An Accidental Peruvian Shepherd's Pie

one failed recipe may lead to a successful one

I have been wanting to make papa rellena for the longest time but unfortunately this attempt didn’t go as planned. Papa rellena is a South American crispy potato croquette stuffed with a flavourful meaty (and sometimes cheesy) filling. In Peru, they add Peruvian peppers, raisins and olives to the filling and serve it with sarza criolla, a salsa composed mostly of red onion. Although this attempt didn’t go as planned, the mishap landed me on this unexpected Peruvian Shepherd’s Pie.

I’m not sure if this has been done before, but when I realized my potatoes were far too gluey to form croquettes, I pivoted and spread them over the filling, baked until golden brown and topped with pickled red onion. The flavour profile was definitely there, just in a different form. AND I saved myself from the hassle of deep frying, so yes I will be making this again. I feel like the best recipes always come about by accident, so I’m pretty happy about this one. Papa rellena will have to wait for now.

Peruvian Shepherd's Pie

Serves 5-6