Silpancho is an incredible Bolivian meal made by combining many ingredients on a platter. It begins with a bed of rice and is topped with a pan-fried burger, salsa, fried potatoes, and an over easy egg.
Hello Reader! I try my hardest to research recipes as best as I can before posting to ensure I am representing each culture correctly. If this recipe is from your country and I have made a mistake or you have suggestions for how to make it more authentic, I would love to hear! Please leave a comment below letting me know what should be different, and I will rework the recipe. It is always my intention to pay homage and respect to each cultural dish that I cook. Thanks for reading!
Why Make this Recipe
- “Travel” to Bolivia: You may not be able to travel to Bolivia for a number of reasons, but you can still experience their culture! Sometimes the best way to cure a travel bug is to experiment in the kitchen. Whether you’re trying to recreate a past Bolivian experience or “experiencing” Bolivia for the first time, this Silpancho is the perfect way to do so.
- A New Dish to Try: Chances are, if you’ve never been to Bolivia, then you’ve never tried Silpancho. I hadn’t tried Silpancho until I began my journey in cooking one meal from every country in the world, but now… I’m so glad I did! This recipe is still a favorite in my house and my parents always remember this dish as one of their favorites.
- Delicious Beef: I’ve never been a huge fan of beef, but this recipe has changed everything for me. The seasonings in this recipe give the beef patties so much flavor. You’ll never look back!
What’s in this Recipe?
- Potatoes: I used Idaho potatoes, but a lot of recipes call for Yukon Gold Potatoes as well. I chose Idaho as they fry up nicely (they are typically the potato used for French Fries). If you want a softer, more tender potato, then Yukon Gold might be a good option.
- Ground Beef: I chose to use ground beef rolled out with a rolling pin in accordance to a few recipes for Silpancho that I saw online, the most helpful of which being from boliviancookbook.com. This recipe used ground beef rolled out, though other recipes also feature the patties being made with a thin piece of steak such as flank steak!
- Oil for Frying: For frying I typically like to use sunflower oil as I feel it is the most forgiving oil to fry in. However, you can choose whatever oil you’d like. I sometimes sub vegetable oil if I do not have any sunflower oil on hand.
How to Make this Recipe
Step 1: Prepare the Potatoes
Peel the two potatoes and place in a pot of boiling water. Boil until the potatoes are soft, but not falling apart if poked by a fork… about 10 minutes. Remove from water and allow to cool in the fridge.
Step 2: Prepare the Rice
Cook the rice according to the instructions on the box/bag.
Step 3: Make the Salsa
In a separate bowl, mix together chopped red onions, roma tomatoes, parsley, olive oil, and vinegar. Set aside.
Step 4: Make the Burger Patties
In a separate bowl, combine ground meat with garlic powder, paprika, salt, cumin, and black pepper.
While the oil is heating up, crack two eggs into a small bowl and whisk. Pour the bread crumbs into a separate bowl.
Form the raw, seasoned meat into four thin patties. Dip the patties in the whisked egg, then dip them in the breading. Use a rolling pin to roll the meat patties as flat as possible.
In a frying pan, pour enough oil to make a layer across the pan, about 1/4 of an inch thick. Heat the oil until hot enough to fry. Finally, place the patties in the oil and fry until cooked through, about 2-3 minutes on each side.
Step 5: Finish the Potatoes
Next, remove the potatoes from the fridge. Slice into thin rounds and fry these potatoes in the oil as well, until they begin to brown. About 5-6 minutes on each side (more or less to fit your preference).
Step 6: Fry the Eggs
Heat a frying pan and cook the remaining four eggs over-easy so that the whites are cooked through, but the yolk is runny.
Step 7: Assemble and Enjoy
To assemble the platter, form a bed of rice at the bottom. Place the fried patties on top of the rice.
Next, lay the fried potatoes around the plate. Spoon the salsa over the top of the rice and potatoes. Finally, place the fried eggs on top.
This can be done on four individual platters or one large one.
Expert Tips
- The rice in this recipe could be a lengthy step if you let it, but quite frankly, I used minute-white rice and it didn’t change the amount of YUMs that I received from my friends and family. You can also prepare your white rice in the Instant Pot which will significantly cut down on cook time.
- If you’re not sure how to tell if your oil is hot enough to fry, use the wooden chopstick trick! Place the end of a wooden chopstick into the oil, perpendicular to the pan. If bubbles form around the chopstick wood within 3-5 seconds, the oil is hot enough to fry.
- If you are having a hard time with your meat patties sticking to your surface as you’re rolling them, try to sprinkle more breadcrumbs down on your rolling surface. You may need to add more breadcrumbs in order to roll your meat properly.
Recipe FAQs
What is Silpancho?
Basically, Silpacho starts off with a bed of white rice. Then, on top of the rice, you layer fried potatoes, a breaded and fried burger patty, some tomato salsa, and, to top it all off, a hard boiled egg.
Someone call 9-1-1, my heart just stopped.
Where is Silpancho From?
Silpancho was first invented by Celia la Fuente Peredo from Cochabamba, and she has since received awards for the creation of this recipe (both in 2000 and 2010). Silpancho is such a large part of Bolivian culture that in some restaurants, it is the only recipe prepared.
In Cochabamba, each restaurant has a light outside. If the light is on and uncovered, the restaurant is currently serving Silpancho for everyone to enjoy. If the light is covered, it means that the restaurant is currently in the process of preparing more Silpancho.
Did you enjoy this Silpancho? If so, make sure to check out the other recipes on my site I picked out just for you:
- Albanian Qofte
- Austrian Wiener Schnitzel
- Quinoa Salad with Sundried Tomatoes from Bolivia
- Coconut Cookies (Cocadas) from Bolivia
Silpancho (Bolivia)
Ingredients
- 1 Cup white rice I used Minute Rice, but you can also use uncooked white rice
- 2 Idaho Potatoes peeled
- 16 oz ground beef
- 3 Roma tomatoes chopped
- ½ red onion chopped
- ¼ cup chopped parsley
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- Oil for frying I used sunflower oil
- 1 cup bread crumbs plain
- 6 eggs 2 for dipping, 4 for frying
- 2 tsp garlic powder
- ½ tsp paprika
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cumin
- ⅓ tsp black pepper
Instructions
- Peel the two potatoes and place in a pot of boiling water. Boil until the potatoes are soft, but not falling apart if poked by a fork… about 10 minutes. Remove from water and allow to cool in the fridge.
- Cook the rice according to the instructions on the box/bag.
- In a separate bowl, mix together chopped red onions, roma tomatoes, parsley, olive oil, and vinegar. Set aside.
- In a separate bowl, combine ground meat with garlic powder, paprika, salt, cumin, and black pepper.
- In a frying pan, pour enough oil to make a layer across the pan about 1/4 of an inch thick. Heat the oil until hot enough to fry. I usually test the oil by placing the end of a wooden chopstick in the oil. If bubbles form around the chopstick wood within 3-5 seconds, the oil is hot enough to fry with.
- While the oil is heating up, crack two eggs into a small bowl and whisk. Pour the bread crumbs into a separate bowl.
- Form the raw, seasoned meat into four thin patties. Dip the patties in the whisked egg, then dip them in the breading. Use a rolling pin to roll the meat patties as flat as possible. Finally, place the patties in the oil and fry until cooked through, about 2-3 minutes on each side.
- Next, remove the potatoes from the fridge. Slice into thin rounds and fry these potatoes in the oil as well, until they begin to brown. About 5-6 minutes on each side (more or less to fit your preference).
- Finally, heat a frying pan and cook the remaining four eggs over-easy so that the whites are cooked through, but the yolk is runny.
- To assemble the platter, form a bed of rice at the bottom. Place the fried patties on top of the rice. Next, lay the fried potatoes around the plate. Spoon the salsa over the top of the rice and potatoes. Finally, place the fried eggs on top. This can be done on four individual platters or one large one.
- Enjoy the meal! And leave a comment on this page letting me know how you liked it.
Notes
- Potatoes: I used Idaho potatoes, but a lot of recipes call for Yukon Gold Potatoes as well. I chose Idaho as they fry up nicely (they are typically the potato used for French Fries). If you want a softer, more tender potato, the Yukon Gold might be a good option.
- Meat: I chose to use ground beef rolled out with a rolling pin in accordance to a few recipes for Silpancho that I saw online, the most helpful of which being from boliviancookbook.com. This recipe used ground beef rolled out, though other recipes also feature the patties being made with a thin piece of steak such as flank steak!
- Oil for Frying: For frying I typically like to use sunflower oil as I feel it is the most forgiving oil to fry in. However, you can choose whatever oil you’d like. I sometimes sub vegetable oil if I do not have any sunflower oil on hand.
- The rice in this recipe could be a lengthy step if you let it, but quite frankly, I used minute-white rice and it didn’t change the amount of YUMs that I received from my friends and family. You can also prepare your white rice in the Instant Pot which will significantly cut down on cook time.
- If you’re not sure how to tell if your oil is hot enough to fry, use the wooden chopstick trick! Place the end of a wooden chopstick into the oil, perpendicular to the pan. If bubbles form around the chopstick wood within 3-5 seconds, the oil is hot enough to fry.
- If you are having a hard time with your meat patties sticking to your surface as you’re rolling them, try to sprinkle more breadcrumbs down on your rolling surface. You may need to add more breadcrumbs in order to roll your meat properly.
Michael Thomas says
This was certainly different and enjoyed by all the family. Will make this again.
Rolled them out on baking paper with the bread crumbs worked well.
The Foreign Fork says
Hurray Michael, I am so glad that you liked it!!! It’s good to switch up dinner time sometimes, and this recipe is a great way to do that. Thanks so much for leaving a comment 🙂
Elden Modero says
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