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Crispy Potato Tacos
Updated Oct. 11, 2023
![Crispy Potato Tacos](https://cdn.statically.io/img/static01.nyt.com/images/2023/07/14/multimedia/14EVERYDAY-VEGETABLESrex1-pvqb/14EVERYDAY-VEGETABLESrex1-pvqb-articleLarge.jpg?width=1280&quality=75&auto=webp)
- Total Time
- 1¼ hours
- Prep Time
- 15 minutes
- Cook Time
- 1 hour
- Rating
- Notes
- Read community notes
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Ingredients
- Sea salt
- 1½pounds potatoes (any variety), scrubbed and cut into 1½-inch pieces
- 1½cups grated Cheddar
- Handful of cilantro, leaves and stems finely chopped
- 1small garlic clove, finely chopped
- 1teaspoon ground cumin
- 1teaspoon paprika
- 16 to 18corn tortillas
- Neutral oil, as needed
- Any combination of sliced lettuce or cabbage, very finely sliced red onion or sour cream (all optional), for serving
- 3tomatoes (about 1 pound), chopped
- ½red onion, roughly chopped
- Small handful of cilantro, leaves and stems roughly chopped
- 1fresh serrano or Fresno chile (seeded, if you prefer less spice)
- 1garlic clove, chopped
- 1teaspoon ground cumin
- 1teaspoon dried oregano
- 1teaspoon granulated sugar
- Sea salt
- ¾cup vegetable stock
For the Tacos
For the Spicy Red Salsa
Preparation
- Step 1
Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the potatoes and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, until tender. (Check them by inserting a fork or knife into the largest potato piece. If it goes in and out easily, the potato is ready.) Drain and allow to cool for a few minutes.
- Step 2
Make the spicy red salsa: Place tomatoes, onion, cilantro, chile, garlic, cumin, oregano, sugar and 1 teaspoon salt into a blender or food processor and blitz until completely smooth. Pour the purée into a saucepan, add the vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer for 15 to 20 minutes until darker in color and slightly thickened, while you prepare the remaining ingredients.
- Step 3
Place the cooled potatoes in a bowl and roughly mash them. (It does not have to be smooth; a chunky texture is great.) Add the Cheddar, cilantro, garlic, cumin, paprika and 1 teaspoon sea salt and mix to combine.
- Step 4
Place a large skillet over medium-high heat and, working in batches, add the corn tortillas and heat until soft and pliable. Remove from the pan and cover the tortillas with a clean kitchen towel to keep them warm. Fill each warmed tortilla with 1 to 2 tablespoons of the potato mixture, then fold in half and press down lightly.
- Step 5
In the same skillet, add enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan and warm over medium-high heat. Place three or four tacos in the oil, pressing down lightly with a spatula so that the edges are in the oil, and fry for 1 to 2 minutes, until golden and crispy. Flip them over and repeat on the other side. Repeat with the remaining tacos.
- Step 6
Serve the tacos with the spicy red salsa and any of the optional serving suggestions. (The potatoes can be cooked and mashed 2 days ahead and stored in an airtight container in the fridge. The salsa can be made 2 days ahead and kept in the fridge. For freezing info, see Tip.)
- You can freeze these assembled tacos by wrapping them tightly and storing in a freezer bag or airtight container. To cook, there is no need to thaw; you can fry them straight from frozen.
Private Notes
Cooking Notes
If you want authentic Mexican tacos de papa: skip the Cheddar, the cumin and the paprika. Makes no sense to mix the cilantro inside the potatoes. You may want to sauté the mash with some onion and garlic instead. Not all Mexican food requires cilantro. You can make flautas by rolling the tortillas with the cooked potato inside, secure them with a wooden toothpick and fry them in neutral oil until golden and crunchy. Top with crema, crumbled Cotija cheese, and the salsa.
I’m confused. The description says “Cooking the potatoes whole, skin intact,” but the recipe itself says, “1½ pounds potatoes (any variety), scrubbed and cut into 1½-inch pieces,” then boiled. Which yields a better result?
I just made these tonight. I am a vegetarian and my husband and eight year old are not. We all devoured them. I wish I had made a double batch so I could freeze them and pull some out on a night we're in a rush. I will definitely do that next time. Comfort food on a Monday night. Fabulous. P.S. the salsa recipe was good but I added a splash of apple cider vinegar just to give it a kick.
As a Mexican I don’t need a recipe - this are simple to make - chorizo is a good addition that is common in Mexico Potatoes are bland - the secret is a good salsa - flavorful and a bit spicy - hint we do not douse in salsa we add a bit or more according to taste for seasoning You want your mouth to burn just a bit, but like we say in Mexico “ pica riquísimo “ - it stings deliciously We normally at my home make some bean ones too to add variety - in Mexico people will do chicarrón too
These were delicious. I'm not a fan of cilantro, so I used fresh parsley instead. Next time I'll add some charred corn to the filling.
I had these in Mexico City at the Saturday Market. They were not as cheesy, so those lactose intolerant can skip it or even use a substitute. They also had some fried, crumbled chorizo...if you're into meat. Absolutely delicious!
I've had these in Mexico and make them often. I have to confess I like mine better than these :-). I parboil a potato in small cubes and saute a small sliced onion and a minced jalapeno pepper in lard (yes, lard, which is what they use in Mexico). I add the softened potatoes and S&P and saute until the potatoes begin to brown. Meanwhile I warm tortillas, plate them flat and pile some of the potato mixture on each one. Serve with queso fresco, salsa, chopped cilantro and sour cream/crema.
This would be good topped with a sunny side up egg
This recipe is honestly really great for leftover potatoes and it is vegetarian. I do recommend putting more salt in the potatoes if they are fresh and hadn’t been seasoned as well as pepper but i used my pre seasoned mashed potatoes and it was even better in flavor. I also suggest you add a little red pepper flakes as well as the chili in the red sauce to amp the spice a little. But over all it was really yummy and my children didn’t even notice the vegetables!
So, a little disappointed by the recipe after being intrigued by the name. I thought it would be large potatoes baked, innards scooped out and used for another purpose, potato shell used as a taco shell (in place of tortilla).
I added 3 small jalapeños and some queso fresco to the potatoes. It’s not necessary to fry the tortillas before pressing the potato mixture in, just warm slightly in the microwave.
Tacos de papa are the BEST.
Veganized by making chipotle crema from cashew cream, citric acid, salt and chipotle powder. A smear of adobo sauce from the chipotle peppers with adobo, left the cheese out . A super satisfying vegan brunch for me while I made potatoes and eggs for the rest of the family.
Fantastic. Don't change a thing (except, store had no Serranos or Fresnos but a jalapeño worked fine; and it took a lot longer for my salsa to cook down). Very happy to have a delicious new use for all the potatoes that have been coming in my farm box.
Fresno peppers are not nearly so hot as Serrano
Made these and loved them. Used Yukon Gold potatoes and added jalapeno to the potato mixture. Served with a corn salad. Salsa was good, and it made lots for future chips. We reduced it a bit longer than suggested, which made it less oniony and more tomato/cilantro flavoured. Partner suggested wanting sour cream because it reminded him of a cheese pierogi! (High praise in my 🇨🇦 house.) Definately will make again.
My kids liked this and I thought they were really easy to make and delicious. I used store bought salsa that we already had on hand.
Followed the taco recipe here, but added a chopped sautéed onion and two jalapeños, and only used half a cup of cheese. Tried to follow a number of suggestions here but making flautas was a disaster, you should just mix the cilantro in because it's easier, ditto with sauteeing the potato mixture, which doesnt work anyway, and yeah the cotilla cheese at the end was a nice touch. I used store-bought tomato salsa. Adapt recipes to make them LESS COMPLICATED PLEASE. Not more.
Fun to make and eat, pretty tasty. Without the salsa, the tacos are good but lack zing to make them truly great.
These were excellent. I made them as written with a few minor modifications. In place of plain cheddar I used a combination of cheddar, cojita and Monterey Jack. I know it’s silly, but still, no need to use an extra bowl to mix the potatoes, just use the cooled pan. On the advice of another cook, warmed the tortillas in the microwave. Delish & easy!
These are pretty tasty! Made fresh tortillas so it took me foreeever since I made the masa, pressed, and cooked them first. But they were great! I’d be sure to leave more texture to the potato next time as mine were pretty smooth (on accident - meant to leave clumps). I used Yukon/gold potatoes. I used a whole jalapeno (sans seeds/ribs) in the salsa and did not find it spicy - add seeds next time. They’re super rich - we could only eat 3 each!
I found these to be a bit bland. I had a little more than 1.5 lbs of potatoes which might have been the issue. The salsa and pickled onions add good texture and flavor. I would add more to the cheese mix.
The salsa is good. I've never put sugar in salsa, it was surprisingly okay. I wasn't impressed with the potato filling. I don't know enough about food to know if it needs more garlic or cumin. Maybe more or different cheese. I really wanted to like this.
Yummy street food! I don’t care for the salsa, though. I was a bit too sweet for me—on the other hand, now I know to cook my salsa to get that deep red color!
Delicious!
Left over mashed potatoes and some hunks of cheese made this a fun, quick midweek meal. I had half a jar of salsa Verde, added some vegetable stock and a few fresh tomatoes and hit that with the stick blender for the salsa.
Added a can of drained black beans. Bought salsa for quick weeknight dinner. Made a salad of thin sliced lettuce and radish that my fam ate on the side but I piled on top.
In ELA, we don't cook the salsa. Pulse it to desired consistency and serve. If you want cooked salsa, buy a bottle.
Like others, I agree that this is a good base recipe that needs punching up. I already subbed smoked paprika and added salt to the potatoes, but will definitely add onions if I make this again and play around with spices. I also used really high quality cheddar which was a bit of a mistake, it got lost in the potatoes. PS It's easy to pop these in the air fryer if you want to skip the pan frying. I did 2 minutes on each side for 220 and it worked well
I sauteed onion, roasted poblanos, garlic, cumin and Mexican oregano in lard, then stirred in the cooked potatoes. Delicious!
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