Last night my 90-Day Fiance lovin’ husband found a show on Discovery + called Foody Call. It’s where the reality TV personalities of 90 Day share their favorite recipes and give relationship advice mostly sexual in nature to viewers with questions, hence the name Foody Call, like Booty Call.
This recipe was shared by Paola and Russ. Pao is from Colombia and Russ from Oklahoma. And although it looks labor intensive, it’s really not. I was shocked at how quickly the arepas came together.
You can make the Arepas ahead of time and then set them aside until you need them. I made everything at one time, today. Like, I’ve spent my entire Saturday in my kitchen cooking, yikes! My feet and back are not happy, but our stomachs are nice ‘n content. 🙂
Ingredients for the Arepas:
2 1/2 – cups of warm water
2 cups – precooked corn flour (or masarepa)
1 cup – shredded vegan mozzarella
2 large pinches – sea salt
2 Tablespoons – coconut oil, liquidfied
Directions for making the Arepas:
Add the warm water, corn flour, salt and vegan mozzarella and mix well. Once everything is mixed well, set aside and allow to rest for five minutes.
After five minutes form enough dough in your hands to make 1/4-1/2 inch thick discs; larger than a biscuit, smaller than a pizza. Cover these with plastic wrap if you’re not ready to fry yet.
Or, you can fry them immediately and once done set them aside while you make the filling.
Let’s fry now:
Heat your coconut oil in a skillet on medium-high heat.
Fry each side until golden brown about 5 minutes per side; adding more oil as it evaporates if necessary to prevent sticking.
I was able to get 6 (six) arepas out of this dough.
Set aside on a plate until ready to use.
Filling ingredients:
Make right in the same pan you made the arepas in. No need to clean.
2 – tablespoons coconut oil, heated
1 – pound plant-based meat filling (note: if you are gluten-free like I am, please be sure to read the ingredients in vegan meat fillings as most contain wheat. Dr. Praeger’s vegan beef filling does not.
1 teaspoon- turmeric
3- scallions, chopped
2 – ripe tomatoes, chopped
4 – slices of vegan smoked gouda (this stuff is SO GOOD!)
1 – ripe avocado, mashed per person (if eating two each like we did.)
Directions for the “meat” filling:
Melt coconut oil over medium high heat. Add in your vegan beef filling and fry until golden brown with some pink left in it. Follow package instructions. Once it starts to look like ground beef, add in your diced green onions and stir fry 5-6 minutes. Add in turmeric and stir well until fragrant. Add in tomatoes last and stir, heating them through for about a minute or two. Season with salt. Take off heat and set aside.
Slice open the avocado, remove pit, and scoop out. Mash avocado gently with a fork and add a little sea salt.
Cut open the arepa on the side like you would see a pita opening (sliced through the middle, but not all the way through) go slowly here or they can crumble or you can poke through the other side.
Smear on your mashed avocado, one slice of cheese per areap (I folded mine until I got four squares of cheese and added them here and there.)
Add in your filling, as much as you can allow for without splitting the arepa. I was not able to put a lot of filling or avocado in the arepas, so use a fork when eating, as you will have lots of spillage over the sides.
These are the tastiest things I have ever made. I told my husband if this is what Colombian food tasted like I was ready to visit! I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!
Also, try one of the corn cakes as a pancake and drizzle it with agave syrup! You’re welcome!
P.S. – If you’d like to support me, you can do so by buying, reading, and reviewing my memoir here. It’s available in paperback only on Amazon and Kindle edition e-book. Thanks so much!
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