Papas Rellenas
Next up in the A-Z Potato series, I am casually popping over to South America to make the delicious Papas Rellenas – otherwise known as gorgeous stuffed, deep-fried potato meaty balls. It’s got cottage pie vibes and I’m here for that.
Again, it’s one of those recipes where each country has their own take on it but I’ve opted for the Colombian version which is traditionally eaten for breakfast. I basically wanted an excuse to add spuds to yet another meal so byeeeee Weetabix, you’ve been replaced. Not even sad about it.
To create the vessel for your spiced meaty filling, you simply need mashed potato. I have a great recipe to ensure the creamiest, lump-free mash, which you can find here. Once your mash is prepped and malleable, you can get going on the filling. I used minced beef, garlic, pepper, onion, tomato, spring onion and array of herbs and spices to flavour mine, but you can adjust to preference. I’ve seen versions that include rice, which also look delicious.
Ahead of frying those big ole balls, you’ll need to dip each one in egg, panko breadcrumbs and flour. This gives the balls a light crispy coating and that iconic golden hue. Enjoy hot or cold! Don’t forget to DM me pics of your fried balls x
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 large brown onion, chopped
- 1 orange pepper, chopped
- 4 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp tomato paste
- 1 tsp cumin seeds
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp chilli flakes
- 250g ground mince
- A few glugs of smoked chipotle sauce
- 2 free range eggs, hard boiled
- Salt and pepper
- 300-500g mashed potato
- A small handful of chopped coriander
- 1 spring onion, finely chopped
- 1 tbsp cornflour
- Pitted black olives
- 2 tbsp plain flour
- 2 eggs, whisked
- 100-200g panko breadcrumbs
- 1-2 litres of vegetable oil for deep frying
Method
- Get the onions, pepper and garlic chopped and ready to cook.
- In a frying pan on a medium heat add the oil and onions, cook until golden. Then add the peppers and garlic and cook for a further 2 minutes.
- Add the tomato pasta and spices, season a mix well.
- Add the beef mince and leave to cook for around 10 minutes until browned and cooked through.
- Whilst this is on, boil 2 eggs for 7 minutes and get into iced water. Peel when you can.
- In a saucepan, add the peeled and chopped potatoes and boil in salted water until fork tender, around 10-15 minutes. Then drain and mash until smooth. Then add chopped coriander, chopped spring onions and cornflour, mix well.
- Once you have all your components like the mashed potatoes, boiled and peeled eggs and mince filing, get your pane section set up. Get three bowls or trays set up and in one add the flour, another add the eggs and the last add the panko.
- Split your mash into 6 even sized balls and then make them into flat patties in your hand. Add a spoonful of mince to the centre of the mash patty, add a quarter of egg and an olive. Then wrap the mash around it and form into like a rugby ball shape. Repeat with the rest of the components.
- Pane your rugby balls but dipping in flour, then egg and then breadcrumbs.
- Deep fry at 180°C until golden and crispy all over. Drain from the oil and drain with salt. Then dig in.