Gorditas were a favorite way to entertain in Juárez. My sister Clarissa had friends who would hire a woman to come to their house and make gorditas for parties. So I started doing them for my clients, with great success – people love watching a steady stream of fresh hot gorditas being produced. They can be served with any preferred filling – I suggest Picadillo dulce, Salpicón de Huachinango, Ropa Vieja, or Papas con Chorizo. In Guadalajara we used to see a version of gorditas, but very tiny, not a third of the size. They called them aspirinas — “aspirins”.

Gorditas (Little Fat Ones)

Gorditas were a favorite way to entertain in Juárez. My sister Clarissa had friends who would hire a woman to come to their house and make gorditas for parties. So I started doing them for my clients, with great success – people love watching a steady stream of fresh hot gorditas being produced. They can be served with any preferred filling – I suggest Picadillo dulce, Salpicón de Huachinango, Ropa Vieja, or Papas con Chorizo.

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Course Appetizer

Cuisine Mexican

Servings 8

Calories 133 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 2 cups masa harina
• 1/2 cup flour bleached, all purpose
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup grated aged cheese cotija or parmesan
• vegetable oil for frying

Instructions

 

• In a bowl, thoroughly combine the masa harina, flour,baking powder, and salt. Stirring with your hand, add the water, a little at atime, using only enough to produce a fairly soft, pliable but not sticky dough.Knead in the grated cheese.
• Divide the dough into 24 balls. Keeping the dough covered with aslightly damp cloth before and after shaping, flatten each ball and shape intoa round, cookie-like pastry about 2 ½ inches in diameter, with the edges slightly squared.(Wet your hands in a little water to make it easier to handle the dough).
• Heat the oil to 350°F in a deep-fryer or heavy, deep skillet overhigh heat. Add the gorditas in batches of 3 or 4 at a time, watching to be sure that the temperature remains constant. Cook until they are crisp and golden brown (1 to 2 minutes). When done, they will rise to the top and be slightly puffed. Remove and drain on paper towels.

  As each batch is done, split the hot gordita‘s partly open. Stuff each with about 1 tablespoon of the chosen filling. Garnish with a small amount of the cabbage, a touch of grated cheese, and a spoonful or so of pico de gallo.

Nutrition

Serving: 8eachCalories: 133kcalCarbohydrates: 28gProtein: 3gFat: 1gSaturated Fat: 1gSodium: 345mgPotassium: 83mgFiber: 2gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 61IUCalcium: 69mgIron: 3mg

Keyword cabbage, corn masa, picadillo

NOTE: Nutrition values are approximate and for informational purposes only. Values do not include optional or alternate ingredients, nor do they include the nutritional values for any secondary recipes that may be listed in the ingredients.