Riguas

Ingredients

The corn

• 8 earsyoung sweetcorn
• milky rather than starchy
• kernels cut off
• about 800 g

The batter

• 100 gsugar
• or to taste
• 1 teaspoonsalt
• 100 mlcream or milk
• 50 gbutter, melted
• 2 tablespoonsmasa harina
• if needed, to bind

To wrap and grill

• banana leaves
• wilted over a flame
• cut into rectangles
• a little oil

To serve

• crema or sour cream
• fresh cheese, crumbled
• refried beans, optional

Directions

1. Press a kernel and it releases liquid. Mature dry maize will not do at all. Press a kernel with your thumbnail. It should burst and release milk. Reduce the sugar if you use it. A little masa harina helps if needed.
2. Add it only if the batter will not hold. It also stops it sticking to the grill. Fold with the grain rather than across. That stops it tearing as you fold. Strip all the husks off the cobs. Pull the husks and silk right off.
3. Rub the cob to remove the last silk. Check each of the cobs carefully. Stand the cob upright on a board. Cut the kernels off it downward. Use a sharp heavy knife for it. Cut close to the cob but not into it. Work all the way round the cob. Take real care as it can slip. Hold the cob firmly at the top.
4. Cut downward away from your hand. It also helps bind the batter. Add that scraped milk to the kernels. Blend the kernels into a coarse batter. Leave it coarse rather than smooth. Some whole kernels should remain. Stir in the sugar, salt and cream.
5. Add the melted butter to them. Sweetcorn needs far less sugar. Taste the batter and judge it. Salt is essential rather than optional. Do not leave the salt out at all.
6. Add masa harina if it is too loose. Add a little cream if too stiff. Cut the leaves into rectangles. A few seconds each side is enough. Brush only the centre of each leaf. Lay a leaf flat with the grain lengthwise. Spoon batter into the middle of it. About two heaped spoonfuls is right.
7. Spread it out into a rough oval. Keep it about a centimetre thick. Fold the leaf over the batter. Fold one long side over the batter. Fold the other long side over that. Wait until it glows under grey ash. Cooking them takes about twenty minutes.
8. Lay all the parcels on the grill. Turn them over every few minutes. They need about twenty minutes. Wrap it up again and grill it more. Give it another five full minutes. Serve them still in their leaves. The leaf itself is never eaten. Spoon crema over the hot cake. Crumble fresh cheese over that. They are eaten hot with the hands. Grill them again briefly to reheat.

Technique

• The maize must be young and milky — press a kernel with your thumbnail and it should burst and release liquid. That milky starch is what binds the batter, so no flour is needed if the corn is right; mature dry maize is starchy and gives a crumbly cake that falls apart. This makes riguas a genuinely seasonal dish with a limited window.
• Wilt each banana leaf over a flame for a few seconds a side, since fresh leaf cracks when folded and goes from brittle to flexible with heat. Lay it with the grain running lengthwise and fold with the grain rather than across, since the leaf splits along it.
• Cutting kernels from a standing cob is where the knife slips: hold it firmly at the top, cut downward away from your hand with a sharp heavy knife, or stand the cob in a bowl instead. Then scrape the bare cob with the back of the knife to release the remaining milk, which carries real sweetness and helps bind the batter.

Substitutions

• Sweetcorn is the nearest supermarket option but is sweeter than traditional maize, so reduce the sugar — it is not the same but it works.
• A little masa harina binds the batter if the corn was too dry; properly milky corn needs none at all, so add it only if the batter will not hold.

Variations

• Blend the kernels only coarsely with some whole ones left in, since that texture is characteristic and a smooth purée is not what is wanted; salt is essential rather than optional, sharpening the corn sweetness so they do not taste flat.
• Grill over embers glowing under grey ash rather than flames, which burn the leaf right through; the leaf charring black outside is exactly what should happen and protects the cake inside.
• Some vendors leave the parcel open so the cake grills exposed and browns on top, which adds real flavour; both open and closed are genuinely done.

History

A roadside snack of the western highlands, made when young maize is milky; vendors grill them over charcoal along mountain highways.

Frequently asked questions

What is Riguas?

Riguas is a snack from El Salvador: grilled fresh corn cakes cooked in banana leaves, eaten with cream. A roadside snack of the western highlands, made when young maize is milky; vendors grill them over charcoal along mountain highways.

How long does Riguas take to make?

Riguas takes 30 minutes of preparation and 30 minutes of cooking. The recipe makes about 10 cakes. It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Riguas?

Yes, within limits. Sweetcorn is the nearest supermarket option but is sweeter than traditional maize, so reduce the sugar — it is not the same but it works. A little masa harina binds the batter if the corn was too dry; properly milky corn needs none at all, so add it only if the batter will not hold.

What is the most important thing to get right in Riguas?

Add it only if the batter will not hold. It also stops it sticking to the grill. Fold with the grain rather than across. That stops it tearing as you fold. Strip all the husks off the cobs. Pull the husks and silk right off.