Pastelón de Papas (Potatoes and Beef Casserole)

Layers of creamy mashed potatoes, stuffed with juicy beef, and lots of melted cheese. Who can resist this Pastelón de Papas?

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Pastelón de Papas is a complete meal in itself, and a popular dish in which you can use the filling of your choice, although here you can find the beef filling, which is the most popular version.

Of course, the king of pastelones is Pastelón de Plátano Maduro - raise your hand if you disagree. But Pastelón de Papas is one of those dishes that everyone finds very easy to appreciate, which is not the case with all Dominican dishes, which may require a process of adaptation to the criollo taste.

About our recipe

This is a comparatively easy recipe to make. The most important trick is that the filling does not get too dry, but neither so moist that the pie becomes a soup in the oven.

You can be very flexible with the selection of cheeses, as long as they are cheeses that melt, and that do not have a taste so "soft" that it is drowned out by the flavors of the filling. A little competition in the flavors goes well in this casserole. If you have any good ideas for making this dish, we will love reading it in the comments.

Buen provecho!

Pastelón de Papa Recipe (Potatoes and Beef Casserole)

Pastelón de Papa Recipe (Potatoes and Beef Casserole): A complete meal in itself; this cheesy, flavorful casserole is a must-try.

Servings: 6 servings

5 from 1 vote

Print Pin Rate

Course: Dinner, Lunch

Cuisine: Dominican, Latino

Keyword: papas con queso recipe, pastel de papas recipe

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 1 minute

Total Time: 16 minutes

Calories: 673kcal

Recipe Author: Clara Gonzalez

Ingredients

Minced beef filling

• 2 tablespoon olive oil [20g]
• 1 red onion  (medium-size, minced [65 g]
• 3 cloves of garlic [20g]
• 1 lb minced beef  [454g]
• 1 cup tomato sauce  [115g]
• 1 1 bell pepper  (diced [76g]
• 1 1/2 teaspoon salt  (or more, to taste)
• 2 tablespoons of oil
• 1 cup of water
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 1 sprig cilantro  (chopped)

Potato Casserole

• 2 lb [0.91 kg] of floury potatoes (like Russet) , peeled
• 1 1/2 teaspoon of salt , divided (or more, to taste)
• 1 cup of milk
• 1/4 cup of butter , plus extra for greasing the pan
• 1 tablespoon of garlic powder
• 1 tablespoon of parsley , chopped finely
• 2 egg yolks (optional)
• 2 1/2 cups of grated mozzarella or Cheddar cheese

Instructions

• Making filling: You can find the instructions with video here.
  
• Prepping potatoes: Boil the potatoes in salted water (1/2 teaspoon of salt)until they are cooked through. Mash the potatoes, while still warm. A potato ricer (Amazon affiliate link) works best for this, but you can also use a food processor, or simply mash until there aren't any lumps.

  Mix in potatoes milk, butter, garlic powder, and salt to taste. Mix in parsley and yolks.
  
• Assembling: Grease a 9-cup baking pan. Spread half of the potato mash in the baking pan, cover with half the cheese. Top with the meat filling, followed by the remaining potato mash. Top with the remaining half of the cheese.
  
• Baking: Cook in a preheated oven at 350 ºF [170 ºC] for 20 minutes, or until the top is a light golden color, and cheese is bubbly.
  
• Serving: Let it rest for a minute or two before serving. This goes great with our green salad.
  

Video

Nutrition

Calories: 673kcal | Carbohydrates: 36g | Protein: 30g | Fat: 46g | Saturated Fat: 19g | Cholesterol: 180mg | Sodium: 1820mg | Potassium: 1162mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 1502IU | Vitamin C: 60mg | Calcium: 336mg | Iron: 4mg