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Pupusas de queso y frijol
Salvadoran stuffed corn cakes with melted cheese and refried beans (pupusas revueltas, vegetarian)
In El Salvador pupusas are a Sunday-night ritual: families queue at the pupusería, where cooks pat the dough between wet palms with a soft clapping sound, and the second Sunday of November is National Pupusa Day. These thick masa cakes are stuffed with stringy cheese and smooth refried black beans, griddled until speckled, and eaten with your hands, topped with curtido and a thin tomato salsa. Chef's tip: keep a bowl of water with a splash of oil beside you and wet your hands before every pupusa, so the dough stays supple and the seams don't crack.
- Total time
- 65 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 4
Ingredients
For the dough
For the filling
For cooking and serving
Method
0/6 doneStep 1: Mix 10 ½ oz masa harina (nixtamalised corn flour) and ½ tsp salt in a bowl, then pour in most of the 1 ¾ cups warm water and knead with your hand for 2–3 minutes. Add the rest a little at a time until the dough feels like soft play-dough: it should not crack at the edges when you press a ball flat. Cover with a damp cloth and rest for 10 minutes.
5 minStep 2: Mash 7 oz refried black beans, 5 ½ oz mozzarella, 2 ⅛ oz queso fresco or feta and 2 tbsp loroco flower buds or chopped courgette flowers together into a thick paste. Mixing them (revuelta) stops the cheese leaking out in one spot and keeps every bite even.
Step 3: Divide the dough into 8 balls the size of a small lemon. Wet your hands with water and a little 1 tbsp vegetable oil. Press a ball into a cup shape in your palm, about 1 cm thick.
Step 4: Put a heaped tablespoon of filling in the cup, fold the edges up over it and pinch closed. Pat the ball gently from hand to hand, turning it, into a disc about 12 cm across and 1 cm thick. If filling peeks through, patch it with a pinch of dough. Common mistake: overfilling; too much cheese bursts the pupusa on the griddle.
15 minStep 5: Heat a heavy frying pan or griddle over a medium heat and wipe it with 1 tbsp vegetable oil. Cook the pupusas 2–3 at a time for 4–5 minutes per side, until golden-brown patches appear, the surface is dry and firm, and you hear a little cheese sizzling at the edges.
25 minStep 6: Serve straight away with a pile of 10 ½ oz curtido (Salvadoran cabbage relish) and a spoonful of warm ¾ cup thin tomato salsa on top. Eat with your fingers, tearing off pieces.
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 430 kcal
- Protein
- 18 g
- Carbs
- 52 g
- Fat
- 17 g
- Fibre
- 9 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does pupusas de queso y frijol take?
- About 65 minutes in total: 35 minutes to prepare and 30 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 4 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Is it vegetarian?
- Yes. It has no meat or fish.
- Is it gluten free?
- Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
- What can I use instead of refried black beans?
- Kidney or pinto beans, same amount.
- What can I use instead of mozzarella?
- Provolone or a mild cheddar, same amount.
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