How to Make Arepas: a step by step guide on making arepas. 

Over the years, I have shared a few different arepa recipes with you. To my surprise, the arepa recipes are some of the most popular recipes on the blog! If you aren't familiar with arepas they are traditional corn cake eaten in Venezuela and Columbia in place of bread. Arepas can be filled with a wide range of foods. They are naturally gluten-free and vegan.

I wanted to create a tutorial on how to make arepas for you. This guide will show you the steps on how to make delicious arepas.

the dough

The first step is making the arepa dough. It is relatively simple and only requires three ingredients. The main ingredient is P.A.N Harina Blanca, a pre-cooked white corn meal. Unfortunately, you can't use the Mexican masa harina to make arepas. If you can't find P.A.N Harina at your local grocery store, you can order it online.

Add the P.A.N Harina and salt to a mixing bowl. Stir to evenly incorporate the salt.

Gradually add in the warm water. It is important that the water is warm and not cold. The best way to stir the dough is with your hands. The dough will be a little bit sticky, but that's ok. If the dough starts to dry out, add in a splash of water. If the dough is too wet, sprinkle in a little bit more P.A.N. You want to make sure to squeeze out any lumps in the dough. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes.

Divide the dough into 6 arepas. Roll each dough portion into a ball. Then form the dough ball into a patty that is apart 3 to 4 inches in diameter by using the palms of your hands. If the dough is drying out and cracking when you roll it, add a little warm water to your hands before forming the disks.

cooking the arepas

There are two steps for cooking the arepas. First is to brown the arepas on the stove top. I like to use this cast iron griddle to cook them. You want to lightly oil a large skillet over medium heat. Let the skillet get hot before adding the arepa dough. In batches, add the formed arepas disks to the skillet. Cook each arepa about 4-6 minutes on each side, or until they start to get light brown spots. Transfer to a parchment lined baking sheet.

The second step is to finish cooking the arepas in the oven. In a preheated oven, cook the arepas for 14-18 minutes, flipping half way through.

When they are done, the outer part will sound hard and hallow when tapped with your hand. They should also be a nice golden brown color. Remove from the oven.

Let cool a few minutes before handling. Carefully slice the arepas ¾ way through, creating a pocket. Fill with your favorite fillings! You want to serve the arepas right away. They tend to dry out if not served right away.

Here is a video showing the step by step process of making Venezuelan arepas.

 

Have you had or made arepas before? What are some of your favorite arepa fillings? One of my favorites are these mushroom arepa!

XO Jeni