Have you tried an arepa? What is an arepa, you ask? (… and not to be confused with an empanada.) Arepas are palm-sized sandwiches originating in South America. The foundation of this dish are little cakes made of unleavened, finely ground cornmeal. We were introduced to arepas by a dear family friend, Marianny (Mani, for short). It was love at first bite. While she makes the recipe by memory and feel, I convinced her to attempt to measure the ingredients with me, so that I can learn to make arepas myself and share the recipe with you! So here we go … Mani’s Arepas.
Arepas make a terrific canvas for anything from scrambled eggs to shredded meat. Nearly anything you’d put inside a tortilla is an excellent candidate for an arepa. If you’ve made shredded meat or a tenderloin and have leftovers, arepas are an excellent option for the next day’s meal.
Mani recommends cutting 2/3 of the way through the arepa to make a pocket (rather than completely separating the halves), as the pocket helps to contain the filling. If the inside of the arepa still fills a bit doughy, scrape out the uncooked bits inside.
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Use PAN Pre-Cooked White Corn Meal. Mani has tried many other brands, and this one is her hands down favorite for the flavor and texture.
Mani’s Arepas
- 1/2 package (approximately 18 oz) corn meal
- 1.5 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon of sugar
- 3 and 3/4 cups water
- Olive oil or butter
In a large bowl, combine corn meal, salt and sugar. Slowly add water, and squeeze to combine. As you’re squeezing the ingredients, you’ll feel small balls of cornmeal. Be sure to break these apart with your fingers.
Continue to squeeze the ingredients together until the dough is smooth. How do you know when you’re finished? When you form the ball for the patty, the surface should be smooth and without cracks. If your dough cracks, add a bit more water.
Pinch off balls of dough about the size of a baseball. Form patty about 1/2″ thick and flatten sides.
Turn your stove top a bit below medium and heat pan. Lightly coat the bottom of pan with olive oil or butter. Place arepas in pan and cook on one side until golden brown. Flip to other side and cook until golden brown.
Cut arepa half-way through patty and create pocket, scraping out any uncooked dough.
Stuff the arepa with fillings of your choice. Mani recommends swiping a bit of butter on the inside of the arepa before filling it. For your protein, try Chicken Tinga or the beef from Onion and Thyme French Dip Sandwiches. For accents, try any combination of onion, avocado, tomato, cilantro, sweet pepper, jalapeno pepper, radish, or romaine.
In the image below, we selected a pork tenderloin, the beef from Onion and Thyme French Dip Sandwiches, avocado, cilantro, onion, and tomato.
