Our New Favorite Taco: Potato and Poblano Rajas (Tacos de Papa)

Potato tacos or tacos de papa with rajas are a traditional go-to in Mexico when you want to make a home-cooked, hearty, hot meal for a large family or group of friends. They are creamy-spicy-melty delicious — and one of our favorite tacos here at Familia Kitchen.

If you’ve never had tacos de papa before, you might be surprised to hear about this carb-on-carb take on the taco. “They were inspired by a recipe from my sister-in-law who is from San Juan de Los Lagos in Jalisco. She made these often when she lived with us,” says Anjie Villalobos of California, one of our favorite abuela cocineras and a tremenda Mexican-comida cook.

“Her name is Carmen, but we all call her China. She is an incredible cook. And one of my favorite things that she made — actually I shouldn’t say I have a favorite, because everything China made was so good —but one of the dishes I loved that she made is tacos de papa.

”China came from a family of 15 brothers and sisters. So: huge family, lots of cooking always going on. Their family has a great love for food and for gathering,” says Anjie. ”When you think about Mexican food, you are often feeding big families — like China’s. Meat is expensive. So something very easy to cook that is hearty and provides sustenance is a potato. Making potato tacos as opposed to meat tacos for a large family is an important part of cooking and caring for big groups of people you love.”

What’s in a Potato Taco, Anyway? Poblanos, for Starters…

These tacos are ”basically mashed potatoes with poblano green chile rajas cut in strips,” says Anjie. “China would roll them up and fry them and cover them with thinly sliced cabbage and slices of avocado, salsa, crema—whatever you like to top your tacos. She made these tacos the papa on the regular.”

When ready to serve tacos de papa at your table, Anjie recommends accompanying them with medium-heat avocado salsa or her family-famous guacamole.

We predict that this humble version will become a new favorite taco, too. After sampling them, we’re full-on taco de papa fans.

To sample more of Anjie’s delicious Mexican and southwestern food family recipes, check out her green chile chicken pozole, Mexican frijoles de olla or refried beans, and handmade corn tortillas.

Ready to make these crazy-good potato and rajas tacos?

Potato and Poblano Rajas Taco (Tacos de Papa)

Recipe by Anjie Villalobos

4.3 from 20 votes

Cuisine: Mexican

Servings

4

servings

Prep time

20

minutes

Cooking time

35

minutes

Ingredients

• 24 corn tortillas, homemade or store bought

• 2 to 3 cups vegetable oil for frying, at least 2 inches high in your pan

• The Potatoes & Pobano Rajas Filling

• 3 poblano chiles, roasted, peeled, seeded and stemmed

• 5 cups boiled potatoes, peeled and diced

• 8 oz Oaxaca or jack cheese, shredded

• 1/2 cup Mexican crema

• 1/2 cup whole milk

• 1/2 stick butter

• 6 cloves garlic, crushed

• 3 tsp salt, or to taste

• The Garnishes: Optional

• cabbage, finely shredded

• pico de gallo salsa

• Mexican crema

• avocado, chopped

Directions

• Roast the Chiles
• Preheat the oven to broil.
• Puncture the poblano chiles with a knife and place on a sheet pan. Broil in the oven until the tops of chiles are blackened. Turn over and blacken the other side.
• When the chiles are roasted, take them out from the oven and wrap the hot chiles in a wet paper towel or clean dish towel.
• After about 15 minutes, when the chiles have cooled down, remove stem, peel, seed and chop. Set aside.
• Prep the Potatoes
• In a large pan, bring enough water to cover the potatoes. Bring the water to a boil. Add the potatoes and cook until tender. Drain the water. Set aside.
• Melt the butter in a pot. Add the crushed garlic and saute for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the potatoes and all other remaining ingredients to the pot and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Mash until creamy.
• Make the Tacos
• Place a large frying pan on the stove to, set to medium high heat. Add the oil so that it is at least 2 to 3 inches high in the pan.
  
• Place each corn tortilla on your work surface and fill with about 2 Tbsp of the potato mixture. Roll tightly and line up on a plate, until all are done.
• When the oil is ready to fry (about 350°), add the rolled tacos in batches so as not to crowd them. Fry for about 3 to 4 minutes on the first side. Once it becomes crisp, turn over and fry the other side.
• When both sides of each taco are golden brown, remove from the oil and drain on a plate lined with a double-stacked paper towel.
• Arrange the hot tacos de papa on your serving platter. Place on the table with green salsa or avocado salsa and guacamole on the side.
• Garnish: Optional
• To the tacos on each plate, add a sprinkle of finely shredded cabbage, a spoonful or two of pico de gallo, a drizzle of Mexican crema, and several chopped avocado pieces.

Notes

• If the corn tortillas are not pliable, microwave 8 at a time for approximately 30 seconds before stuffing with the potato mix and frying.