The Arepa
Coming from a Venezuelan family, my life has always been in-between two cultures. The American side, which has always been bland but tasteful, and the latino side which is more cultural and has a different taste to it.
One of my favorite Venezuelan foods is called the arepa. The arepa got its name from the word erepa, which is a different word for this type of cornbread. The arepa is mostly cornbread, and is used as the Venezuelans daily bread. In my house we use the arepa as more of a meal than side bread. To make arepas you need to have a certain type of corn meal, which is called P.A.N., a precooked white corn meal.
There are several ways to prepare this dish. You can fill it with different sorts of meat, fill it with only cheese, or use it as a side bread, etc. By taking the arepa and cutting it down the center and filling it with butter, ham, and egg is the way my family does it. Whenever you eat the arepa, it is going to be very hot which is the way most people eat it; however, if you let it sit for a while it will get cold and hard.
This very cultural dish has always been in my family and I will definitely have to learn to make it for my kids one day. Even preparing the dish has been a family tradition; we are always helping each other by mixing the P.A.N or preparing the arepa maker. This dish is fairly easy to make and is not time consuming at all, just mix some flour water and P.A.N, let it sit on the arepa maker and there you have it, the Venezuelanized ham sandwich, the arepa.
Below I have copied a recipe for the arepa.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Yield: 8-10 arepas.
Ingredients:
· 2 cups masarepa cornmeal
· 1 1/4 cup warm water
· 1/2 cup milk or buttermilk
· 4 tablespoons of butter, melted
· 1 teaspoon salt
· 2 tablespoons flour
· 1/2 teaspoon sugar
Preparation:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, mix all of the ingredients well, until smooth. Don't worry if the mixture appears wet. Let mixture rest for about 5-10 minutes, to give the cornmeal time to absorb some of the liquid.
3. The dough should be smooth and easy to handle, without sticking to your hands. If the dough seems dry, you can add a little bit more water. Knead the dough for several minutes and let rest again for 5 minutes. Or if the dough is too wet to handle, add a small amount of masarepa, knead, and let the dough rest for 5 minutes more.
4. Take pieces of the dough and shape them with your hands into round disks, about 2 cm thick, and 3 to 3 1/2 inches in diameter. When shaping the arepas, repair any cracks along the edges with your fingers.
5. Lightly grease the surface of a heavy skillet (cast iron works well) with vegetable oil and heat over medium heat. Place the arepas into the skillet in batches. Cook until the arepas are lightly browned on each side. Place arepas in the oven for about 8-10 minutes to finish cooking the inside of the arepas without burning them).
6. Serve warm.
Coming from a Venezuelan family, my life has always been in-between two cultures. The American side, which has always been bland but tasteful, and the latino side which is more cultural and has a different taste to it.
One of my favorite Venezuelan foods is called the arepa. The arepa got its name from the word erepa, which is a different word for this type of cornbread. The arepa is mostly cornbread, and is used as the Venezuelans daily bread. In my house we use the arepa as more of a meal than side bread. To make arepas you need to have a certain type of corn meal, which is called P.A.N., a precooked white corn meal.
There are several ways to prepare this dish. You can fill it with different sorts of meat, fill it with only cheese, or use it as a side bread, etc. By taking the arepa and cutting it down the center and filling it with butter, ham, and egg is the way my family does it. Whenever you eat the arepa, it is going to be very hot which is the way most people eat it; however, if you let it sit for a while it will get cold and hard.
This very cultural dish has always been in my family and I will definitely have to learn to make it for my kids one day. Even preparing the dish has been a family tradition; we are always helping each other by mixing the P.A.N or preparing the arepa maker. This dish is fairly easy to make and is not time consuming at all, just mix some flour water and P.A.N, let it sit on the arepa maker and there you have it, the Venezuelanized ham sandwich, the arepa.
Below I have copied a recipe for the arepa.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Yield: 8-10 arepas.
Ingredients:
· 2 cups masarepa cornmeal
· 1 1/4 cup warm water
· 1/2 cup milk or buttermilk
· 4 tablespoons of butter, melted
· 1 teaspoon salt
· 2 tablespoons flour
· 1/2 teaspoon sugar
Preparation:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, mix all of the ingredients well, until smooth. Don't worry if the mixture appears wet. Let mixture rest for about 5-10 minutes, to give the cornmeal time to absorb some of the liquid.
3. The dough should be smooth and easy to handle, without sticking to your hands. If the dough seems dry, you can add a little bit more water. Knead the dough for several minutes and let rest again for 5 minutes. Or if the dough is too wet to handle, add a small amount of masarepa, knead, and let the dough rest for 5 minutes more.
4. Take pieces of the dough and shape them with your hands into round disks, about 2 cm thick, and 3 to 3 1/2 inches in diameter. When shaping the arepas, repair any cracks along the edges with your fingers.
5. Lightly grease the surface of a heavy skillet (cast iron works well) with vegetable oil and heat over medium heat. Place the arepas into the skillet in batches. Cook until the arepas are lightly browned on each side. Place arepas in the oven for about 8-10 minutes to finish cooking the inside of the arepas without burning them).
6. Serve warm.