AI-generated photo.
Colombian · Colombia
Arepa
Also called arepa
Arepa, a dish from Colombia.
Pai editors’ mark 4 / 5
Plan, list, and collections
Arepa is cooked in Colombia as its own dish. Cook corn cakes on a dry pan until they blister and the center is tender, then split and fill them. Amounts are scaled for four from foods this library can count, so the nutrition panel comes from those ingredients.
Health
How this plate sits
Counted from the ingredient table. The score, richness, and badges describe one serving as written. The ring and the nutrient table follow the serving count above. This is general information, not medical advice.
63
Health score
Balanced
Moderate
Richness
Gentle
Light to very rich, from fat, saturated fat, sugar, and the cream or butter in the plate.
- Protein 10%
- Carbs 41%
- Fat 48%
Watch · Diabetes-friendly
It misses a gentler mark: sugar, fiber, the starch mix, or the richness of the plate.
Watch · Heart-friendly
Saturated fat, cholesterol, sodium, or fiber keeps this off the heart-friendly list.
Watch · Weight loss
Calories, protein, or richness make this a fuller plate than a light day wants.
Watch · High protein
Protein is about 8 g, under the 25 g mark.
Watch · Low sodium
About 541 mg of sodium, above the 450 mg mark.
Suits · Gluten-free
No wheat, barley, or rye in the required list. Still read labels on sauces and oats.
Watch · Dairy-free
A milk ingredient is in the required list.
Suits · Vegetarian
No meat, poultry, fish, or shellfish in the required list.
Suits · Pregnancy
No alcohol, liver, or caffeine in the required list. Cook meat, eggs, and seafood through.
Watch · Gentle when sick
Fat or sugar is high for a day when appetite is low.
Suits · Kid-friendly
Heat stays mild, and the required list has no alcohol or liver.
Calories by ingredient
Each number is that ingredient’s table calories, split across the servings.
- Polenta145 kcal
- Cheddar82 kcal
- Unsalted butter72 kcal
Glycemic load
Estimated glycemic load for this count: 16.9. The bands come from the ingredient table.
Portion
One serving, as written, is about 298 kcal.
Allergens. Milk
Make it healthier
Use half the butter
Half the butter grams stay out of the plate. The new figure subtracts those grams on the ingredient table.
About 262 kcal after the change.
Use half the salt
Salt adds no calories in this table, so the calorie figure stays put while sodium falls.
About 298 kcal after the change.
Use half the kosher salt and brighten the plate with lemon or lime.
The same dish with less sodium. This is the kitchen note. A new calorie figure is shown only when the grams can be replayed on the ingredient table.
Low confidence: no new calorie figure. The grams cannot be replayed on the table.
Stir in a handful of spinach or cabbage near the end.
More fiber without a new sauce. This is the kitchen note. A new calorie figure is shown only when the grams can be replayed on the ingredient table.
Low confidence: no new calorie figure. The grams cannot be replayed on the table.
| Nutrient | Amount | % daily value |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 298 kcal | 15% |
| Protein | 8 g | 16% |
| Carbohydrate | 31.3 g | 11% |
| Fiber | 2.9 g | 10% |
| Total sugars | 0.3 g | 1% |
| Fat | 16.4 g | 21% |
| Saturated fat | 9.1 g | 45% |
| Cholesterol | 42 mg | 14% |
| Sodium | 541 mg | 24% |
| Potassium | 133 mg | 3% |
| Calcium | 152 mg | 12% |
| Iron | 1.4 mg | 8% |
| Magnesium | 58 mg | 14% |
| Zinc | 1.5 mg | 14% |
| Vitamin A | 136 mcg | 15% |
| Vitamin C | 0 mg | 0% |
| Vitamin D | 0 mcg | 0% |
| Vitamin E | 0.6 mg | 4% |
| Vitamin K | 1 mcg | 1% |
| Thiamin (B1) | 0.2 mg | 13% |
| Riboflavin (B2) | 0.2 mg | 13% |
| Niacin (B3) | 1.5 mg | 9% |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.1 mg | 8% |
| Folate | 15 mcg | 4% |
| Vitamin B12 | 0.2 mcg | 10% |
These figures follow the USDA-linked ingredient table where a safe FoodData Central row exists. Optional ingredients are left out. A few pantry items still use Pai's curated numbers because no close USDA row was found. 50 g is the daily value for added sugar. This figure is total sugar, including fruit and milk.
- A serving stays under about 420 calories, so it can sit inside an ordinary day.
- Saturated fat is moderate to high. Worth noticing if cholesterol is on your mind.
Pai shares general nutrition information for everyday cooking. It is not medical advice, a diagnosis, or a treatment plan. Health labels are estimates from reference ingredient data and do not account for your lab results, medications, or how a food is absorbed. If you are pregnant, managing diabetes, cholesterol, an allergy, or any illness, use this as a menu of ideas and follow the clinician who knows you. In an emergency, call local emergency services.
Equipment
- Oven
- Scale
- Mixing bowls
- Parchment
- The pan in the method
- Cooling rack
- Skewer or toothpick
- Oven thermometer
Ingredients
Each line is stored in grams. The second amount is the other system, so a cup measure and the gram weight stay together.
Polenta1 cup160 g
Water3.5 cups800 ml
Kosher salt1 tsp4 g
Unsalted butter3 tbsp40 g
Cheddar0.75 cup80 g
The first amount follows the unit toggle. The second is the other system. Both follow the serving count.
If you need to swap
- Use half the kosher salt and brighten the plate with lemon or lime.. The same dish with less sodium.
- Stir in a handful of spinach or cabbage near the end.. More fiber without a new sauce.
Method
AI-generated photo.
1Set the oven to 400°F / 204°C and leave it for 15 minutes so the rack is actually hot. Weigh polenta, water, kosher salt, unsalted butter, cheddar. Arepa is cooked in Colombia as its own dish. Cook corn cakes on a dry pan until they blister and the center is tender, then split and fill them. Amounts are scaled for four from foods this library can count, so the nutrition panel comes from those ingredients.
Heat oven 15 min
AI-generated photo.
2Line the pan with parchment. If this is Arepa, a bare pan is the usual reason the first slice sticks. Butter only the parchment, not a pool of fat.
AI-generated photo.
3Stir the dry ingredients in one bowl and the wet ingredients in another. Combine them until the batter or dough for Arepa is even, with no dry streaks and no long mixing after that.
AI-generated photo.
4Scrape the mixture into the pan and level the top. Arepa bakes evenly only when the center is not a dome of unmixed batter.
- 🇨🇴 ColombiaSouth Americacolombia-arepa-step-4
Arepa, step 5
Step 5 · Bake about 25 min
5Bake at 400°F / 204°C until this is true: The crust of Arepa is deep gold and the center sounds hollow when tapped. The crumb is set, not wet or gummy. Start checking at 25 minutes. Opening the door early drops the heat.
Bake about 25 min
- 🇨🇴 ColombiaSouth Americacolombia-arepa-step-5
Arepa, step 6
Step 6 · Cool 10 min
6Cool Arepa in the pan for 10 minutes, then move it to a rack. Cutting while it is steaming collapses the crumb. Film Arepa in this shot order and no other: herbs cut in at the end; a grill grate just before the food lands; beans or grains tender at the edge of a bite; the lid lifted for one quick look. Slate words for the editor: vapor, linen, apron, peel, honeyed, crisp, ripple, harbor, violet, ladle.
Cool 10 min
How you know it is done
The crust of Arepa is deep gold and the center sounds hollow when tapped. The crumb is set, not wet or gummy.
If it goes wrong
- Arepa looks done on top and is still raw in the center. Trust the cue in the method, not the color alone. Give it a few more minutes and check the center.
- Arepa spread, sank, or turned out dry. Measure by weight next time, heat the oven fully, and stop when the doneness cue appears rather than when the timer ends.
Storage
Cool Arepa completely. Keep it covered at room temperature for 2 days, or wrap and freeze for a month. Refrigerate custard, cream, and fresh-fruit fillings the same day and eat them within 3 days.
How this dish helps your daily life
- Arepa is cooked by saute in Colombia. The steps follow that technique, including the timing above.
- Egg or dairy is in the count, so the fat and protein on the panel include them.
Notes
Pregnancy. There is no alcohol in the required list. Wash produce and use pasteurized dairy if you add it.
Allergens in the required list: Milk.
Your stars and note
Pai shares general nutrition information for everyday cooking. It is not medical advice, a diagnosis, or a treatment plan. Health labels are estimates from reference ingredient data and do not account for your lab results, medications, or how a food is absorbed. If you are pregnant, managing diabetes, cholesterol, an allergy, or any illness, use this as a menu of ideas and follow the clinician who knows you. In an emergency, call local emergency services.