ANDEAN FILLED POTATOES, Papa Rellena..

Andean filled potatoes (Papas Rellenas), golden like the Incas, soft and warm like an embrace between two people, two nations, two continents, is a treat that Peruvian people have in their fast food list of eating habits.
The potato, from the perennial Solanum tuberosum, is the world's fourth largest food crop, following rice, wheat, and maize. There is evidence that the ancient Andean people were the first to cultivate potatoes as early as 10,000 BC in the highlands of South Eastern Peru and North Western Bolivia. The oldest archaeological findings were made in the area of Lake Titicaca, the area around Ayacucho and in the Valley of Chulca. The word "papa"is originally Quechua and simply means "tuber."
When the Europeans arrive to the Andean lands, they were the first outsiders who were benefited by the flavors of the immense variety of potatoes grown in the highlands. The Europeans carried them to the Old World and before the end of the 16th century, families of Basque sailors began to cultivate potatoes along the Biscay cast of Northern Spain. The the potatoes were introduced to Ireland in 1589 on the 40,000 acres of land near Cork. It took nearly 40 years the exodus of the potato to spread to the rest of Europe.
Eventually, farmers in Europe found potatoes easier to grow and cultivate than other staple crops, such as wheat and oats. Most importantly, it became known that potatoes contained most of the vitamins needed for sustenance, and they could be provided to nearly 10 people for each acre of cultivated land.
In the 1840s a major outbreak of a particular disease attacking the potatoes plant swept through Europe, wiping out the potato crop in many countries. The Irish working class lived largely on potatoes and they did only have a very few varieties of potato plants, and when the plant disease reached Ireland, their main staple food disappeared. This famine left many poverty-stricken families with no choice but to struggle to survive or emigrate out of Ireland. One million people left Ireland, mostly for Canada and the United States.
The mind of these folks did not work as the mind of the Andean people that developed so many varieties of potato plants (at least more than 3800 varieties) that survived at different altitude levels dryness of the soil, and exposed to different type of diseases. As wild potatoes taste bitter and contain small amount of toxins, early Andean people spent quite a bit of an effort to select the right tubers for cultivation that are more tasty and less toxic. In the course of the centuries the different varieties of the Andean potatoes developed a way to fight back against the odds of the forces of nature in order to survive in the Andean highlands and become an important staple food that today is produced and consumed in the whole world.
Using ingenuity and creativity the Andean people are the creators of the popular "papa rellena." Peruvian families have incorporated this simple recipe to their repertoires of food.

Ingredients:

10 medium white potatoes boiled
1 cup of lean ground beef
2 eggs beaten
2 boiled eggs chopped
1/4 cup raisins
1 tablespoon of Aji Panca
1 cup of purple chopped onion
5 seedless Peruvian botija olives chopped
1 tablespoon of chopped garlic
1 cup of flour
1 cup of vegetable oil
1/8 teaspoon of salt for the meat
1/2 teaspoon of salt for the potatoes
1/8 teaspoon of pepper.

Preparation:

Heat a pan and place 2 tablespoon of oil, when it is very hot place the onion, garlic, salt and pepper, and fry until it turns golden in color. Add the Aji Panca and the ground beef and fry until the meat is very dry. Remove the pan from the heat and add the eggs, olives, and raisins.
Mash the potatoes until no lumps remain, add the salt and the two beaten eggs and mush them again. Divide the mixture in equal portions depending of the size of the potato. It can be small, medium or large. Divide the portion in two halves. Heap a full tablespoon of the filling in the center of the 1/2 portion. The place the 2 halves together and shape the potato forming a ball, and repeat the process until finishing the number of portions.
Place the flour in a shallow bowl. Gently roll the ball into the flower to coat and shake the excess flour, and repeat the process for each one of them. In an deep fryer, heat the oil to 375 degrees. If a saucepan is used, heat the oil and when the oil is hot fry the potato balls, a few at a time for 1-2 minutes or until they are golden brown. Serve hot.