Pupusas!

Have you had a pupusa before? Just saying the word puts a smile on my face. It's like mashing two sopes together and topping them with crunchy deliciousness.

Thank you El Salvador, for producing something so AWESOME. I used to work at this law firm in LA and twice a week a lunch time a rickety old roach coach would pull up into the alley behind our building and dish these out for 2 bucks a pop. There were only a couple of us at first, but after a few weeks, word had spread and the line was 20 minutes long.

I haven't had a pupusa in about 7 years, but I woke up craving them the other day and set out to make them. I did a little research on recipes, combined a few, and came up with this. It's not as greasy as the ones I remember, which makes me think it's a bit healthier. You can come up with pretty much anything to stuff them with, which makes it fun. Go vegan and skip the cheese, be creative and add some shredded rotisserie chicken, get carb wild and stuff them with potatoes. Either way, you can make these better at home on the cheap, and fairly easily.

I cheated a bit and used some salsa I'd made earlier, but the traditional way is just pureed stewed tomatoes with salt and pepper. It's up to you how authentic they'll be. I also used baggged cole slaw since it was cheaper than buying cabbage and carrots separately, and less work :)

Bean and Cheese Pupusas (gluten free!)

2 cups rice flour
1 cup hot water
1 can black beans
1/2 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 oz shredded cheese (i used colby jack)
Olive oil, salt, pepper

4 cups cole slaw
1 red onion thinly sliced
1/2 cup white or apple cider vinegar
salt, pepper, oregano

1 can stewed tomatoes, or some salsa

Saute garlic and onion with some olive oil in a saucepan. Add can of black beans with liquid, and bring to a boil. With a potato masher, mash down the beans while they are cooking until they are thick and only slightly lumpy. Let them cool for a few minutes and then mix in shredded cheese.

While this mixture is cooling, blanch the cole slaw and onions in boiling water for about 2 minutes.

Strain the whole thing and rinse several times with cold water. In a bowl, toss them with vinegar, salt, pepper, and a few pinches of oregano. Add a bit of cold water and let the whole thing sit while you make the pupusas.

Start with the rice flour in a bowl, and stir, gradually adding hot water until a thick dough forms. It will be somewhere between bread dough and cookie dough. Rub your hands together with a bit of olive oil to prevent sticking, and grab a golf ball sized chunk of dough. Working with your palm, flatten the dough and fill with a heaping tablespoon of bean mixture.

Now, fold over the outsides and flatten to about 1/4 inch thick. Some of the mixture will seep out, but that's ok, it crisps up and adds some extra flavor. You can also flatten them out a little more once they are in the pan.

Then, just fry a few at a time at medium high heat in a couple tablespoons of olive oil, flipping once. Top with the marinated slaw and pureed tomatoes or regular salsa.