Arepas II

Ok then...

So last time I wrote about the history of arepas in my country... or at least, the one that everyone thinks is the right one.

Let's move on then... There basically two flavors in Arepas: sweet and salty... (and no... there's tons of types... i'll explain them later)

Arepas Dulces, or Sweet Arepas are usually made with Anise and sugar on the dough, some people add milk, butter and other stuff to improve the flavor, and of course, I'll give you the recipe... when we get to the sweet part... But today... I want to talk about Salty ones... or well... the filling we use in the traditional Arepas you'll find in Venezuela... 'cause they are so important in our culture... We love them!!

There's some places in Venezuela called Areperas, there's where you find Arepas, even late at night... And you could say these are fast food restaurants. In these places you can find pretty much everything Venezuelans eat... but arepas are their main attraction. Most places sells arepas that were made on big pans called Budares, usually are white, but you may find it made from yellow dough too... that means that the dough were made using old methods, and use yo be more tasteful. What makes Arepas special on these places are not the arepa "per se", it's the feeling that attracts so many people.

There's so many fillings, that I wouldn't be able to tell them all... But I will Give it a shot.

Starting with traditionals:

- Lard meat. (This is so traditional, that is even on our national dish)

- Stewed chicken (and this varies from place to place... some lard the chicken before they stew it... but everywhere is worth trying)

- Queso de Mano (and this one I won't translate, 'cause its so typical of my country that I don't want it to change... It's a type of cheese, very soft, so moist and delicious that I just can't translate it... sorry) Well... since I feel i'm not even able to describe it... here's a picture!

So... that's how Queso de Mano looks.. and ok... Literally it means Hand Cheese... Funny huh?

- Telita Cheese. That's another variety of white cheese made in Venezuela. It's soft too, but the taste is a little bit different.

- Yellow Cheese. Well... that's it... yellow cheese... lol... tranchettes I belive you call that kind of cheese.

- Reina Pepiada. This should never be translate... it's a words game in Venezuela. It's made with chicken, avocado, and in some cases boiled potato and carrot. Want to see how it looks like?

And this picture comes directly from an Arepera... Cute, huh? See the white thing with black stripes? that's the arepa!!! see all the filling? Yup... that's Reina pepiada.

- Domino's. That's an arepa filled with black beans and white cheese.

(i'll make a pause here. What you most understand about my country, is that we have a national plate, what you'll find in that plate: Black Beans, Lard meat, fried Plátano that is some kind of banana and white rice, so you will find those ingredients in many, many traditional dishes, i promise to write about it!)

- Arepa pelúa. This is translated as hairy arepa, it's a very coloquial name for an arepa filled with Lard meat and yellow cheese.

- Catira. Or blond arepa, its filled with stewed chicken and yellow cheese.

- Sifrina. And this I couldn't translate... It's filled with Reina pepiada and yellow cheese.

- Perico. Parrot its the translation... I'm not confortable using that... Its scrambled eggs with tomatoes, onions and salt. Very tasteful... We use to eat this as breakfast.

- Pabellón. Remember when I talked about our national plate... well... put that inside an arepa... without the rice and there you have it.

- Rompe Colchón... Hmmm this is a filling made of seafood, such as pulp, shrimps, oisters among others... and it is said to have afrodisiac qualities.

And of course, there is the Widow or La Viuda... That's an arepa without filling!!!

Well... those are the traditional fillings. But good thing about arepas, is that you can eat them with pretty much anything you want... Even salad. Like I said before: I really think Arepas are better than bread!! -what? I didn't said that before? Sorry!! But they are better!!!- Ok... so, now that you have a pretty good idea of which are the fillings... I can actually talk about types of arepas... But for now... I'll leave you with this, and let you enjoy with your eyes and imagination. Should I leave a recipe? Of Course!!!

To make Arepas for 5 people (and the quantity of arepas depends on how thick you make them)

- 2 cups of Harina Pan (or corn flour... try to use the traditional Arepas kind... otherwise you can end up with something weird)

- 1 teaspoon of salt.

- Sugar. As much as you like it... remember... if you want them salty, don't use too much sugar... I'd say a pinch.

- 2 cups and a half of Water.

In a bowl, put the Corn Flour, the salt, and the sugar... mixed them dry for a little bit... just make sure that the salt goes everywhere. Then add some water... and start mixing it with you hands, like when you make bread... Don't you love when you use your hands?... mix it until you see the texture of the dough don't get stick to your hands, but it most be adhesive. Heat the pan, and when its hot enough, add a little bit of oil to the pan. Make a little ball in you hand with the dough (don't use all the dough!! just a little), and then, firmly squeeze the ball to make a round and flat circle... and put it in the pan... Leave in on a low fire, until you see the crust gets hard and with a lovely brownish color. Some people puts them in the oven for a about 5 - 10 minutes...on a 350 C°... I'd do it, if it's the first time you make arepas... just don't burn them...

Have a great day!!