ExploFood · North America
What to eat in El Salvador
Five dishes to try in El Salvador, the most typical first. One is vegetarian.
Five dishes to try in El Salvador
Pupusa
Thick corn tortilla stuffed with cheese, beans or pork and griddled.
How to have it: Order a few at a pupusería in the evening with curtido slaw and tomato salsa.
Tamales
Corn dough with chicken or pork, wrapped in banana leaves and steamed.
How to have it: Popular for Sunday breakfast and holidays; sold door to door and at markets.
Sopa de pata
Hearty soup of cow's feet and tripe with corn, yuca and plantain.
How to have it: A weekend comfort soup at market comedores; squeeze lime and add chilli.
Yuca con chicharrón
Boiled or fried cassava topped with crispy pork, curtido and tomato sauce.
How to have it: Found at market stalls and fairs; a filling snack at any time of day.
Horchata
Cold drink of ground morro seeds, rice and spices with milk or water.
How to have it: Salvadoran horchata tastes nutty and spiced; order it with pupusas.
What to eat next door
Plan the trip
Questions
What food is El Salvador famous for?
Pupusa (thick corn tortilla stuffed with cheese, beans or pork and griddled) comes first on our list, followed by Tamales, Sopa de pata, Yuca con chicharrón and Horchata.
What is the national dish of El Salvador?
Ask ten people and you get several answers. The dish we put first for El Salvador is Pupusa: thick corn tortilla stuffed with cheese, beans or pork and griddled. Order a few at a pupusería in the evening with curtido slaw and tomato salsa.
Which dishes in El Salvador are vegetarian?
One of the five on this page is vegetarian as usually made: Horchata. Recipes vary, so ask about stock, lard or fish sauce.
What street food should I try in El Salvador?
Pupusa (thick corn tortilla stuffed with cheese, beans or pork and griddled) and Yuca con chicharrón (boiled or fried cassava topped with crispy pork, curtido and tomato sauce).
What do people drink in El Salvador?
Horchata: cold drink of ground morro seeds, rice and spices with milk or water.
How reliable is this list?
The dishes are hand-picked from general knowledge in the Explo app, where you can also tick off the ones you have tried. Recipes vary by region and by family, so take it as a starting point.
Keep exploring
Practical · 3 min readEat your way through a country: how to find the national dishesFood is the fastest way into a place. How to find a country's signature dishes, order them well, eat safely and keep a record of what you have tried.
Planning · 4 min readHow to choose the best time to visit anywhereWeather is only one part of it. Learn how to weigh seasons, crowds, prices and events, with real examples of the best months for popular destinations.
Planning · 4 min readHow to build a travel bucket list you'll actually useTurn a long wish list into a short plan: sort places by ease, season and effort, pick your next three, and keep the list alive after every trip.- Country guidesCountry guidesBest months, weather, holidays and plugs for every country.
- Free toolWhere can I go?Every country your passport opens, sorted by how easy it is.
Tick off every dish you try in El Salvador
Explo is a free app: light up the countries you have visited, keep the dishes you have tried, and check visa rules, weather and holidays before you go.
Get ExploDishes are hand-picked from general knowledge in the Explo app, with links to Wikipedia. Recipes and names vary by region.