Pupusas de Arroz de Olocuilta con Queso y Loroco
The Art of the Pupuseada: Gathering Around the Comal
Tuesday at six, with the cast-iron comal smoking over the burner, mixing cold water into rice-flour masa leaves you with a dry lump that shatters and cracks under your palms. The essential technique is agua hirviendo a borbollón—a rolling boil that partially cooks the starches, yielding a beautifully flexible masa. Work the dough between oiled hands, folding chopped loroco buds into the center, packing the pocket with melty cheese spiked with a touch of cornstarch to prevent tragic blowouts on the griddle. Slap the disk onto the metal, let the exterior brown, and eat it right off the heat while the cheese hisses.
Ingredients
- frozen or jarred loroco1 cup
- low-moisture mozzarella cheese2 1/2 cup
- heavy cream2 tbsp
- cornstarch1 tsp
- kosher salt1 1/4 tsp
- white rice flour3 cup
- neutral oil3 tbsp
- water3 1/2 cup
- cold water2 tbsp
Method
- 01
Knead the cheese and loroco filling into a cohesive paste.
In a mixing bowl, combine the shredded mozzarella, chopped loroco, heavy cream, the cornstarch, and a quarter teaspoon of the salt. Get your hands in there and knead the mixture for a minute until it clumps together into a playdough-like ball, then divide into eight to ten small balls and place them in the fridge to chill.
- 02
Hydrate the rice flour with rolling boiling water.
In a large, heat-proof bowl, whisk together the rice flour and the remaining teaspoon of salt. Make a well in the center, add one tablespoon of the neutral oil, and carefully pour in three cups of the boiling water. Don't be a hero and use your hands yet; use a sturdy wooden spoon to rigorously mix the flour and water until shaggy. If dry pockets remain, add up to a half cup more of boiling water.
- 03
Knead the resting dough until perfectly smooth and elastic.
Allow the dough to sit for three to five minutes until it is just cool enough to handle safely. While it is still quite warm, knead the dough vigorously inside the bowl with your hands for about three minutes until it becomes entirely smooth and free of lumps, then cover with a damp towel and let it rest for fifteen minutes to fully hydrate.
- 04
Portion and flatten the dough into shallow cups using lubricated hands.
In a small bowl, mix the remaining two tablespoons of oil with the cold water to keep your palms constantly lubricated. Grab a golf-ball-sized piece of dough, roll it perfectly smooth, and pat it between your oiled palms into a quarter-inch thick disc, pressing your thumb into the center to create a small bowl.
- 05
Seal the cheese filling inside the dough.
Place a chilled ball of the cheese and loroco filling inside the dough cup. Gently coax the dough up the sides of the cheese ball, pinching it completely shut at the top to seal it, and pinch off any thick excess dough at the seam.
- 06
Gently pat the stuffed ball into a flat disc.
With oiled hands, gently pat the stuffed ball back and forth between your palms, rotating it slightly with each pat, until it forms a flat disc about four to five inches across. If a small tear appears, patch it seamlessly with a tiny scrap of extra dough.
- 07
Cook on a hot griddle until deeply golden and blistered.
Heat a cast-iron skillet or heavy griddle over medium-high heat and lightly brush with oil. Place the pupusas on the hot griddle and let them cook entirely undisturbed for four to five minutes to form a crust, then flip with a wide spatula and cook for another four to five minutes until the exterior is deeply golden brown with darker, charred spots.
Notes
Never use warm tap water for the dough.
Because rice flour has no gluten, rolling boiling water is mandatory to pre-gelatinize the starches. Anything cooler will yield an unworkable, brittle mess that falls apart on the griddle.
The secret to the filling is cornstarch and temperature.
Matching the firmness of the refrigerated cheese paste to the dough is what keeps the pupusas from tearing during shaping. The cornstarch acts as a binder to lock up the moisture and fat of American mozzarella so it won't explode through the delicate rice dough wall.
Sourcing the right rice flour is non-negotiable.
Look for Central American brands like Mama Lycha or standard white rice flour like Bob's Red Mill. Never under any circumstances use Asian glutinous or sweet rice flour, or you'll end up with an impossibly sticky paste.