Papas rellenas (Spanish: stuffed potatoes) is a traditional dish in Peruvian cuisines. The earliest appearances in cookbooks are from the late 19th century. It has now spread to other parts of Latin America. In Peru there is a variation of this dish called "yuca rellena", which replaces the potato with yuca, giving a different taste and texture from those dishes made with potatoes.
The dish is a baked potato dough into which a filling made of chopped beef and onions, whole olives, hard boiled eggs, cumin and other spices is stuffed. Once prepared, the obloid mass is deep fried. Potato flour is often added to give greater consistency to the dough. In Peru, the dish is usually accompanied with a "salsa criolla", or an aji sauce.[1]
They consist in mashed potatoes stuffed with seasoned ground meat,[2] various spices then deep fried. The dish varies in preparation and presentation from country to country. Papas Rellenas are a local favorite in heavily Cuban-populated American cities such as Miami and Tampa,[3] in which the Cuban version consists of potato balls stuffed with seasoned picadillo.[4] This dish is also extensively consumed in Puerto Rico, where it is called "relleno de papa".