Chicken and Cheese Pupusas
Pupusas are the national dish of El Salvador. They are made of masa flour dough, traditionally stuffed with beans, cheese, chicharones, or chicken, then flattened into a disc shape and fried. These are a lot of work to make. That is why it’s best to make a large batch of them to freeze down.
Equipment
- tortilla press
- food processor
Ingredients
Pupusa Filling
- 2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs diced into small cubes
- 3 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 medium white onion diced
- 6 garlic cloves minced
- 1 red bell pepper diced
- 3 green onion finely chopped
- 2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp paprika
- 2 tsp mexican oregano
- 1/2 cup queso or cheddar cheese grated
- 1/2 cup queso fresco crumbling cheese
Pupusa Dough
- 8 cups masa flour
- 1 tbsp salt
- warm water
Pupusa Toppings
- shredded cabbage or lettuce
- real Mexican sour cream
- sliced tomato
- cilantro
- hot sauce
Instructions
Pupusa Fillling
- Heat up cooking oil in a large sauté pan over medium high heat. Add in the onions, red bell pepper, and green onion. Sauté for 5 minutes.
- Add in the chicken and garlic. Season with salt, pepper, paprika, and Mexican oregano.
- Cook for 8-10 minutes until the chicken is cooked through. Let cool and set aside.
- Add the chicken filling to a food processor. Give it a couple pulses; just enough to chop it up a little more. Don’t over pulse it. You do not want a paste.
- Add both of the cheeses to the chicken mix.
- Mix thoroughly. Put in the refrigerator until it is chilled and ready for use.
Pupusas Dough
- Mix together the masa flour and salt. Slowly add enough warm water until it forms a dough; similar to the feeling of firm mashed potatoes. Roll into 2” balls. Cover with wet paper towel until ready to use.
Chicken and a Cheese Pupusas Assembly
- Take a single dough ball and place on the center of a tortillas press.
- Press it down until it is 1/2’ thick. Remove and do it again to another dough ball.
- Add a heaping tablespoon of the filling to the center of the pressed dough.
- Place the other pressed dough over the filling; giving it a slight crimp around the edges.
- Press it down until it is a little more than a 1/2” thick.
- Layer these in between wax patty paper sheets so they don’t stick together. My recipe yields about 20 pupusas. Store whatever you don’t cook in freezer bags.
- Heat up 1 tbsp of cooking oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Add in a pupusa.
- Cook for 4 minutes a side.
- Serve over shredded cabbage or lettuce. Top with real Mexican sour cream, thinly sliced tomatoes, cilantro, and a hot sauce to your liking.
