I saw these potato arepas filled with cheese on social media and I couldn’t help myself, I had to make them. They’re crispy on the outside, with that mashed potatoes texture on the inside and of course that melted cheese centre.
How to Make Potato Arepas Filled with Cheese
I saw these Potato Arepas Filled with Cheese several times on Instagram and I couldn’t resist making them. The recipe is pretty simple. First, you will cook the potatoes in water until they’re soft. Then you mash them and mix them with salt, butter and cornstarch. The cornstarch will make the potatoes more like dough. The next thing you need to do is divide the dough and fill it with grated cheese. I used mozzarella but you can use other cheeses that melt easily. I always get questions on my potato ricer and mine is Joseph Joseph from the Helix line. I like how it works because you need less strength and the result is perfect.
How to keep them warm
Since it’s likely that not everyone can have 3 pans at a time cooking potato arepas filled with cheese, you have to work in batches. This means that the first you pan-fried will get cold. My recommendation is that you have your oven preheated to 150°C/300℉ with a baking tray and a cooling rack on top. However, don’t leave them in there for too long, they will become soggy with time. As soon as they’re all ready, serve them immediately.
How to reheat them
To reheat the Potato Arepas Filled with Cheese, your best option is to use an air fryer. You can do it in the oven as well but they won’t be crispy again. In the air fryer, you set it to 180°C/350℉ and leave them in for 10-15 minutes until they’re crispy on the outside again. They turn out as good as freshly made and no one can resist having one when they’re hot. Another good option would be to place them back in a pan to make them crispy again on each side.
What cheese to use for Potato Arepas Filled with Cheese?
To fill the Potato Arepas Filled with Cheese use any cheese that melts easily without releasing liquid in the process. I used grated hard mozzarella cheese. Don’t go all fancy and get buffalo mozzarella or similar because they release liquid when they melt. Go for an easy cheese to grate and melt. Other good options include Edam, Gouda, cheddar or similar.
Potato Arepas Filled with Cheese
Ingredients
For the Potato Arepas Filled with Cheese
- 600 g potatoes peeled and cubed
- 1 tsp salt
- 20 g unsalted butter cubed
- 70 g cornstarch
- 100 g grated mozzarella cheese
To cook
- Unsalted butter
- Olive oil
Instructions
- Cook the potatoes starting from cold, salted water over medium heat. From the moment the water starts boiling, it will take 15-20 minutes depending on the size of the potatoes.
- Strain the potatoes and leave them on the colander/sieve for a couple of minutes to let the excess water drain.
- Use a potato ricer while the potatoes are still hot (it's a lot harder when they're cold) and add the butter. Mix. Wait for it to cool down before adding the cornstarch.
- Add salt and cornstarch and mix with your hands until you have a homogeneous dough.
- Divide into 8 portions and form balls. Flatten them out and fill them with cheese. Close them and form discs.
- To cook them, preheat a non-stick pan over medium heat. Add a bit of butter and oil and cook for approximately 3 minutes per side or until golden.
- Remove them and serve immediately.
- If you need to reheat them, it's best to use an air fryer set to 180°C/350℉ for 10-15 minutes or until crispy again.
1 comment
These are so much easier to make than the recipe reads. I had a vegetarian person who couldn’t eat gluten at my table this Christmas, and these were a huge hit, even with the folks who didn’t have dietary restrictions.
I may try to make a much larger batch of potatoes in a stand mixer next time (being careful of course to not over mix) and just weigh out lumps of dough for filling.