Last summer at the Longmont Farmers Market, I stumbled across this random little stand selling pupusas, a traditional food rooted in El Salvador. Curious, I purchased a single pupusa and proceeded to consume the thing within minutes.
Holy delicious! It resembled a thick, stuffed pita, but the dough is made from corn masa, so it tasted more like a tamale. In the center was a tasty chicken and cheese combo. The stand had lots of flavors - bean + cheese, green chile + cheese, sweet corn + black bean, mushroom + leek, etc., and pupusas could also be purchased frozen, in packs of four.
I bought a couple packs, took them home, and made a few important discoveries:
1) Pupusas are sold completely cooked, so they really just need reheating. At the food stand, pupusas were pan-fried, but at home I cook them on a dry griddle (like a grilled cheese).
2) The chicken + cheese flavor is by far my favorite, but green chile + cheese and bean + cheese come in as close seconds. During the winter months, pupusas can be purchased at Whole Foods but the meat varieties aren't available, so it's good to have "second favorites"!
3) Pupusas are so versatile! I actually prefer them for breakfast, either plain or with an egg on top. Last summer, I even tried a fancy egg stack - pupusa on the bottom, fresh chopped greens and veggies in the middle, fried egg, and a cumin-sour cream drizzle on top. A- freaking-mazing.
4) At one low point last winter (when my pupusa stash had run out), I became desperate enough to try to making my own. Big mistake - a messy, frustrating experience that resulted in a really lame homemade version. Note to self: buy enough pupusa four packs in the fall to last ALL winter long!
5) Pupusas are relatively healthy, especially if you avoid frying them at home and stick with a griddling method. Tres Pupusas makes theirs gluten free, and with all-natural ingredients.
For those of you living in the Denver area, keep an eye out at your local farmers market for these little suckers. Tres Pupusas also sells their goods at Whole Foods, and I recently spied them at the Arvada Vitamin Cottage, too. http://trespupusas.com/
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