Simple Arepas

When AJ and I were in Colombia, we lived off of arepas, which are the most magical cooked and grilled masa dough cakes, for about the American equivalent for about fifty cents each. They were as big as your face, weighed about half of a pound and usually had cheese already melted into the dough. Every arepa stand made their own hot sauce to go with it, and usually had a woman up to her elbows in an industrial size bucket of dough grilling them on the street all day long. They were served with ham, cheese, eggs, sausage, veggies, fruit, jam-- on the side of soup, by themselves, cut in half as sandwiches--- every which way. They are really cheap and really delicious.

So we eat them a lot at home.

Whole Foods and most Mexican markets have the Colombian brand masa flour called "masa arepa" and it comes in white and yellow depending on what type of corn you might like. The Colombian brand is called "P.A.N." and has a cute Rosie the Riveter-esque woman on the front. I tried a new flour recently, which I like OK, but not as much--  however it lasts so long that I am stuck with it for another month or two. As long as it is PRE-COOKED CORN FLOUR, you can make an arepa. The dough has to be able to expand with water immediately (thus the precooked necessity)-- the type of flour I currently have is concurrent with making empanandas and tamales as well as arepas.

I do not mesaure this recipe. It is all about feel and getting your hands dirty :)

You will need:
Masa arepa
Salt
Water
Butter
Toppings (today we have my recently made refried beans, Cremoso (fresh Mexican farmer's cheese) cheese, chopped tomatoes, pickled onions, cilantro and avocados)

First: In a mixing bowl, measure out about four handfuls of masa arepa. Add a pinch of salt and mix with your fingers.

Second: Add water and mix with your hands. The dough will take a minute to fully absorb the water so add it slowly. The consistency should resemble fresh, Play-dough. If it sticks to your hands it is too wet and you need to add more masa arepa, if it is too crumbly it is too dry and needs more water.

Third: Make your arepa dough into balls and flatten in the palms of your hands into round, thinner "pancakes." You can make them fatter if you want to cut them in half and stuff them, however I am usually in a hurry to serve and prefer a smaller arepa that cooks faster. I like them between a quarter and a third of an inch thick when I make them.

Fourth: Coat your griddle or cast iron pan with a layer of butter. Have heating on medium-high. When your arepa pancakes are well formed, put them in the pan to cook.

Fifth: If you are having refried black beans with your arepas, like we are tonight, have them heating on the stove at this point.

Sixth: The arepas take about 5-7 minutes per side to get to the "golden brown and crisp outside with a chewy inside," texture.

Seventh: While your last few arepas are getting crisp on the stove, prep your other toppings-- today we have chopped cilantro and tomatoes, pickled onions, avocado and slices of Cremoso.

Eighth: Decorate your delicious arepas while they are still hot! :)

Happy dinner! Love Nicole and AJ

Ps. Our other favorite way to eat these arepas is with a slice of Cremoso cheese and a fried egg for breakfast.

Refried Black Beans

You will need the homemade black bean recipe from previous in this blog to make these black beans (or if you were in a pinch, obviously you could substitute canned black beans). I usually turn 75% of my black bean batched into refried beans to be in the fridge for general food stock for quick bites during the week.

Ingredients:

Olive oil

1/2 of a medium onion, diced

Chili powder (to taste)

Cumin (to taste)

Salt (to taste)

Four garlic cloves, minced

Black beans, about five heaping cups

1/2 of a lime, juiced

First: Saute your onions in a oiled-pan on medium high until translucent, about seven minutes. Add chili powder and cumin about two minutes in so that the tastes set into the onions as they cook. I use about 1/2 tablespoon of chili powder and one half tablespoon of cumin to begin, and then taste and season from there. Add garlic, and saute until tender, about three more minutes.

Second: Drain your black beans of most (about 75%) of the liquid that they cooked in with a slotted spoon. I am preparing these beans straight from my slow cooker as you can see:

Third: Add drained beans into your saute pan, stirring for a moment until they are warm and completely mixed with the other ingredients. Taste your beans--- season with more cumin, more chili and salt if you like, at this point.

Fourth:  Turn heat to low on the pan. With a potato masher or dough knife,  mash your beans until they are a nice, pasty consistency. If they need more liquid, add water, or better yet, use the liquid they cooked in until they are a texture that you like (some people like their refried beans really runny and some like they thick).

Fifth: transfer to a smaller sauce pot and return to medium-low, add the juice of half of a lime and add any additional salt for your taste's approval.

Eat with arepas (next recipe), in tacos, as a side or with your morning eggs. YUM! These last in the refrigerator for about five days in a good container (AJ says more, of course, but I like to recommend on the safer side...)

ENJOY!