For Valentine’s, make this wonderful arepa with spicy chicken and share it with someone you love.
By Carolyng Gomes
Valentine’s Day is coming up, and it’s a special day indeed, but so are all of the other days you spend with your loved ones so don’t forget to share an arepa, full of heart and spicy goodness, with your special someone.
Arepa Bread with Spicy Chicken
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 2 1x
Ingredients
Scale
Arepa:
- 1 1/2 cups of P.A.N., pre-cooked white corn meal
- 2 cups of warm water
- ½ teaspoon of salt
For added flavor:
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp black pepper
- ¼ cup shredded cheese of choice
Pollo picante:
- 2 chicken breasts
- 1 green, red or yellow sweet pepper cut into strips
- ½ medium onion
- 1 TB garlic
- 1 tsp olive oil
- ½ – 1 ½ tsp of red pepper flakes
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp paprika
- ½ cup red wine
- Salt to taste
Instructions
Arepa:
- Preheat oven to 350 F. In a bowl stir to combine water and salt.
- Continue stirring and slowly add cornmeal and remaining flavor ingredients.
- Continue stirring, then kneading, for about 3 minutes until dough is soft and smooth. Form into desired shapes with thickness no greater than ½ inch.
- Place an arepa on a medium heat pan.
- Do not crowd the arepas. Make them smaller to fit in your pan or have more than one pan on the stove for this step if making many arepas.
- Flip when a slight golden crust as formed on the underside of arepa. Cook for an additional 3 minutes, until similar crust as formed on other side.
- Transfer arepas to wire rack of oven and cook for an additional 10 minutes.
- Tap arepas. If they sound hollow they are ready for consumption. Otherwise leave the arepas in the oven for an additional 5 minutes.
- Remove arepas, slice in half like a pita and stuff with your favorite fillings, like pollo picante!
Pollo picante:
- Add olive oil to pan, between medium and medium high setting. Follow with garlic and onion. Cook until onion is translucent.
- Add chicken breast. Add pepper strips and remaining spices to chicken. When the chicken has caramelized flip to remaining side.
- Add half of the wine to the pan. When all of the liquid has evaporated add remaining wine, lower heat to the lowest setting and cover. Allow to cook for 5 minutes or until chicken is fully cooked.
- Put chicken breast, vegetables and pan drippings in a bowl. Using two forks pull the breasts apart until they resemble large shreds.
- Cup open warm arepas, stuff with pollo picante and serve.
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 30 mins
I’ve been obsessed with arepas since seeing them on a food show and I have never been able to find them where I live. I doubt my home made would be the same but I’m excited that I can at least give them a try!