Creamy and tender baby potatoes get smothered in a rich cheesy sauce with a fruity mild kick from aji amarillo, the yellow chile pepper native to Peru. Topping it with a jammy egg and a sprinkle of fresh dill makes this a comforting side dish to any meal.
| Level: | Easy |
| Total: | 40 min |
| Active: | 20 min |
| Yield: | 4 servings |
Ingredients
- 20 baby new potatoes, mixed color
- Kosher salt
- 1 large egg
- Huancaina Sauce, recipe follows
- Chopped fresh dill, for garnish
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 1/2 cup chopped white onion
- 2 cloves garlic, chopped
- 1/2 cup jarred aji amarillo paste
- 2 cups crumbled white queso fresco or a mixture of shredded mozzarella and feta
- 3/4 cup evaporated milk, plus more as needed
- 4 saltine crackers, plus more as needed
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Add the potatoes to a large pot, cover with cold water and add salt. Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Simmer until tender, about 10 minutes.
- Bring a small pot of water to a boil. Add the egg, then cover and cook for 8 1/2 minutes. Remove the egg and rinse under cool water. Peel and cut in half.
- Add the potatoes to a stone dish, then smother in the Huancaina Sauce and top with the egg halves. Garnish with the dill.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a medium skillet; add the onion and garlic and sauté until the onion has softened, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir in the aji amarillo paste and remove from the heat.
- Place the onion-chile mixture in a food processor or blender with the cheese, evaporated milk, crackers, some salt and the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and blend until smooth. The sauce should be fairly thick, but if it’s not thick enough, add another saltine or two; if the sauce is too thick, thin with a little bit of evaporated milk. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Nutrition Facts
| Serving Size | 1 of 4 servings |
| Calories | 582 |
| Total Fat | 33 g |
| Saturated Fat | 12 g |
| Carbohydrates | 51 g |
| Dietary Fiber | 5 g |
| Sugar | 9 g |
| Protein | 21 g |
| Cholesterol | 102 mg |
| Sodium | 895 mg |
Reviews
Made the recipe exactly like the directions and the sauce turned out silky and delicious. Had a large amount of sauce left over so I’ll put it on other things this week, maybe rice or use it instead of hollandaise sauce on some eggs benedict. I’m a wimp when it comes to spicy things but I liked the amount of heat, it burned my mouth but in a good way, it didn’t blow out my palate so I couldn’t taste anything. Will make this again
Love the potatoes! The Huancaina Sauce was so good. When we finished the potatoes we used the sauce for many other things. Highly, highly recommend!
This is fantastic! sauce could go on so many other things as well.
Pardon the phrase, but Awesome Sauce!!! It is so flavorful and I will use it for many dishes. I love Franco’s spin on cooking and look forward to watching his show every week!
This sauce is EVERYTHING. I bought “medium hot” aji amarillo paste and this turned out mildly spicy. I also used only queso fresco. I wish it had a weight amount listed in the recipe. I used 10 oz and that worked out well. Also, I did not have saltines, so I used 2 Tbsp bread crumbs instead (maybe heaping). I think it was too much, so I had to add more evaporated milk to thin it out. It turned out PERFECTLY. I have a bunch of sauce leftover that will also be good on other vegs. Love the flavor of this sauce.