El Salvador’s thick stuffed corn flatbread street food is called a pupusa.
Pupusas are made from masa de maíz, a dough prepared from nixtamalized corn, and are traditionally filled before being cooked on a hot griddle called a comal. Common fillings include quesillo, a soft Salvadoran cheese, refried beans, chicharrón, or combinations of these ingredients.
Although pupusas are strongly associated with El Salvador, similar corn-dough foods exist elsewhere in Mesoamerica. The pupusa’s defining feature is that the filling is enclosed inside the dough rather than placed on top. They are commonly served with curtido, a lightly fermented cabbage slaw, and tomato salsa.
Pupusas are eaten at home, in restaurants, and from street stalls throughout El Salvador. They are also popular in Salvadoran communities abroad. A common mix-up is confusing a pupusa with an arepa: arepas are usually split or topped after cooking, while pupusas are stuffed before they reach the griddle.