Arepas with Butter and Cheese
Venezuela's everyday corn cakes, griddled until crisp outside and steamy inside, then split and stuffed with butter and white cheese.
Method
Put the lukewarm water, salt and half the oil in a bowl and stir with your fingers until the salt dissolves. Liquid first, flour second: that way you won't get lumps.
Add in this stepLukewarm water (about 35 °C) 200 mlSalt ½ tspVegetable oil 1 tsp
Rain in the corn meal a little at a time, stirring constantly with your other hand. Once it is all in, squeeze and knead for 1 to 2 minutes until it comes together, then cover with a damp cloth and leave for . The meal absorbs water and the dough firms up. After resting it should feel as soft as an earlobe and barely stick to your hands. If it is sticky, add 1 tablespoon of meal; if it cracks, add 1 tablespoon of water.
Add in this stepPrecooked white corn meal (masarepa) 150 g
Knead the dough for another 30 seconds and divide it into 4 equal balls. Turn each one between your palms, pressing it into a disc about 1.5 cm thick and 9 cm across. Smooth any cracks on the edge with a wet finger; cracked arepas dry out and split as they cook.
Heat a heavy 26 to 28 cm frying pan or griddle over medium heat and wipe it with the rest of the oil on a paper towel. Lay the discs in with 2 cm between them and cook for per side. Turn them when they slide easily and have a firm crust with brown spots. If they don't all fit, cook them in batches. Number of batches: 1.
Add in this stepVegetable oil 1 tsp
medium heatMove the arepas to a baking tray and bake in the oven, preheated to 200 °C, for . They are cooked through when they puff slightly and sound hollow when tapped. No oven? Cover the pan and cook them over low heat for another 5 minutes per side.
ovenHold a hot arepa in a cloth and cut into the side with a knife about two thirds of the way round to make a pocket. Watch out for the burst of steam. Spread butter on the soft inside, pack in the cheese and eat straight away, while the heat softens the cheese.
Add in this stepButter, softened 20 gWhite cheese (queso blanco, or half mozzarella and half feta), coarsely grated 100 g
Cook's tip
You must use precooked corn meal; regular cornmeal or polenta will not hold together. The dough cracks as soon as it dries, so keep the shaped balls under a damp cloth. Leftover arepas freeze well: reheat them in the oven or a toaster and the crust crisps up again.
Cooking it at camp
The dough is a one-bowl job you can do at the campsite. On a burner, use a heavy cast-iron pan over medium-low heat with a lid and cook them slowly, 8 to 10 minutes per side, so they cook through without an oven. On a charcoal grill, cook them on foil and turn them often.