Salvadoran pupusa
Photo: JMRAFFi · CC BY-SA 4.0

History

The Salvadoran pupusa is a thick masa cake (pupusa) stuffed before griddling with cheese, refried beans, chicharron (ground pork) or loroco flower, served with pickled cabbage (curtido) and a thin tomato salsa. Los Angeles is home to the largest Salvadoran population outside El Salvador, concentrated along Pico and Vermont in Westlake and Pico-Union, where Salvadoran women started selling pupusas from kitchens and storefronts in the 1980s during the civil war diaspora. Sarita's Pupuseria inside Mercado La Paloma has been making them since 2003 and remains the city benchmark.

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Common allergens: Dairy

Make it at home

Yield 8Hands-on 45 minTotal 1 hrDifficulty Intermediate

Ingredients

  • 300g masa harina (instant corn flour)
  • 360ml warm water
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 200g mozzarella or queso fresco, grated
  • 150g refried black beans (optional)
  • 100g cooked chicharron, finely chopped (optional)
  • Vegetable oil, for the griddle
  • Curtido (pickled cabbage), to serve
  • Thin tomato salsa, to serve

Method

  1. Mix masa harina, salt and warm water in a bowl until a soft, smooth dough forms. Cover and rest 10 minutes.
  2. Divide the dough into 8 balls about 70g each.
  3. Flatten one ball into a 10cm disc. Spoon a tablespoon of cheese (plus beans or chicharron if using) into the centre. Bring the edges up around the filling, pinch to seal, then flatten gently back into a 10cm thick disc.
  4. Heat a comal or heavy pan over medium-high. Brush with a film of oil.
  5. Cook the pupusa 3 to 4 minutes per side until golden and crisp at the edges and the cheese inside is fully melted.
  6. Serve with curtido (lightly fermented cabbage slaw) and a small bowl of warm tomato salsa to spoon over.

Tip from the editors. Hands shouldn't be dry: a small bowl of water nearby keeps the dough pliable and stops it cracking when you fold it around the filling.

Where to eat salvadoran pupusa

Salvadoran pupusa in Los Angeles

Sarita's Pupuseria ★ 4.7

$ Californian

Sarita's Pupuseria inside Grand Central Market, Los Angeles griddles Salvadoran pupusas to order from the same family-run counter since 2003. Cash and card.

TrySalvadoran pupusa with curtido

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