---
title: "Chilean Potatoes with Mote — Homemade Papas con Mote Recipe"
description: "Potatoes with mote ((cooked and peeled grains of wheat or corn) is a traditional recipe from Mapuche gastronomy, delicious, and very easy to prepare. It's a warm and nutritious stew, perfect for winter."
url: https://www.chileanfoodrecipes.com/potatoes-with-mote-recipe/
date: 2023-11-15
modified: 2026-06-30
author: "Carlos Uhart M."
image: https://www.chileanfoodrecipes.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Chilean-Potatoes-with-Mote-Recipe.jpg
categories: ["Soups"]
tags: ["Soups"]
type: post
lang: en
---

# Chilean Potatoes with Mote — Homemade Papas con Mote Recipe

[Versión en Español](https://comidaschilenas.com/receta-de-papas-con-mote/)

![Chilean Potatoes with Mote Recipe](https://www.chileanfoodrecipes.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Chilean-Potatoes-with-Mote-Recipe.jpg)*Chilean Potatoes with Mote Recipe*

Potatoes with mote (cooked and peeled grains of wheat or corn) is a traditional recipe from Mapuche gastronomy, delicious, and very easy to prepare. It’s a warm and nutritious stew, perfect for winter.

## How to Make Potatoes with Mote?

Preparing potatoes with mote is a kind of warm salad that is very easy to make. You just need to make sure to achieve the right cooking point to get the best result and then enjoy.

## Nutritional Information

**Category:** Stews

**Cuisine:** Chilean

**Calories:** 400

**Preparation:** 30 minutes

**Cooking:** 60 minutes

**Servings:** 6 people

Each serving of Chilean potatoes with mote contains approximately 400 calories, 60 g of carbohydrates, 10 g of fats, 12 g of proteins, 7 g of fiber, 3 g of sugars, 15 mg of cholesterol, and 420 mg of sodium.

## Homemade Potatoes with Mote Recipe

### Ingredients

- 750 g of mote
- 5 slices of bacon, fried and chopped
- 4 tablespoons of oil
- 3 garlic cloves
- 3 large potatoes
- 2 tablespoons of chili sauce
- 2 teaspoons of paprika
- 2 teaspoons of fresh cream
- 1 ½ onion
- 1 teaspoon of dried oregano
- Salt
- Pepper

### Instructions

1. In a large pot, cook the mote in plenty of water for about 30 minutes or until the grains begin to split and become soft. Rinse the mote in a colander under a stream of cold water and set aside.
2. In another large pot, heat the oil over medium heat and sauté the finely chopped onion for about 5 minutes until it is slightly golden. Add the chopped garlic and the peeled potatoes diced into small cubes, continue frying for about 8 to 10 more minutes. Add chili sauce, paprika, oregano, salt, and pepper to taste, and mix everything well.
3. Add the reserved mote and 2 cups of water (400 ml) to the pot. Cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until the potatoes are cooked and soft. Add the cream.
4. Serve the potatoes with mote immediately, still hot, decorating the surface with chopped fried bacon.

## Additional Tips

### Choosing the Right Potato

Use waxy or semi-waxy potato varieties — such as Chilean papa amarilla or Desirée — that hold their shape during cooking. Floury varieties like Russet break down into the broth and create a mushy texture. Cut the potato into uniform, small cubes (about 1.5 cm) so they cook evenly alongside the mote. If the potatoes are cooking too quickly, add them 10 minutes after the mote goes into the pot.

### Cooking the Mote

Pre-packaged mote is often partially cooked — check the package instructions and reduce the initial cooking time if needed. The mote is ready when the grains are plump, slightly split at the tip, and fully tender without being mushy. Rinse under cold water immediately after draining to stop the cooking and remove excess starch, which keeps the grains from sticking together in the pot.

### Building the Sofrito

The flavor foundation is the sofrito — onion, garlic, paprika, and chili sauce cooked together until fragrant. Sauté the onion over low heat (5–7 minutes) until soft and slightly golden before adding the garlic. The paprika should be added to the hot oil for 30 seconds to bloom its color and release its fat-soluble aromatics before any liquid is added.

| Ingredient | Substitute | Notes |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mote (wheat) | Mote de maíz (corn mote) | More traditional in northern Chile |
| Bacon | Panceta or omit | Vegetarian: use extra smoked paprika |
| Fresh cream | Crème fraîche | Tangier; adds complexity |
| Chili sauce | Merkén paste | Smokier, more Mapuche-authentic |

## Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

**What is mote and where can I find it?**

Mote is cooked and husked grain — most commonly wheat (mote de trigo) in central and southern Chile. It is sold pre-cooked and packaged in most Chilean supermarkets and Latin American grocery stores. Dried mote requires a longer initial cooking time (up to 90 minutes) compared to pre-cooked varieties.

**Can I make potatoes with mote without bacon?**

Yes. The bacon provides smokiness and fat, but the dish works well as a vegetarian stew. Replace the bacon with 1 extra tablespoon of smoked paprika and a drizzle of olive oil. Diced mushrooms sautéed with the onion add umami depth without meat.

**How do I know when the potatoes are properly cooked in this dish?**

The potatoes are ready when they can be pierced easily with a fork but still hold their shape — they should not crumble into the broth. If they are breaking down, the heat is too high or they were added too early. Reducing heat to low and covering the pot once the liquid is added helps cook the potatoes evenly without overcooking the outside.

**Can I make potatoes with mote in advance?**

Yes, and the flavors actually improve overnight. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Reheat gently on the stovetop with a splash of water — the mote absorbs liquid as it rests, so the stew thickens. Add the cream after reheating, not before storing.

## What Is Potatoes with Mote?

Chilean potatoes with mote (papas con mote) is a warm, hearty stew from the Mapuche culinary tradition — cooked and peeled wheat grains simmered with diced potatoes, onion, garlic, bacon, paprika, and chili sauce. “Mote” refers to grains — most commonly wheat in Chile (mote de trigo) — that have been cooked and had their husks removed through a traditional process using wood ash lye. The result is a plump, creamy grain with a mild, nutty flavor that absorbs the seasoned broth beautifully. It is at once a filling stew and a warm salad, served immediately from the pot with crispy bacon scattered across the surface.

## History of Potatoes with Mote in Chile

Mote has been produced and consumed in Chile for centuries, with deep roots in Mapuche and Andean food culture. The process of making mote — soaking the grain in ash lye to remove the husk — is a form of nixtamalization, a technique independently developed across the Americas to improve the nutritional value and texture of grains. Wheat mote became especially prevalent in Chile after the Spanish introduced wheat in the 16th century, which the Mapuche rapidly adopted and adapted into their existing culinary repertoire. Papas con mote combines the indigenous potato — native to the Andes — with wheat mote — introduced but quickly made Chilean — in a dish that directly expresses the country’s culinary history and the cultural exchange between indigenous and colonial traditions.

## Did You Know?

“Mote” is a word of Quechua origin (mut’i = cooked grain) and is the generic name used to refer to cooked and peeled grains and legumes, which in Chile mainly refers to wheat.

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