Who can resist this Pastelón de papa, our incredible ground beef and potato casserole? Certainly not me. Layers of creamy mashed potatoes, filled with juicy ground beef, and loads of melted cheese. And with this recipe. we offer you other filling options, even a vegan one!
By - Last reviewed . Published Dec 21, 2003
Why we ❤️ it
Of course, the king of pastelones is pastelón de plátano maduro - raise your hand if you disagree.
Still, pastelón de papa 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.
What's pastelón de papa?
Pastelón de papas is a baked ground beef and potato casserole made with layers of creamy puréed potato, cheese, and juicy ground beef filling cooked in tomato sauce.
If it sounds like this is the description of a shepherd's pie, you're right, except that these pastelones have a bottom and a top layer of potato puré. It can be almost a complete meal in itself.
Pastelón de papa (dominican shepherd's pie).
Serving suggestions
Served with some Dominican salad, this pastelón is a complete meal, but you can also serve it for your potluck, office party, and even as part of the Christmas feast.
Top tips
- Fillings: While minced beef pastelon is the most popular version and a very popular dish. Here you can find other fillings that will work well if you feel a bit adventurous. You can try our creamy chicken filling, our pulled chicken in tomato sauce, and – with some adaptations – make a vegan version with our vegan mince filling.
- Preparation: Remember to have the filling ready before starting to cook; the instructions for the filling of your choice are a separate recipe.
- Cheese: You can be very flexible with the selection of cheeses, as long as they are cheeses that melt and do not have a taste so "soft" that the flavors of the filling drown it out. A little competition in the flavors goes well in this casserole.
- Consistency: The most important trick is that the filling does not get too dry but not so moist that the pie becomes a soup in the oven.
About our recipe
This recipe yields six servings; each portion is about 1½ cups in volume.
This is a relatively easy recipe to make and a very popular dish in Plato del día eateries around the Dominican Republic. This Dominican shepherd's pie is made in a pretty similar way in every Dominican kitchen, but small touches will vary.
If you have any good tips for making this dish, we would love to read them in the comments.
Video
Recipe
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Pastelón de Papa [Video+Recipe] Potato and Beef Casserole
Ingredients
Minced beef filling
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red onion, (medium-size, minced [65 g]
- 3 cloves garlic
- 1 pound minced beef , [454g]
- 1 cup tomato sauce
- 1 bell pepper , diced
- 1½ teaspoon salt, (or more, to taste)
- ½ teaspoon pepper (freshly-cracked, or ground)
- 1 sprig cilantro, chopped
Potato Casserole
- 2 pound potato, [0.9 kg], peeled
- 1½ teaspoon salt, divided (or more, to taste)
- 1 cup milk (whole or skim)
- ¼ cup salted butter, plus extra for greasing the pan
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon parsley, chopped finely
- 2 egg yolk, (optional)
- 2½ cups grated mozzarella, or Cheddar cheese, or both
Instructions
1. Making filling
See the video to make the ground beef filling hereHeat oil over medium-low heat. Stir in onion and cook and stir until it turns translucent. Add garlic and cook stirring, for a minute.Add minced meat and cook over high heat and stir, breaking into small clumps until it browns.- Pour in tomato sauce, and add bell pepper, salt, and pepper. Stir and cover. Simmer for 3 minutes.Taste and season with salt and pepper to taste if needed. Remove from the heat.
2. Preparing the potatoes
Boil the potatoes in salted water (½ 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.
3. Assembling
- Grease a 9-cup baking pan. Spread half of the potato mash in the baking pan, and cover with half the cheese. Top with the meat filling, followed by the remaining potato mash. Top with the remaining half of the cheese.
4. 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.
5. Serving
- Let it rest for a minute or two before serving.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is calculated automatically based on ingredients listed. Please consult your doctor if you need precise nutrition information.
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More potato recipes
While potatoes are not as utilized in our cuisine as in many countries, we also have many potato recipes on our blog. You don't want to miss Ensalada rusa (or mixta), the lovely Dominican potato salad, or Bacalao con papa, the codfish and potato lenten classic.
Some other dishes to try are Ensalada hervida (boiled vegetable salad), Ensalada de pollo (Chicken salad), and Yaroa (Dominican loaded French fries).
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