Monday Menu: Arepas

Arepa

Learning to make arepas might be the best "Merry Christmas to me" gift ever.  They are fast and easy to make (less than 15 minutes).

I used chicken stock and tomato puree in place of the water called for in the P.A.N. recipe to complement the filling.

I stuffed the centers prior to cooking with crumbled Greek feta, forming four patties.

I let them set, covered, while the arepa-maker (arepera) came to temperature; I pulled a rotisserie chicken breast and made an easy dressing of mayo and sriracha.

Arepas

There's a bit of technique to cooking them properly, they steam like a waffle and are done when the steam stops - not when the indicator light goes off on this particular model.  They also are best eaten right away (light and fluffy), as they become very dense as they cool.

Bobby Flay made arepas on "Showdown" with a flat griddle, but I haven't de-wheated mine enough to be able to use it safely, yet.