Arepa

🌱 Vegan

The arepa is a round, flattened patty made from ground maize dough, grilled, fried or baked, and central to the cuisine of Colombia and Venezuela. Its roots lie in the pre-Columbian indigenous peoples of northern South America, and today it is eaten at any hour, plain or stuffed.

History

The arepa dates back to pre-Columbian indigenous cultures of northern South America, long before the arrival of Europeans. Peoples who grew maize, the core of their diet, ground it and cooked the dough as cakes on hot surfaces. The name comes from the Cumanagoto word erepa, meaning maize, in a Carib language spoken on the eastern coast of what is now Venezuela. Records place arepas among the Muisca of the Colombian highlands about 3,000 years ago, and sources estimate roughly 2,800 years in Venezuela.

During the colonial and republican periods the arepa remained part of everyday eating in rural and urban communities, becoming an emblematic food of Colombia and Venezuela. Preparation moved from hand methods, using clay griddles and stone grinders, to precooked maize flour introduced in the mid-twentieth century. That flour is the base of today's industrial arepas, which are also sold in shops and supermarkets.

Culture

In Colombia and Venezuela the arepa accompanies breakfast, lunch and dinner, eaten plain, with butter or cheese, or stuffed with shredded beef, chicken, egg, avocado, black beans or chorizo. Many regional types exist, such as the paisa, boyacense, ocañera and santandereana, each with its own filling and shape. In Colombia the arepa is regarded as a national gastronomic symbol, recognised in a 2006 competition, and in the Paisa region it appears at nearly every meal. The Colombian Arepa Festival is held in several cities.

Beyond these two countries, related preparations such as the Mexican gordita, the Salvadoran pupusa and Andean maize tortillas share a similar cooking tradition on a griddle. Bolivia, Costa Rica and Puerto Rico have their own versions. Today arepas are found in markets, cafés, street stalls and home kitchens.

Trivia

Necklaces of arepas. In Colombia, arepas have been strung into necklaces and placed around the necks of honoured guests as a sign of praise.

Precooked flour. Precooked maize flour for arepas was introduced in the mid-twentieth century and is now the basis of most industrial arepas.