Pupusas

Ingredients

Masa

• 500 gmasa harina (nixtamalised corn flour, masa para pupusas)
• 600–650 mlwarm water
• 1 tspfine salt
• 1 tbspvegetable oil, plus more for the hands

Chicharron filling

• 300 gpork belly or shoulder, cut in 3 cm cubes
• 1tomato, quartered
• ½onion, chopped
• 2garlic cloves
• 1 tspsalt

Beans and cheese

• 250 gcooked frijoles de seda (red silk beans), with a little of their liquid
• 1 tbsplard
• 300 gquesillo, grated (or 250 g low-moisture mozzarella plus 50 g feta)

Curtido

• 400 gwhite cabbage, finely shredded
• 1carrot, coarsely grated
• ½onion, sliced paper-thin
• 250 mlwhite or pineapple vinegar
• 1 tspdried oregano
• 2 tspsugar
• 1 tspsalt

Salsa roja

• 4ripe tomatoes
• ¼onion
• 1garlic clove
• 1 tspdried oregano
• ½ tspsalt

Directions

1. Make the curtido first: pour boiling water over the cabbage, carrot and onion, count 30 seconds, then drain hard. Pack into a jar with the vinegar, oregano, sugar and salt, top up with water to cover and leave at room temperature at least 3 hours, ideally two days.
2. Salsa: simmer the tomatoes, onion and garlic in 200 ml water for 10 minutes until the skins split, blend smooth with oregano and salt, then return to the pan for 5 minutes until it just coats a spoon. Keep warm and pourable.
3. Chicharron: simmer the pork in a covered pan with 200 ml water until the water has gone, then fry in its own fat over medium heat 15–20 minutes until deep brown. Grind with the tomato, onion, garlic and salt to a coarse damp paste, chicharron molido, not a puree.
4. Mash the beans with the lard in a hot pan until thick enough to hold a line drawn with a spoon, then cool.
5. Mix the masa harina, salt, oil and warm water into a soft tacky dough like modelling clay; rest covered 15 minutes, then flatten a ball in your palm. If the edges crack, work in another tablespoon of water and test again.
6. For revueltas, fold the chicharron, beans and cheese together into one filling.
7. Keep a bowl of salted water beside you. With wet hands roll 80 g masa into a ball, press a deep well into it, load 30 g filling, close the masa completely over the top and pat between wet palms into a 12 cm disc about 1 cm thick, sealing any crack as it appears.
8. Cook on a dry comal or heavy pan over medium heat, 4–5 minutes a side, until brown blistered patches form, the pupusa puffs slightly and escaping cheese caramelises on the metal.
9. Serve straight from the comal, eaten by hand, with a handful of curtido piled on top and warm salsa roja spooned over.

Technique

• The film of salted water on your hands is what lets you thin the disc without tearing it; every pupuseria has that bowl.
• Cheese leaking out and frying crisp on the comal is not a fault, it is the prized bit.
• Use masa harina made from nixtamalised corn (labelled for tortillas or pupusas); cornmeal or polenta will not bind and the dough falls apart.

Substitutions

• Quesillo is best approximated by low-moisture mozzarella with a little feta for salt and tang.
• No red silk beans: any soft red bean works, but reduce the mash further so the filling stays dry.

Variations

• Pupusa revuelta, the classic mixture of chicharron, beans and cheese in one.
• Pupusa de loroco, quesillo with the flower buds of the loroco vine, the best-loved meat-free version.
• Pupusas de arroz, the speciality of Olocuilta, made with rice flour and noticeably paler and more brittle.

History

Thick stuffed maize cakes of Pipil origin; the Legislative Assembly declared them the national dish and set National Pupusa Day in 2005.

Frequently asked questions

What is Pupusas?

Pupusas is a street food from El Salvador: griddled masa cakes stuffed with cheese, beans, chicharrón. Thick stuffed maize cakes of Pipil origin; the Legislative Assembly declared them the national dish and set National Pupusa Day in 2005.

How long does Pupusas take to make?

Pupusas takes 40 min of preparation and 1 hr of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings (8 pupusas). It is rated medium to make.

What can I substitute in Pupusas?

Yes, within limits. Quesillo is best approximated by low-moisture mozzarella with a little feta for salt and tang. No red silk beans: any soft red bean works, but reduce the mash further so the filling stays dry.