These little papadum “tacos” are stuffed with fragrant savory Indian-spiced potatoes. Quick and easy morsels, spicy potato stuffed mini papad tacos can be served with chutney or any drizzling sauce for a delicious snack or meal, anytime!
Sometimes great recipe ideas come when you least expect them… often when I’m least inspired! The other day I happened to be considering what to make for lunch and I had decided to do an Indian themed meal. I already had the rice started and had made a veggie curry, but I needed something else to make this meal more complete.
Then, I noticed this little bag of mini-papads that I had found at a local Indian market, and I wondered… could I turn these little papads into mini tacos? If you’ve never had papadums, they are a type of Indian flatbread, ultra-thin and either dipped quickly in hot fry oil to become crispy and crunchy, or sometimes roasted dry over a hot flame or on a grill or stove top. At an Indian restaurant, they often appear as appetizers to be munched on while waiting for a main course to arrive. Totally yummy!
I’d never tried to make them into little tacos, but it seemed do-able… so, off I went to make the filling. I settled on a simple spiced potato stuffing, similar to the one I use when I make these truly delicious, but more time-consuming, oven baked potato samosas.
I was really happy with the results! The stuffing is quick to make and it was pretty easy to get the papads to fold over into taco shapes… it’s a little tricky, but once you get the hang of it, it goes quickly.
Let’s Make Some Spicy Potato-Stuffed Mini-Papad Tacos
The first step in making these little tacos is to make the filling. You’ll select a large potato, peel it, slice it into chunks and boil it until soft, but still firm… you want some nice potato chunks in there, so don’t over-cook the potato, or you’ll end up with mashed potatoes! Which would still work, but the texture won’t be as good.
Add a bit of oil to the bottom of a medium-sized frying pan, and fry the onion, garlic, and chili peppers, plus the spices. Drain the potatoes and add them into the onion mixture and mash together, distributing the potatoes throughout. Salt to taste.
Now, for the papads, you’ll heat a dry non-stick frying pan until it is quite hot. Working quickly, take 1-3 papads and place them in the pan. The papads need to soften up without burning or sticking to the pan. I turn them over a couple of times with a fork.
When a papad is softened enough to be flexible, gently fold it over and hold it in place with a fork to make the taco shape. The key is to get the papad to stay folded, but to leave enough space to stuff the filling in! The first couple of papads I folded too much (see image above) and then realized they just need to be slightly folded over, so still stuffable. When a papad is ready, remove it from the pan so it doesn’t burn. They will get a few char marks, as do all papads when roasting, but that’s ok.
Then, all that’s left to do is fill the papads with the potato filling and garnish with chopped fresh cilantro. I served these papad tacos with tamarind chutney, but you could also use cilantro chutney or ranch dressing…. whatever you like!
I hope you enjoy these delicious little spicy potato-stuffed mini papad tacos! You can be creative and use other fillings, this recipe will get you started!
If you’re looking for other Indian-inspired recipes, you can also try: Easy Curried Greens With Potato
Thank you for reading! If this post has piqued your interest and you find it useful, inspiring or otherwise magical, please pin it and follow us on Pinterest and/or share it on Facebook via the icons to the left… And we’re always happy to hear from you via the Contact page.
Spicy Potato-Stuffed Mini Papad Tacos
Ingredients
- 1 large potato, peeled and cut into chunks
- ¼-½ medium white onion, diced
- ½ teaspoon fresh garlic, minced, more to taste
- ¼ cup hot green chili pepper, diced
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric powder
- ⅛ teaspoon cumin powder
- ⅛ teaspoon salt, more to taste
- ¼-½ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 6-8 mini papadums
- 1 TBSP oil or ghee for frying
Instructions
- Boil potato chunks in water until soft and cooked, but not as soft as for mashed potatoes
- Heat oil or ghee in small frying pan on medium heat and fry onion and garlic
- Add spices and lightly fry, making sure not to burn the spices
- Add in boiled potatoes, mashing lightly and stirring gently to cover evenly in spice/onion mixture; keep on very low heat
- On another burner, heat a non-stick pan
- When pan is very hot, add in 1-3 papadums, turning them with a fork to soften and begin cooking
- When papads begin to lighten in color and start to bubble up on both sides and are softened and flexible, gently fold in half into a "taco" shape using a fork. Be sure to leave enough opening to fill the "taco". Hold in place until the papad is fixed into the taco shape and then remove from pan and set aside
- Continue until all the papads you are using are ready
- Using a small spoon, gently fill each shell with the warm potato filling
- Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve immediately with preferred chutney