I have some Salvadorean friends, and when they make Pupusas and they invite me over, it is the best day ever! Similar to Mexican gorditas, pupusas are stuffed masa cakes. They are larger than gorditas and rather than splitting them open and filing them after cooking - as we do in Mexico - pupusas are stuffed before griddle baking. Fillings vary from cheese, chicharrón, beans, cheese and loroco (a Salvadorean flower) and mixed. They are all delicious and best of all, so easy to make at home, in case you don’t have a local Pupusería where you can enjoy them for the best treat.
The easiest to make at home are the cheese ones, since they don’t require cooking any additional ingredients, but if you happen to have thick refried beans or leftover pulled pork or chicharrón, use those as tasty fillings. In Canada, loroco flowers can be found frozen in Latin America grocers, just make sure to thaw and drain properly before mixing with cheese. Really, if we’re not being too fussy, any type of filling you like can be used for pupusas, even if they are not the traditional ones.
The classic accompaniments for pupusas are Curtido and Tomato Sauce. Curtido is a quick cabbage, carrot and onion pickle that cuts through the fat the pupusas may have, and the tomato sauce just brings it all together. It is a match made in heaven.
The traditional curtido and tomato salsa are not spicy, but I am taking a bit of creative licence here - as a Mexican, I need a bit of heat, so I am adding Jalapeño to the curtido and chipotle to the salsa. They are not spicy, just a bit more to my taste. You can omit if you prefer. Any leftover curtido goes great with boiled yuca or used as a topping for pulled pork sandwiches or fish tacos.
Pupusas can be made, cooled and frozen if you happen to have leftovers. They make great weekly lunches!
Pupusas de Queso
Cheese Pupusas
Curtido:
4 cups shredded green cabbage
1 cup grated carrot
1 cup thinly sliced red onion, rinsed
1 Jalapeño chile, cut into quarters lengthwise, then sliced thinly, optional
1 tsp Mexican oregano
2-3 tsp salt, or to taste
1/2 cup white or apple cider vinegar
1 cup water
Salsa de Tomate:
3 garlic cloves, unpeeled
6 medium Roma tomatoes
2-3 chipotle chiles in adobo, or to taste, optional
Salt to taste
1 tsp vegetable oil
Pupusas:
3 cups Maseca
2-2 1/2 cups hot tap water
3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese or queso blanco
Vegetable oil as needed for cooking
To make curtido, boil some water from the kettle. Place cabbage on a sieve and place over large bowl. Pour boiling water over cabbage and let it drain.
Place drained cabbage in large nonreactive bowl and add carrots, rinsed onion, jalapeño chile, oregano and salt and mix well. Add vinegar and water and stir to combine. Transfer to a large glass jar or serving bowl and let stand while you make pupusas and salsa. Curtido can be made a day ahead and kept refrigerated until ready to use.
To make tomato salsa, heat a griddle or frying pan over medium heat and roast unpeeled garlic, turning often, until charred and soft, about 15 minutes. Peel and reserve.
Place tomatoes in saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook until tomatoes are soft, about 10 minutes.
Place tomatoes, garlic, chipotles and salt in blender and process until smooth. Place back in saucepan and add oil. Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Transfer to a bowl and reserve. Salsa can be made a day ahead.
To make pupusas, place Maseca in large bowl. Add water, half a cup at a time, while you mix and knead. You may not need the full amount of water, use only enough to make a smooth and pliable dough that no longer sticks to your hands. It should feel moist, but not sticky.
Place 1 cup water in a small bowl and add 2 tsp oil. This will be for wetting your hands as you shape the pupusas.
When ready to start, divide masa into 9 portions. Shape each portion into a ball and wetting your hands in the oily water as you work, flatten each ball as you make a hollow in the centre. Fill with 2-3 Tbsp cheese and then close the ball to encase the cheese. You will have a bit of extra masa at the seam and you can pinch it off so your masa cake is not too doughy.
Start patting the masa cake, transferring it from hand to hand as you press, as you work to make it thinner. You want your pupusa to be about 3/8” (1 cm) thick. If cheese pokes through, just patch it with a bit of dough, but it’s ok if it does. Shape all your pupusas and place them on a plate.
To cook pupusas, heat a cast iron griddle or frying pan over medium heat. Grease with a bit of oil and place cook pupusas 1-2 minutes, turning when golden brown. You may have to turn them a couple of times, until cooked through. Keep pupusas warm in a 200°F oven while you cook the rest.
Serve with curtido and tomato salsa.
Makes 9 pupusas.