How to Make Salvadoran Pupusas
Reminiscent of a thick tortilla or doughy quesadilla, the Salvadoran pupusa also bears a resemblance to another South American stuffed flatbread, the arepa, and is generally accompanied by a refreshing cabbage salad. Fillings may include ingredients as exotic as the loroco, which is a flower blossom native to El Salvador, or any number of different cheeses, beans or meat. After the masa cake has been filled and compressed, it is pan-fried. You may use your hands to "slap" the pupusa flat or a tortilla press to flatten the item into a sturdy disc shape. Does this Spark an idea?
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Dough:
- 3 cups masa flour
- About 2 cups of warm water
- Bowl
- Heavy skillet
- Tortilla press (optional)
- Cheese filling:
- 2 cups shredded cheese, quesillo or any mild meltable cheese
- 2 tbsp. heavy cream
- Salt to taste
- 1/2 cup Loroco, if available
- Oil for frying
Instructions
-
-
1
Mix the water and the masa harina together in a bowl with your hands. Look for a good firm and pliable texture.
-
2
Heat your skillet to medium and lightly grease with oil.
-
-
3
Divide the dough into about a dozen pieces and with moistened hands, form balls of about 2 inches in diameter.
-
4
Make an indentation in the ball with your thumb and add 1 1/2 tbsp of the cheese or other choice of filling inside the ball. Seal shut.
-
5
Flatten the ball with your hands by slapping it back and forth between your palms or use a tortilla press to form a disc about 5 inches in diameter.
-
6
Fry the pupusa on high heat in the skillet for several minutes on each side until slightly puffy and brown in spots. Make batches at a time and transfer to a warmed oven until you have fried all the pupusas.
-
7
Serve with another classic Salvadoran dish, curtido, a spiced cabbage slaw.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Each person should get about two or three pupusas, for a total of about five servings.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit Todd Warnock/Lifesize/Getty Images
