Taco Bell Copycat Fiesta Potato Recipe

Ever since Taco Bell made the controversial decision to remove all items containing potatoes from their menu, fans of some of the Tex Mex chain's most popular items have been distraught. In particular, the absence of Fiesta Potatoes, a side dish that was, according to Eater, one of the best things on the menu at Taco Bell, has been deeply felt. Since we can no longer just head to the nearest drive through to fulfill our spicy, cheesy, crispy potato cravings, we've decided to recreate the dish with this copycat recipe for Taco Bell's Fiesta Potatoes. 

To make this at-home version even better than the original, we've used a few culinary tricks that result in extremely flavorful, ultra-crisp potatoes without the need to break out a deep fryer — because who wants to deal with deep frying in a home kitchen unless it is absolutely necessary? We've also included our technique for making an incredible, velvety nacho cheese sauce without resorting to using a hyper-processed cheese like Velveeta as the base. Each step in this process is simple in its own right, but it is important not to cut corners when you're making this recipe, because every step does serve a specific purpose in making the final product totally crave-worthy. 

Ready to learn how to made Taco Bell copycat Fiesta Potatoes? Read on to learn how we did it! 

One of the secrets to getting perfectly crispy Taco Bell copycat Fiesta Potatoes is the method that we used for boiling. We took a leaf out of writer J. Kenji López-Alt's book and riffed on the method he outlines over at Serious Eats for making crispy roasted potatoes, combined with a classic Central New York method for cooking salt potatoes that adds crunch and flavor to the outside and creaminess to the interior of potatoes. Using very salty water will help the potatoes cook at a higher temperature, while the addition of baking soda helps to break down some of the potato starches during the par-boiling process. Those starches will coat the exterior of each potato cube, getting super crispy when we put them in a hot oven later on in the process. 

When you read the recipe, you'll probably think that there is way too much salt in the water, but don't skimp on it! Keep in mind that this is the only added salt we will use for this entire recipe, and that the vast majority of the salt will end up getting poured down the drain once the potatoes have been par boiled. We like to use fine pink Himalayan sea salt, but any fine salt will do — just try to avoid using very coarse Kosher salt, for example, which does not dissolve as quickly or as well. 

One your potatoes have been par boiled (you'll know they're ready when they're fork-tender), drain but do not rinse them. Add the drained potatoes to a large mixing bowl, then add a tablespoon of cornstarch and the warm, spice-infused olive oil. Make sure you toss the potatoes thoroughly to ensure that each cube is evenly coated with the starch, spice, and oil mixture. 

If you see the potatoes start to break down a little bit while you're mixing them with the spiced oil and extra starch, don't worry about it! This is a good thing — remember those broken-down starches we talked about in the par boiling step? The sticky coating on the outside of the potato cubes will give you the crispy, better-than-deep-fried texture we're looking for in this recipe. 

Making the perfect nacho cheese sauce uses another classic culinary technique that seems fancy but really isn't. To master this sauce, you'll need to make a roux, which is a fancy way of saying that you're going to melt butter and cook it with equal parts flour to create the thickening base for your nacho cheese sauce. This really takes these Taco Bell copycat Fiesta Potatoes to the next level, so you'll want to make sure you pay attention to this part of the recipe. Once the butter has melted, add the flour and stir it well over low heat, cooking for at least a full minute — this step ensures that your finished sauce will taste like cheese and not raw flour. Once your base has cooked, slowly whisk in some milk and spices. Keep the heat low and whisk the mixture often. You'll notice that it will start to thicken up after around three minutes. At that point, whisk in your shredded cheddar cheese until it's fully melted and combined. 

The best part of making your own nacho cheese sauce is that it only takes 5 minutes, but tastes at least five thousand times better than store-bought cheese sauce. Our recipe makes a bigger batch of sauce than you are likely to need for your Fiesta Potatoes, so feel free to save the leftovers and use it on...everything. It will keep for a week in an airtight container in the refrigerator, and is delicious on everything from nachos to pasta and even breakfast sandwiches. To reheat, just warm over low heat on the stovetop, adding a splash of milk to thin it out. 

We think that our recipe for Taco Bell copycat Fiesta Potatoes is actually better than the version you used to be able to get at an actual Taco Bell location. Because our potatoes are baked rather than deep fried, they have all the crispiness of the original, but you taste more of the spices and less of the oil. Our spice mixture also has a little bit more of a kick than the original recipe, and a more complex flavor profile. 

Our cheese sauce has some additional spice built into it, and because it's made with whole ingredients, it tastes more like actual cheese while still retaining that pleasant melty quality that typically comes to mind when we think of nacho cheese. Our Fiesta Potatoes are incredible on their own — it's the kind of recipe that you really wish wasn't so good, because you want to eat more of it than is probably advisable. And while we haven't tried making our own Fiesta Potato burritos yet, it is only a matter of time.