Arepas
Arepas are made from precooked corn flour (masarepa, most often the Harina P.A.N. brand) — corn that has been cooked, dried and ground. Ordinary cornmeal, polenta and Mexican masa harina for tortillas cannot replace it: here the ingredient cannot be substituted. The rest is water, salt and ten minutes of resting the dough.
Your own work in that: 0 min.
- Dough 5 min
- Resting 10 min
- Shaping the discs 10 min
- Cooking 32 min
Step by step
0 / 6 doneUse the right flour
You need precooked corn flour (masarepa, e.g. Harina P.A.N.) — corn that has been cooked, dried and ground. Ordinary cornmeal, polenta, cornflour and tortilla masa harina will not work: the first three do not absorb the water and the dough falls apart, while masa harina, corn cooked with lime, gives cakes of a different flavour and a heavy texture.
Ingredients: 300 g precooked corn flour (masarepa) · 600 ml water · 1½ tsp salt · 2 tbsp oil
Mix warm water with salt
Dissolve the salt in warm water and pour the flour into the water, mixing with your hand — not the other way round. Add a tablespoon of oil. Mix 2 minutes until the dough comes together; it will feel too wet and that is fine.
Ingredients: 300 g precooked corn flour (masarepa) · 600 ml water · 1½ tsp salt · 2 tbsp oil
Flour into water, not water into flour — fewer lumps.Rest for ten minutes
Cover and leave for 10 minutes. The flour absorbs the water and the dough goes from sticky to pliable. This step looks skippable, but without it the discs crack as you shape them. If the edges of a disc crack, add a spoon of warm water; if the dough sticks to your hands, add a spoon of flour.
Ingredients: 300 g precooked corn flour (masarepa) · 600 ml water · 1½ tsp salt · 2 tbsp oil
TipAfter resting, test it: form a ball and flatten it. If the edges crack, work in another 2 tablespoons of water; if it sticks to your hands, give it another 5 minutes.
Shape smooth discs
Divide the dough into 8 balls and flatten each into a disc 10 cm across and 1.5 cm thick. Smooth the edges with wet fingers — cracked edges split during cooking and cannot be opened afterwards.
Ingredients: 300 g precooked corn flour (masarepa) · 600 ml water · 1½ tsp salt · 2 tbsp oil
Wet fingers close every crack on the rim.Cook eight minutes per side
Heat a pan with a little oil over medium-low heat and cook the arepas in batches of 4, 7–8 minutes per side (two batches, about 30 minutes in all). A crisp crust forms while the centre steams through. A finished arepa sounds hollow when tapped.
Ingredients: 300 g precooked corn flour (masarepa) · 600 ml water · 1½ tsp salt · 2 tbsp oil
TipLow heat is essential. On high heat the crust burns in 3 minutes and the centre stays raw and gluey.
A hollow sound when tapped — the arepa is done.Split and fill
Split the hot arepas along the side but not all the way through, like a pita. Fill with grated cheese — it melts from the hot centre — shredded chicken, avocado, coriander and lime juice.
Ingredients: 200 g cheese · 1 pcs avocado · 250 g chicken · 1 pcs lime · ¼ bunch coriander
Before you start
Classic fillings
Reina pepiada: chicken with avocado and mayonnaise. Domino: black beans with white cheese. Perico: scrambled eggs with tomato and onion.
Baked instead of fried
Sear the discs 2 minutes a side, then bake 15 minutes at 200°C. They come out lighter and less greasy.
Gluten free
Masa harina is naturally gluten free. Arepas are one of the few breads that need no adaptation for that diet.
