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Healthy Arepa de Queso
Yes! I finally had the time and the help to make the videos to show you what in my natal Venezuela is consider our "bread". But before, I want to give you a little history on this now-super-famous dish.
According to Wikipedia an arepa is a "type of food made of ground corn dough or cooked flour prominent in the cuisines of Colombia and Venezuela. The Timoto-Cuicas, which are the Venezuelan natives, are credited with having invented the arepa".
Well, to me an arepa is part of my culture, my identity, what brings the family together at night, what Sundays smell like. Arepas are very traditional, not only in Venezuela and Colombia, but in good part of South and Central America. Venezuelan arepas are not made out of cornmeal, are made with "Harina Pan" which is a Venezuelan signature product made by the most successful privately-owned company in the country.
Arepa is one of the most versatile dishes you can cook, you can make them sweet with "papelon, clavitos y canela" or sugar cane, cloves and cinnamon; or savory by just adding salt. More recently, we made them super fit by adding more fiber and reducing the amount of cornmeal. And the best part, you can stuff them with almost everything you can think of, from cheese to meats, eggs and veggies.
I can't really talk about the difference between the Venezuelan and the Colombian arepas because in all honesty, is not a matter of a variation in the recipe depending on the country, the reality is that every family has their very own signature recipe and all of them are absolutely delicious.
Here I go... With my own version of a healthy arepa.
What do you need?
1 1/2 Cup water
1 1/4 Cup cornmeal or Harina Pan
1/4 Cup Steel cut oats
1/4 Cup mozzarella cheese
1 Tbsp. Olive oil
What to do?
Transfer the water (room temperature) to a mixing bowl and season with salt
Add the cornmeal or Harina Pan and let sit for about 5 minutes
Preheat a non-stick pan at mediem temperature and grease with the olive oil. Use paper towel to remove the excess oil
After 5 minutes, add the oats to the dough
Make small parties flat for crispier texture, but thick enough to open after
Cook for about 6 to 8 minutes per side, until the arepas are browned
Carefully remove the arepas using oven mitts and open in half
Add the cheese
Put back in the same pan (after all the arepas are cooked) and let the cheese melt
Voila!
Tips, variations & more:
I usually do equal parts of water and cornmeal (1 1/4 Cups) and add 1/4 cup of ground flax seed
You can stuff the arepas with whatever you want... Scramble eggs, ham and cheese, meats, you name it.
