Arepitas de maiz (cornmeal fritters) is a delectable side dish that can also be served as party food and is surprisingly easy and quick to make. With the lovely aroma and taste of aniseed, and a subtle sweet taste to contrast its savoriness, it makes for a lovely little treat.
By - Reviewed: . Original: Jan 24, 2003
Why we ❤️ it
For such a simple side dish, this has some complex tones and is quite the morish dish.
Aside from the aniseed, I think the other key ingredient is the little bit of sugar in it. This does not produce sweet cornmeal fritters; the sweetness is very subtle, and it just works well.
What's arepita de maíz?
Arepitas de maiz are small round fritters made in the Dominican Republich with yellow cornmeal.
It can often be found even in the most humble Dominican eatery as part of el plato del día --an inexpensive Dominican lunch meal-- and on the dining table of countless Dominican homes on any given day.
Cornmeal fritters ingredients and arepitas de maíz.
Serving suggestions
These are served as a side dish with our lunch. You can serve them with La Bandera Dominican lunch meal, and they go great with any of our locrios.
Though not a traditional way of serving it, you can also serve them as an appetizer with a dip. I recommend our mayoketchup sauce, or creamy avocado dip.
Top tips
- Aniseed: The secret to making The World's Best Cornmeal Fritters™. It's this little seed that packs a potent flavor.
- Sugar: A bit of sugar is also added to the arepitas. Don't worry that they'll be sweet, it's just a little touch, but you may leave it out if you wish.
- Resting: Letting the mixture rest helps the cornmeal rehydrate better and produces a more moist, less gritty fritter.
- Cornmeal: The cornmeal that we use in the DR is grittier than wheat flour but finer than polenta (you can read more about harina de maíz). If you can't find something like that, you could get away with using polenta, but you may need to add an extra bit of liquid. Fry the first one, try and go from there. Be mindful that it will not result in the exact texture that we're used to.
About our recipe
Cornmeal fritters are popular throughout the country, and while there may be small differences in each family's corn fritter recipe, the differences are just that: small. They should taste very similar to each other.
This recipe yields 4 servings, of about 3 arepitas per person.
This was one of my mom's favorite dishes. You can imagine that I have eaten more than my lifetime allotment of arepitas de maíz. My mom could make them with her eyes closed and one hand tied behind her back, and so can I now.
But if you have a different way to make these, I'd love to hear about it too. Share it in the comments!
Video
Recipe
This awesome free recipe contains Amazon affiliate links, we receive a small commission from any purchase you make at no extra cost to you. Thanks for your support!
Arepitas de Maiz [Video+Recipe] Cornmeal Fritters
Ingredients
- 1 cup cornmeal
- ¼ cup milk (whole or skim), + 2 tablespoons
- 2 egg (large)
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon aniseed
- 1½ teaspoon sugar (white, granulated)
- 1 cup oil for frying
Instructions
1. Mixing ingredients
Mix cornmeal, milk, eggs, salt, aniseed, and sugar.Cover and let it rest in the fridge for an hour (this step is optional but recommended, see tips above the recipe)
2. Frying
- In a frying pan heat the oil over medium heat. Pour the mix one spoonful at a time into pan, making small thick pancakes. Fry and turn till golden brown on both sides.
3. Serving
Serve hot. See suggestions above the recipe.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is calculated automatically based on ingredients listed. Please consult your doctor if you need precise nutrition information.
Want to save this recipe?
Enter your email & I'll send it to your inbox. ❤️ Plus, get great weekly recipes from me!
More Dominican fritters
If you want to try other Dominican fritters you can't miss Arepitas de yuca, our marvelous cassava fritters, similar to Arepitas de maíz. I love Arañitas de plátano too.
- Learn more about me and the humans behind this blog.
- Share your questions and comments about this post.
- Subscribe to receive our recipes and articles by email.
- Please stay in touch! Follow us on:
