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Venezuelan Arepas Reina Pepiada {Chicken Avocado Filling}

overhead shot of baking sheet covered with scattered golden brown arepas, some cut in half and stuffed with chicken and avocado, limes, and cilantro
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5 from 6 reviews

Crispy golden arepas are fried, finished in the oven, then stuffed with a traditional Reina Pepiada filling - a creamy, sharp chicken and avocado mix.

Ingredients

Scale

AREPAS INGREDIENTS

  • 2 cups Masarepa (precooked corn flour) (*See note)
  • 2.5 cups Water (*See note)
  • 1 tablespoon Salt

MIXTURE INGREDIENTS

  • 2 Chicken breasts, boiled and shredded. (*See note)
  • 3 tablespoons Mayonnaise
  • 1/2 Green paprika (green paprika = green pepper. This is Yessica's addition to the original recipe)
  • 1 medium Onion
  • 2 Garlic cloves
  • 2 ripe Avocados (1 for the mixture and 1 to decorate)
  • 1 cup frozen Petit-pois (*See note)
  • Salt and pepper
  • Cilantro (chopped, just a little bit)
  • 1 Lime (use the juice of the whole lime)
  • Olive oil or any other vegetable oil

Instructions

MAKE THE DOUGH

  1. In a large bowl combine the water and salt.
  2. Add the Masa Arepa, mixing by hand. It is important to knead quickly to avoid any lumps.
  3. When ready, the mixture should be homogeneous, soft, and not sticky at all. (Note from Becky: When making Yessica's recipe, I had to add a little more of the precooked cornmeal to achieve this texture.)
  4. Let the dough rest for about 10 minutes covered with a damp cotton towel to prevent it from drying.

PAN FRY

  1. Preheat the oven to 250 C / 500 F. You'll finish cooking the arepas in the oven.
  2. Preheat a pan or skillet on medium-low heat and add a little bit of oil to prevent the arepas from sticking to the pan.
  3. With the dough, make balls of approximately 40g (a little larger than a golf ball) and flatten them into a disc. The arepa needs to be thick enough that it can be sliced and stuffed.
  4. Seal the arepas on the pan for 2 minutes each side, or until you have a nice golden crust.
  5. Then move them to a preheated oven at 250°C and bake them for about 8 – 10 minutes.
  6. You can cook them to completion in the pan, but the oven trick is effective to make sure they’re not raw and always on point

CHICKEN/AVOCADO INSTRUCTIONS

  1. Grab a pan and add a little bit of olive oil, add the onion and green pepper finely chopped in small pieces with the garlic minced, and fry them on a medium-low temperature until the onion is translucent.
  2. Peel one avocado and blend it together (with a hand blender or mixer) with the onions and garlic mix.
  3. Add the 3 spoons of mayonnaise, coriander, and the juice of the lime.
  4. Once the avocado sauce is ready, add it to the shredded chicken and mix it until homogeneous.
  5. For the last touches add the cup of petit-pois, and the 2nd avocado chopped in little cubes, mix and add salt and pepper to taste.

ASSEMBLY AND SERVING

  1. With a small, serrated knife, slice through the middle halfway, trying to make sure that the bottom part is not sliced open (fillings will fall out otherwise).
  2. Stuff generously with the chicken avocado or your favorite filling (be generous) and serve immediately!
  3. Warning, arepas can be addictive, please enjoy carefully.

Notes

  • Make sure you listen to Yessica's episode, Venezuelan Arepas Coming To Us From Holland on The Storied Recipe Podcast while you make her recipe!
  • You can choose white or yellow Masarepa. Both will be successful in creating the proper texture and flavor. The white will create a much paler arepa compared to the yellow.
  • To my inexperienced hands - or perhaps because of differing humidity in my kitchen - I found that I had to add more cornmeal (quite a bit more, in fact) to create the texture that Yessica describes. If you, like me, are new to making arepas and you don't want to make an extra large batch, you may want to reverse the process: Mix the arepa flour & salt, then slowly add water to the proper texture. You may not get to 2.5 cups of water. Next time, use these proportions and mix in the traditional order (by adding flour to the water).
  • Although the peas are a key ingredient to traditional Reina Pepiada filling, I omitted them for our family. Always keep in mind that you can adjust recipes to your own tastes, preferences, and needs. Feel free to cook with that freedom!
  • I prefer grilled thighs to boiled chicken breasts. You can also use rotisserie chicken.

Nutrition

Find it online: https://thestoriedrecipe.com/venezuelan-arepas-reina-pepiada/