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    My Colombian Recipes » Recipes » Appetizers and Snacks » Pupusas With Curtido From El Salvador

    Pupusas with Curtido from El Salvador

    Jan 18, 2010 · Modified: Aug 18, 2022 by Erica Dinho · 40 Comments

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    Pupusas are a traditional dish from El Salvador. They can be filled with different ingredients and they are delicious served with curtido.

    PupusasPin

    Pupusas with Curtido from El Salvador

    Erica Dinho
    5 from 37 votes
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Prep Time 10 mins
    Cook Time 10 mins
    Total Time 20 mins
    Course Main Course
    Cuisine Latin
    Servings 4 servings
    Calories 405 kcal

    Ingredients
     

    Curtido

    • ½ head green cabbage shredded
    • 1 carrot shredded
    • ¼ teaspoon finely chopped habanero pepper
    • ½ red onion thinly sliced
    • Salt and pepper
    • Juice of ½ lime
    • ½ cup white vinegar
    • ¼ cup warm water

    Pupusas

    • 2 cups masarina or corn flour
    • 1 cup warm water
    • ¼ teaspoon salt
    • ¼ cup cheddar cheese
    • ¼ cup queso fresco
    • ¼ cup mozzarella cheese
    • 1 cup refried beans
    • 1 cup cooked chicharrón diced

    Instructions
     

    • Combine the masa harina, warm water and salt, mixing thoroughly. Let mixture stand for five minutes.
    • Knead with your hands for about 3 minutes, moistening your hands with water as you work.
    • Form 8 small balls with the dough. Place each ball between 2 plastic bags and with a flat pot cover, flatten to ½ inch.
    • Remove the top plastic of 4 tortillas, sprinkle the cheddar cheese, queso fresco and mozarella cheese over the bottom of each tortilla. Add the refried beans evenly on top of the cheese, then top with chicharron. Top with another tortilla. Press the borders to close the pupusa so the filling does not come out.
    • Add the oil to a nonstick pan over medium heat. Place the pupusas in the pan, and cook about 3 minutes on each side, until a crust forms or they are golden brown. Serve warm with curtido.

    To make the curtidio:

    • Place all the ingredients in a bowl an mix well. Place in the fridge until ready to serve.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 405kcalCarbohydrates: 60gProtein: 18gFat: 10gSaturated Fat: 4gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gTrans Fat: 0.1gCholesterol: 25mgSodium: 805mgPotassium: 434mgFiber: 10gSugar: 7gVitamin A: 3017IUVitamin C: 44mgCalcium: 286mgIron: 6mg
    Keyword Pupusa salvadoreña, Pupusas
    Have you Tried this Recipe? Tag me Today!Mention @mycolombianrecipes and tag #mycolombianrecipes!
    Pupusas with CurtidoPin


    My friend Joan from Foodalogue is going on a virtual culinary tour “South of the Border” and the first stop was Mexico, so I joined her with these Chicken Tacos with Tomatillo Salsa.

    This week we are going to El Salvador and I am joining her with their national dish, Pupusas. I didn’t know anything about Salvadorian cuisine when Joan announced the itinerary, so I started searching for information about their culture and food. I learned that some Salvadorian dishes are similar to some Colombian traditional dishes. Such similarities can be seen in dishes such as fried cassava and fried sweet plantains.

    Pupusas are a thick tortilla made with masa de maiz, which is also used in Mexican tortillas and tamales. Traditionally, pupusas are stuffed with refried beans, Salvadorean cheese, chicharron( fried pork belly), loroco and other fillings like chicken, shrimp and more. They are served with curtido, a cabbage and carrot salad with a vinegar dressing. I made beans and cheese pupusas for my vegetarian husband and I made chicharron, beans and cheese pupusas for myself and they were both delicious with the curtido. I didn’t have Salvadorian cheese, so I used a mix of Queso fresco, mozarella and cheddar cheese.

    CurtidoPin

    pupusas1Pin

    More Main Dishes Recipes

    Lentils And Beef Stew ( Estofado De Lentejas Con Carne)Pasta With Walnuts And Vegetable SauceArepas De Papa (Potato Arepas)Hervido Llanero De Pollo (Colombian Chicken Soup From Los Llanos)Bacon-Wrapped Chicken With Tamarind Sauce
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    About Erica Dinho

    My name is Erica and I was born and raised in Colombia and now live in the northeastern United States with my husband and family. This blog was inspired by my grandmother, Mamita, who was an amazing traditional Colombian cook.

    Author Page →

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Divina

      January 18, 2010 at 8:57 am

      5 stars
      This is a mouthwatering dish. It's great to learn something new. 😀

      Reply
    2. Ben

      January 18, 2010 at 8:59 am

      5 stars
      Oh, I've heard about pupusas before, but I've never knew exactly what they were. Great contribution to the roundup! 😀

      Reply
    3. Sandra g

      January 18, 2010 at 9:33 am

      5 stars
      I've always wanted to learn to make pupusas, but though it was to complicated, but is not!, thank you Erica, can't wait to try them!

      Reply
    4. Joan Nova

      January 18, 2010 at 9:44 am

      5 stars
      They came out great, Erica. I think the Salvadorans were smart to pair curtido with pupusas because the acid of the salad cuts some of the fat from the cheese and chiccarones. 🙂 Thanks so much for participating.

      Reply
    5. Mari

      January 18, 2010 at 10:18 am

      5 stars
      These are delicious, I had hem in Massachusetts and hey were awesome! Thanks for the recipe!

      Reply
    6. Devon

      January 18, 2010 at 10:30 am

      5 stars
      There is a large El Salvadorian community in my neighborhood, so I can order these for take-out. I hope Ecuador is the next stop on the Foodalogue tour; I'm going there in a few weeks and know nothing about the food.

      Reply
    7. Erica

      January 18, 2010 at 10:33 am

      5 stars
      Thank you all for the comments 🙂 These pupusas are delicious!

      Reply
    8. Simply Life

      January 18, 2010 at 10:45 am

      5 stars
      Oh my, this looks like it's just oozing with delicious-ness 🙂

      Reply
    9. Angie@Angie's Recipes

      January 18, 2010 at 12:29 pm

      5 stars
      They look very much like Chinese pancakes. Yummy!

      Reply
    10. Ruth

      January 18, 2010 at 1:14 pm

      5 stars
      I would love to be able to make something like this, sounds so delicious!

      Reply
    11. Vinolia

      January 18, 2010 at 1:27 pm

      5 stars
      that's a yummy refreshing dish you've got there; love the curtido preparartion, must have bennn crunchy and munchy, lovely combination of veggies!! looks great with the filled pupusas!!!!

      Reply
    12. Christine @ Fresh Local and Best

      January 18, 2010 at 1:28 pm

      5 stars
      Gosh, it's been ages since I've had papusas! I love the warm crispy exterior and how filling these patties are.

      Reply
    13. grace

      January 18, 2010 at 2:55 pm

      5 stars
      oh, how delicious. and those beans make the perfect filler--i could probably eat my weight in these. 🙂

      Reply
    14. Faith

      January 18, 2010 at 3:26 pm

      5 stars
      I am really loving this virtual culinary tour! These look super tasty and just perfect with the curtido on the side!

      Reply
    15. Erica

      January 18, 2010 at 5:50 pm

      5 stars
      Thank you guys 🙂 I appreciate all your comments!

      Reply
    16. Velva

      January 18, 2010 at 7:23 pm

      5 stars
      Delicious!!! The Culinary Virtual Tour is an awesome idea.

      Reply
    17. Arlene

      January 18, 2010 at 7:28 pm

      5 stars
      I've seen the ready-made frozen Goya puposas, but I'm sure they're nothing like the real thing. Yours look amazing.

      Reply
    18. Sook

      January 18, 2010 at 7:44 pm

      5 stars
      Oh pupusas!! I've heard SO MUCH about it from my Dominican friend! I am bookmarking this recipe to try it sometime. Thanks!

      Reply
    19. monicajane

      January 18, 2010 at 8:21 pm

      5 stars
      yum...i've eaten pupusas many times in restaurants but now I live where there are no El Salvadoran restaurants...this looks very doable...and I'd love to make them...

      I need to find a source for the flour used.

      Reply
      • Erica

        January 18, 2010 at 8:35 pm

        5 stars
        Monica- You can find that flour at Latin markets, some brands are Maseca and Goya.

        Reply
    20. Natasha - 5 Star Foodie

      January 18, 2010 at 11:05 pm

      5 stars
      The pupusas and curtido sound excellent! I would love to try! I tried to make something for the tour but totally failed, so hope to join on the next stop.

      Reply
    21. Claudia Medeiros

      January 19, 2010 at 6:08 am

      5 stars
      Hi, Erica ! Delicious menu ! 😀

      I wish you a wonderful 2010, dear friend, full of all great things God can allow you 🙂

      xoxo

      Reply
    22. Carla

      January 19, 2010 at 8:22 am

      5 stars
      What a great recipe. I have almost a full bag of Masa Harina left from making arepas and need more recipes to use it for. Thanks for the great idea. Looks delicious.

      Reply
    23. anncoo

      January 19, 2010 at 9:23 am

      5 stars
      Never tried this before, looks very delicious!

      Reply
    24. Kim

      January 19, 2010 at 9:46 am

      5 stars
      The papusa look delicious. It all looks so homemade and delicious Erica. Great job.

      Reply
    25. Erica

      January 19, 2010 at 9:54 am

      5 stars
      Thank you everyone 🙂

      Reply
    26. Kitchen Butterfly

      January 19, 2010 at 2:31 pm

      5 stars
      How yummy are these.....I joined the tour - such a great idea!!!!!!

      Reply
    27. Oysterculture

      January 20, 2010 at 8:44 am

      5 stars
      I love pupusas - in the DC area there was a lot of pupusa restaurants, not so common here in SF, but you've inspired me to keep looking!

      Reply
    28. Soma

      January 24, 2010 at 12:06 pm

      5 stars
      I have never heard of this before. But it sounds so much like the stuffed breads we make except with wheat flour and different kind of stuffing. Thanks for sharing Erica.

      Reply
    29. Erica

      January 27, 2010 at 12:48 pm

      5 stars
      Thank you all for visiting my blog!

      Reply
    30. Sandra g

      February 13, 2010 at 10:43 pm

      5 stars
      Erica made the curtido and pupusas tonight, they were delicious!

      Reply
      • Erica

        February 14, 2010 at 8:05 am

        5 stars
        Sandra g- Thank you for your feedback!

        Reply
    31. lisa

      February 23, 2011 at 2:51 pm

      5 stars
      Hi Erica! I'm actually Salvadorian-American (Is it Salvadorean or Salvadoran?) and the pupusas that are most commonly made here are the "pupusas revueltas" or pupusas made from chicharron and queso. However, Salvadorian pupusas are more diverse, they can be made with cheese and beans, or cheese only, cheese and loroco (my least favorite, I don't like loroco) and shrimp and cheese or fish and cheese. I only stick to my pupusas revueltas and cheese pupusas. Another thing, you don't have to use Salvadorian cheese as a matter fact most people use mozarella cheese to make pupusas. Pupusas are similar to the arepas of Venezuela. They are delicious if made the right way. The curtido also has other ingredients besides vinegar, but my mom would know best since she makes it all the time.

      Reply
    32. Austin

      November 30, 2015 at 2:09 am

      5 stars
      I feel like an idiot but... what's the difference between arepas and pupusas?

      Reply
      • Erica Dinho

        November 30, 2015 at 9:53 am

        5 stars
        Pupusas are made with a different corn flour.

        Reply
    33. Allison Marie

      February 05, 2017 at 7:29 pm

      5 stars
      Thanks for sharing! My Salvadoran ex's family made pupusas every weekend, they were delicious. In addition to the encurtido they also served it with salsa roja, a tomato based sauce.

      Reply
    34. Kathryn

      April 26, 2022 at 7:54 am

      What is the ratio of flour to water for the pupusas recipe?

      Reply
    35. Linda

      August 17, 2022 at 1:08 pm

      What is the recipe to make the pupusas? I don’t see that recipe here.

      Reply
      • Erica Dinho

        August 18, 2022 at 4:30 pm

        It's fixed.

        Reply

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    Erica Dinho Author | My Colombian Recipes

    Hola and welcome to My Colombian Recipes. My name is Erica and I was born and raised in Colombia and now live in the northeastern United States with my husband and family. This blog was inspired by my grandmother, Mamita, who was an amazing traditional Colombian cook.

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