Vegan Pupusas (Stuffed Flatbreads) with Beans and Cheese Filling, Salsa Roja and Curtido
It all began with curtido—a Central American cabbage slaw, most commonly found in Salvadoran cuisine. I hadn’t heard of it before, but one day, it was sitting in our office fridge: crunchy, lightly spiced, and so delicious that it made me want to dive deeper into the food culture of El Salvador.
When you discover a „new“ ingredient for yourself, it can become a gateway to an entirely new world—a world that has always existed but may have remained unfamiliar to you. And along with it, you stumble upon even more ingredients you’ve never cooked with before—how exciting!
So today, we’re taking our plates on a journey to El Salvador to explore their national dish, pupusas, which even has its own national holiday there. Pupusas are corn tortillas filled with a variety of ingredients. In a traditional "pupusería“—a restaurant specializing in pupusas—they are typically served with tomato salsa and a spiced, fermented white cabbage slaw. And this brings us full circle, right back to curtido. We didn’t invent today’s recipe but rather explored how we could make it vegan. The dough is naturally vegan, and there are plenty of plant-based filling options. To research and get inspired, I looked at this Food & Wine article and this video from Sol Cocina y más, to name a few.
Before We Start Cooking, Let’s Go Over the Key Components
The Dough
You only need three basic ingredients for the dough: corn flour and water are essential, and adding a pinch of salt is optional. It’s crucial to use Masa Harina, a white corn flour, rather than cornmeal (which is used for making polenta). You can order it online, but we found it at our local Asian grocery store. Traditional recipes sometimes differ on whether the water should be warm, cold, or even hot—I found that using warm water resulted in the smoothest dough.
The Filling
Classic fillings include chicken, fish, refried beans, cheese, avocado, or combinations of these ingredients. With beans and avocado, you already have two naturally vegan options, but for today’s recipe, I also added vegan mozzarella.
Salsa as a Side
Pupusas are served with salsa roja, which you can buy or make yourself. If fresh tomatoes aren’t in season, I recommend using whole canned tomatoes to ensure a rich tomato flavor. If you’re not a fan of spice, feel free to skip the jalapeño.
Curtido as a Side
And finally, we return to the ingredient that started it all: curtido—the crunchy, fermented cabbage slaw that we have sitting in a beautiful jar from edelsauer in our office fridge. With its oregano and cumin seasoning, it has a different flavor profile from traditional German sauerkraut but still carries that wonderful tangy note. Unlike sauerkraut, curtido is extra crunchy, as it is not heated during production and should not be heated later to preserve all the nutrients in the vegetables. The fermentation process makes the cabbage easier to digest and even has beneficial effects on gut health. Of course, curtido isn’t just a perfect side for today’s pupusas—you can also use it as a topping for your sandwiches. Be sure to check out edelsauer’s online shop for more fermented delicacies!
Vegan Pupusas (Stuffed Flatbreads) with Beans and Cheese Filling, Salsa Roja and Curtido
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 420 g (3 cups) pre-cooked white corn flour
- 720 ml (3 cups) warm water
- 1 tsp fine salt
For the filling:
- 1 onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 240 g (8.5 oz, drained weight) tinned black beans
- 125 g (4.5 oz) vegan mozzarella
- olive oil
- salt
- pepper
For the salsa roja:
- 3 large tomatoes
- 1 onion
- 2 garlic cloves
- 1 jalapeño (preferably fresh, otherwise from a jar)
- olive oil
- dried oregano
- salt
For serving:
- curtido (e.g. from edelsauer)
- fresh cilantro
Instructions
For the salsa, first, halve the tomatoes and quarter the onion. Sauté them together with garlic and jalapeño in a pan with a little olive oil until everything has strong roasted marks. Then blend all the ingredients until you get the desired level of chunkiness. Season with oregano and salt to taste.
For the filling, peel and finely dice the onion and garlic. Heat olive oil in a pan, sauté both, and season with salt. Add the canned black beans along with their liquid and let them simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated. Mash the beans while cooking until you get a thick, mushy bean paste. Tear the vegan mozzarella into small pieces with your hands and mix it with the beans. Season with salt and pepper.
For the dough, mix pre-cooked white cornmeal and salt in a bowl. Gradually add warm water and knead with your hands until the dough is no longer sticky and can be easily shaped.
Wet your hands with water. Take a portion of the dough, flatten it in one hand, place some filling in the center, then close the dough around it and shape it into a thick disc. Repeat with the remaining dough and filling.
Tip: If the dough tears while shaping, don’t worry too much. You can press it back together with your damp hands or patch it with a bit more dough. And even if the pupusas aren’t fully sealed, the filling shouldn’t leak out during frying since it’s not that liquid.
- Heat some vegeable oil in a non-stick frying pan and fry the pupusas from both sides until browned. Serve with salsa roja, curtido, and fresh cilantro.
