 cup corn kernels
Filling:
- Slices of mozerella cheese
- Slices of tomatoes
Procedure:
- Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl into a soft dough.
- For larger sandwiches, take a 1/4 cup of filling. Roll into a ball and flatten.
- Optional: For smaller sandwiches, roll out the dough and using a cookie cutter (or empty tin can) cut out little rounds.
- Lightly fry the dough in a large skillet until browned on both sides.
- For larger sandwiches, slice the arepa in half and fill with cheese and tomatoes before returning to the pan to melt cheese. For smaller sandwiches, simply use each round as one of the bread slices.
Arepas : the Fast Way
This is not a traditional dish in any way, but it is a super fast way of making an already fast dish.
- 1 can of creamed corn
- 1 handful grated cheese
- 3/4 cup precooked corn flour
Procedure
1) Mix all in a bowl and prepare the same way as above.
Timothy Dzurilla - Dzurilla has been writing about food and food culture for 7 years for various on and off line newspapers. Currently in graduate school ...
