They are so important. Well, the other day I had one and it was a load of fun. The national food of Salvadorans is the pupusa, pronounced poo-poo-suh. (don't get grossed out!)
So what is a pupusa?
Well...according to Wikipedia a pupusa is a thick, hand-made tortilla made from corn. It is filled with cheese and refried beans. They are served with lightly fermented cabbage slaw (curtido) and a tomatoe based sauce.
One rule about pupusas.....you can never eat them with a fork. What an insult.
Want to hear a funny story?
No?
Want to read a funny story?
OK!!!
Well my 2nd day here in El Salvador we went to a Pupuseria(place to eat pupusas!) I ordered 3 and waited patienlty for them to be cooked. When they came out I then asked the lady for a fork. She looked at me like I was an idiot. I returned the look. I mean.....how am I supposed to eat this. Then the other missionaries I was with began to laugh at me and say.....We dont use forks. (culture fail number 1)
I was in charge of making the tomato sauce. You boil tomatoes and throw in some onion, garlic, and oregano. Blend it and serve.
So you have your ingredients which are Maza(corn/flour meal), refried beans, and cheese.
You slab a little oil on your hands and grab a chunk of Maza and begin to flatten it out into a circle.
There is a skill.
A skill that I do not possess.
Then you grap a scoop of beans and cheese...no you don't eat them...
...you stuff it in the round tortilla and cover it.
Pinch off the excess Masa....
flatten it back out like so..so that it is stuffed.
Throw it on the griddle to cook!
Serve it up with the salsa and curtido and a coke!
Us North Americans like to add a little Tony C.'s ....(to everything)
Enjoy a Pupusa night with friends!
Naun, Kristal, and Marcela!
We had a great night a fun and fellowship with friends. I will make you pupusas when I come back to Memphis!
WORD OF THE DAY: comida buena
LITERAL TRANSLATION: good food
HOW I SEE IT: Pupusas!
