Arepa / American Street Food

Arepa (Spanish pronunciation: [aˈɾepa]) is a type of food made of ground maize dough or cooked flour prominent in the cuisine of Colombia and Venezuela. It is eaten daily in those countries and can be served with accompaniments such as cheese, cuajada (fermented milk), various meats, chicken, avocado, diablito and even with nutella. It can also be split to make sandwiches. Sizes, maize types, and added ingredients vary its preparation. Arepas can also be found in the Canary Islands. It is similar in shape to the Mexican gordita and the Salvadoran pupusa.

The arepa is a pre-Columbian dish from the area that is now Colombia and Venezuela. However, instruments used to make flour for the arepas, and the clay slabs on which they were cooked, were often found in Venezuela about 3000 years ago; therefore, it is considered to be an authentic venezuelan dish. Throughout its history, the arepa has stayed mainly unchanged from the arepas that pre-Columbian native peoples would have consumed, making the arepa one of the few pre-contact traditions that have remained popular in the years since colonization.

 

The arepa is a flat, round, unleavened patty of soaked, ground kernels of maize, or—more frequently nowadays—maize meal or maize flour that can be grilled, baked, fried, boiled or steamed. The characteristics vary by color, flavor, size, and the food with which it may be stuffed, depending on the region. It can be topped or filled with meat, eggs, tomatoes, salad, cheese, shrimp, or fish depending on the meal.

 

The flour is mixed with water and salt, and occasionally oil, butter, eggs, and/or milk. Because the flour is already cooked, the blend forms into patties easily. After being kneaded and formed, the patties are fried, grilled, or baked. This production of maize is unusual for not using the nixtamalization (alkali cooking) process to remove the pericarp of the kernels. This makes arepa flour different from masa flour, which is used to make tortillas.

 

Arepa flour is specially prepared (cooked in water, then dried) for making arepas and other maize dough-based dishes, such as hallacas, bollos, tamales, empanadas and chicha. The flour may be called masarepa, masa de arepa, masa al instante, or harina precocida. The most popular brand names of maize flour are Harina PAN, Harina Juana, and Goya in Venezuela, and Areparina in Colombia.