Home Venezuelan Arepas
Ingredients
- Cornmeal - 2 cups
- Water - 2 1/2 cups
- Salt - 1 tsp
- Vegetable Oil - 1 tablespoon
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 410° F.
- Pour the water into a large bowl.
- Make sure it is room temperature.
- Add the salt.
- Blend well with a mixer, fork or spatula to make sure it dissolves well.
- While you continue to beat the mixture, slowly add the corn meal—a little bit at a time.
- Once all the flour is added, keep mixing until the corn meal, water and salt are thoroughly blended and dissolved.
- Set aside the masa in its bowl.
- Let it rest for 5 minutes so that the flour is thoroughly hydrated.
- This type of corn flour does not have any gluten, so it doesn’t need to be kneaded.
- The masa should be smooth, firm yet malleable.
- While waiting for the 5 minutes’ rest, heat your budare (or comal, griddle, cast-iron pan or non-stick pan) over medium heat.
- Coat with a little bit of the oil.
- Fill a small bowl with water to wet your hands to make the arepas.
- Take about 2 Tbsp of the masa in your damp hands.
- The masa should fit easily in your palm so that it is easy to shape into a small ball.
- Cross your hands, so that one is on top of the other, with the masa ball between them.
- Rotate your right hand in a circle, so that you are at the same time both pressing the masa into a flat disc and keeping its round shape.
- arepa making The last step in shaping your arepa is to quickly pass and lightly press the masa disc from one hand to the other until it is about ¾ of an inch thick and 4 inches wide.
- Smooth the edges with your fingertips (quickly dip them into the water bowl first) so that they stay as round as possible and without cracks.
- arepa making Place your arepas in batches on the preheated surface of your budare griddle or nonstick pan.
- Let each side turn golden, about 4 to 5 minutes per side.
- Check them often so that they don’t burn.
- Once they are nicely browned on both sides, place the arepas on a baking sheet in your preheated oven for 10 minutes.
- They should be somewhat puffy, so that if you tap an arepa lightly on top, it will sound like you are tapping an empty box.
- Serve arepas hot, whether you stuff with them with your choice of fillings or serve solo to accompany your favorite Venezuelan guiso or stew.