Papas rellena are a traditional South American comfort food made of mashed potatoes filled with meat and deep-fried. They are served in various countries with different fillings and sauces, and are often coated in batter or breadcrumbs before frying.
Papas rellena, literally “stuffed potatoes,” are deep-fried meatballs, or slightly flattened balls, of mashed potatoes filled with meat. They are a traditional potato dish in several South American countries, Cuba and Puerto Rico. Both a street food and a dish prepared in homes and restaurants, papas rellena are widely considered a comfort food.
In Peru and Chile, papas rellena are quite large, about the size of a potato, and shaped like a potato. The potatoes are boiled, then peeled and mashed. When cold, they are mixed with salt and an egg to obtain a soft dough. The filling is ground beef or ground beef with raisins, black olives, chopped tomatoes, and hard-boiled eggs. They are often served with an onion-based sauce.
Colombian papa rellena are smaller than those served in Peru and made a little differently: the balls filled with mashed potatoes are dipped in batter before frying. They are served both hot and cold, for snacks and sometimes for breakfast. A variety of fillings are used, including some that are just chopped vegetables, such as peas and carrots, with seasonings. If a meat filling is used, rice and egg are often added. With them, Aja sauce can be served, consisting of fresh tomatoes and chopped hot peppers with vinegar and lime juice.
The Cuban version uses mashed potatoes mixed with egg yolks and sometimes milk, molded around a picadillo filling. Picadillo is a ground beef dish made with tomatoes, seasonings, green olives, and raisins. The molded balls are dipped in a lightly beaten egg white and rolled in dried breadcrumbs or crushed corn flakes, then refrigerated before frying. Traditional Cuban bakeries sometimes sell papa rellenas by the piece.
In Puerto Rico, they are called relleno de papas. The fillings can be pork, beef or chicken, cooked with tomato, seasonings, chopped green olives and capers. The mashed potatoes are mixed with salt, flour and egg before the balls are assembled and fried.
No matter what the recipe, papas rellena are deep-fried or pan-fried in several inches of oil, enough to get half way up the balls, and flipped once. A neutral-tasting oil with a high smoke point is best for frying. It is important to handle them gently as they are somewhat fragile. If a coating or batter isn’t used, dipping them in a lightly beaten egg will help the papas rellena stay intact while frying.
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