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Active Time
15 min
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Total Time
45 min
Potatoes are a cornerstone of the Peruvian diet, and for good reason: They have been cultivated in the Andes for more than 8,000 years, and the country boasts a whopping 3,000 varieties of the tuber, which comes in a myriad of shapes, colors, and sizes. In the regional capital of Huancayo, creamy, gently spiced cheese sauce is usually poured over the potatoes or served as a dip. To really highlight the potatoes (purple-fleshed ones look especially dramatic), we serve them over the sauce, with accompaniments of lime and meaty olives.
Ingredients
8 (first course or side dish) servings
Step 1
Cover potatoes with water in a medium pot and season well with salt, then briskly simmer, covered, until just cooked through, about 20 minutes. Drain and cool, then peel.
Step 2
Meanwhile, mince and mash garlic to a paste with a pinch of salt, then blend with remaining ingredients in a blender until very smooth and thicker than heavy cream (if necessary, thin with milk). Season with salt.
Step 3
Cut potatoes crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices.
Step 4
Spoon some sauce onto 8 small plates, then top with sliced potatoes. Serve remaining sauce on the side.
What to drink:
Step 5
Concha y Toro Terrunyo
Casablanca Valley Sauvignon Blanc '07
Potatoes and sauce can be prepared 1 day ahead and chilled separately. Bring to room temperature before serving (sauce will be very thick; stir and thin with additional milk if desired).
How would you rate Potatoes with Cheese Sauce (_Papas a la Huancaína_)?
Leave a Review
Reviews (5)
Back to TopI thoroughly enjoyed this dish. Served with a little bit of aji amarillo, hard boiled eggs on top of the sauce and potatoes, restijng on a bed of lettuce outstanding appetizer..OUTSTANDING and DELISH!!!
toggers
Parkertown, New Jersey
10/5/2014
This sauce is phenomenal; very singular. Make sure you take the time to find one of the chili pastes listed, as that lended it its very unique flavor. I couldn't find the deep purple potatoes, but used the purple ones from trader joes in the mixed potato bag. Their flesh was a light lavender and still looked strikingly beautiful juxtaposed against the sauce.
Anonymous
Orange County, CA
7/8/2009
I'm raving about the sauce. It's easy and addictive and goes with many things beyond potatoes. The purple potatoes make a striking presentation, but you can use regular potatoes, or boiled or fried yuca, or chayote squash, asparagus, etc. The traditional Peruvian recipe uses potatoes and also adds hard-boiled egg and olives as complements.
holmwood66
boston, ma
4/30/2009
Those are purple potatoes, I've seen them a lot in my area recently.
jay27
4/29/2009
What the heck is that blue stuff in the photo??!!!
mattx
boise id
4/28/2009
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