Arepas for Breakfast

Arepas are traditional Venezuelan street food.  My husband is Venezuelan, and they are one of his favorite meals of all time. They are generally baked or cooked on a griddle, but my mother-in-law has always fried them.  I’ve tried them prepared several different ways, and as an objective judge I can honestly say: there’s no question that frying is the way to go! 

They’re quite easy to make, but you need the right kind of flour.  Masarepa is a very finely ground white corn flour, which you can find in most Latin grocery stores (we use the brand P.A.N.).  It makes very tender dough and fries up into a crispy exterior with fluffy, light insides.

First, you form the dough into thin patties.  If you’re going to fry them, you also need to poke a hole in the center (like a donut) or they will puff up when you cook them.  Then you fry them, cut them into pockets (like a pita), and stuff them with any variety of fillings.  For dinner, we use a pork chili, braised chicken, or thinly sliced steak.  We’ll add cheese and sometimes beans.  A very traditional Venezuelan dish involves stuffing them with a chicken salad and avocado.

But breakfast arepas are a real treat, because they’re not something you can eat every day without gaining 50 pounds.  My husband grew up stuffing them with butter and a salty, harder Venezuelan cheese (similar to ricotta salata).  We can’t find that cheese here, so we use feta or a melty smoked cheese.  Add a fried egg with soft yolks, and you’ve got a ridiculous breakfast sandwich. 

Arepas

makes about 6 arepas, assume you’ll need 2-3 per person

1 cup harina PAN
1 1/4 cup hot water
pinch of salt
Neutral oil (for frying)

Place the water and salt in a large bowl.  Stir to dissolve the salt.  Slowly pour in the harina PAN and mix with your hand to fully incorporate into a dough.  Be sure to knead out any lumps.
Divide the dough into 6 balls.  Moisten your hands with water and flatten the dough out into disks that are about just over 1/4 inch) thick (1 cm or so).  Poke a hole in the center with your pinky.  Note: if your edges are cracking or splitting, it means your dough is too dry and you need to add more water.
Pour about a 3/4 inch of oil into a frying pan over medium heat.  When the oil is hot, fry the arepas, flipping occasionally, until golden brown (about 12 minutes).
Use a sharp knife to carefully cut a pocket into the arepa and stuff with the fillings of your choice.

Filling suggestions:
fried eggs
scrambled eggs
beans
your favorite cheese (suggestions: smoked cheese, feta, queso fresco, ricotta salata, parmesan)
bacon or ham
hot sauce

P.S. I did not manipulate the color on the egg yolks in these photos!  For some reason, the yolks on Japanese eggs are unbelievably orange/yellow.