The simplest filling is a bit of shredded or sliced cheese, most commonly Guayanés, a soft, slightly sour fresh cheese similar to low-moisture mozzarella (you can use mozzarella if you’d like). Waxy-fleshed avocados similar to the fuerte cultivar we find in the U.S. (not to be confused with the creamy Hass avocado) are also a common filling, as is shredded chicken, black beans, chicharrón (crispy pork skin), shredded stewed beef, or cuts of grilled beef.
The version I have here is my own take on arepas rumberas—”Party Arepas,” so-called because they’re the kind of thing you want to eat after a night of drinking a bit too much cerveza and aguardiente. Made with pork shoulder stewed in stock with roasted chiles and onions, it’s topped with cilantro and dry crumbled fresh cheese (you can use Mexican queso fresco, queso blanco, or even feta). This is best accomplished by starting them in a skillet, then finishing them in an oven.
