This potato tacos recipe comprises crispy potatoes loaded with spices and your favorite toppings, making it a perfect vegetarian option.
When it comes to tacos, I can never have enough - from chicken mole tacos to sweet potato tacos to chorizo tacos to rolled chicken tacos.
And when I'm craving vegetarian, Mexican food is the first thing that comes to mind. I think it is just because you can add spices and flavoring and a lot of veggies just translate well.
And my latest are these potato tacos. It is almost like hash browns with spices in a taco with a ton of toppings. I mean what sounds wrong with that?
No you don't need to be vegetarian to enjoy these. Trust me I love some good old beef tacos, but I also like mixing it up.
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Ingredient Notes
- Potatoes - by cooking and adding a ton of spices you get a depth of flavor that is almost like meat.
- Cornstarch - helps crisp up the potatoes when cooking on the stove top.
- Spices - the combination of spices enhances the flavor of the potato tacos.
- Toppings - you can't have tacos without toppings. My go-tos are onion, corn, tomatoes, avocado, lime juice and cilantro. Oh and a little bit of cheese of course.
Ingredient Swaps
Like any recipe, you can mix up some of the ingredients. Some variations include:
- While it is called potato tacos for a reason, you can sub Yukon Gold, sweet potatoes or even butternut squash.
- While I like cornstarch to add crispiness, you can use all-purpose flour as well.
- Feta cheese has some saltiness that works well with these tacos, but cotija or pepper jack cheese can be used too.
- I'm a fan of corn tortillas, but you can use flour tortillas.
Step-by-Step Photos
Add the potatoes to cold water and bring to boil for 10-15 minutes, or until fork tender. Transfer the drained potatoes to a large bowl and toss with the cornstarch and spices.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and cook potatoes for 3 minutes before flipping and cooking another 3 minutes. Serve over warm tortillas with your desired toppings.
FAQs
Since they are diced, they cook much quicker. You know they are done when you can easily cut through one with a knife or fork.
Heat a small skillet over medium-high heat and cook for the tortillas 30 seconds on both side. You can also add a dash of olive oil when cooking them.
I like to have a little texture with these sweet potato and black bean tacos so I always use oil when cooking the tortillas.
Every taco should have cheese and I like feta. But you also want some fat, so avocado or even some homemade guacamole works well. You can also add some raw onion and tomatoes to get a sharp burst of flavor. And of course a squeeze of lime never hurts.
Types of Potatoes
The type of potato you use really affects the texture/flavor of the tacos. These include:
- Russet - very starchy and best known for baked potatoes. It is the most common potato and what I use.
- Idaho - very similar to Russets in that they are more mealy and starchy.
- Waxy - low in starch, but high in sugar and moisture so they hold their shape better. If you want more bite in your taco, these are the choice.
- Yukon Gold - considered the all-purpose potato. They are in between the more starchy and waxy potato varieties so they'll be less firm than waxy potatoes, but have a little more texture than starchy.
Pro Tips/Recipe Notes
- Be consistent when cutting potatoes so it will cook evenly.
- I keep the skin on for added texture but you can remove the skin.
- Start potatoes in cold water and bring to a boil and then reduce to simmer. If you start in hot water, the potatoes will cook unevenly.
- Cook until just done and drain potatoes well to avoid a mushy, watery mess.
Other Taco Recipes
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Potato Tacos
Ingredients
- 1 ½ lbs Russet potatoes, scrubbed and diced into ½ inch cubes
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 teaspoon cumin
- 2 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon chili powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- 10-12 corn tortillas
- onion, tomato, cilantro, avocado, cheese, limes, sour cream for topping
Instructions
- Add the potatoes to a large pot of cold water, making sure they are covered. Bring to a boil and cook for 10-15 minutes or until they are fork tender. Drain the potatoes.
- Transfer the potatoes to a large bowl and toss with the cornstarch, cumin, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder, salt and black pepper.
- Heat olive oil in large skillet over medium heat. Add potatoes in a single layer and cook for about 3 minutes so they get crispy. Flip and cook for another 3 minutes.
- For tortillas, heat small skillet over medium-high heat and cook for 30 seconds on both sides. Serve crispy potatoes over warm tortillas with your favorite toppings.
Notes
- Be consistent when cutting potatoes so it will cook evenly.
- I keep the skin on for added texture but you can remove the skin.
- Start potatoes in cold water and bring to a boil and then reduce to simmer. If you start in hot water, the potatoes will cook unevenly.
- Cook until just done and drain potatoes well to avoid a mushy, watery mess.
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