Gratin Dauphinois | Potato Gratin

I love this side dish for being so simple to make yet extremely attractive. Gratin dauphinois is a French dish of scalloped potatoes baked in milk or cream from the Dauphiné region in southeast France. Other known names of the dish in French are pommes de terre dauphinoise, potatoes à la dauphinoise and gratin de pommes à la dauphinoise. In English-speaking countries, its common name is potato gratin. My favorite potato for this dish is Yukon Gold. Those who follow a low-calorie diet use milk, and those who care for a creamy texture choose half-n-half and even heavy cream. The seasoning can be simple with salt and pepper or more complex with the addition of pungent garlic and nutty nutmeg notes. There is also a version of gratin with melted gruyère on the top. Like lasagna or moussaka, potato gratin should be cooked in advance, refrigerated to set, removed from the pan, sliced to portions while cold, and reheated before serving. If all steps are done in that order, a humble potato makes an eye-catching side dish, a beautiful element of any plated dinner. What makes it so attractive? Thin uniform slices. What is the most efficient tool to quickly slice potato uniformly thin? Handheld mandoline with a ceramic blade, e.g., Japanese Kyocera. When I make only four portions of potato gratin, I choose a bread loaf pan (8.9*3.7*2.4 inches). Mine is made of non-stick steel, but an assortment of silicone pans of the same shape and size is a good option. I line the bottom of my pan with parchment paper to easier remove gratin from the pan. Silicone pans don’t need any lining.

Good

% Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet

Step 1

Preheat oven 350F. If using a metal baking pan, line it with parchment paper. You need to cover either the bottom or a bottom and two opposite sides of the pan.

Step 2

Bring a cup of milk to simmer over low heat. If you want to add garlic, flavor the hot milk with a crushed clove during the process of heating milk and then strain it.

Step 3

Wash, peel, and thinly slice potatoes using mandoline. Arrange overlapping potato slices in the pan. Season them with salt and pepper and add a little bit of hot milk every couple of layers. When all is in, shake the pan a little to gently redistribute the potatoes evenly. Use a fork to submerge them into the milk, add more if needed.

Step 4

Cover the pan with foil and bake for an hour. Note, the thicker the layer of potatoes, the more time you need for cooking. Turn off the heat, remove the foil and add 1 tbsp of melted butter on top of the potatoes, and leave open in the hot oven for another half an hour.

Step 5

Let potatos cool to the room temperature and then in a refrigerator for a few hours until completely set or until ready to serve for up to 3 days covered. Place the pan upside down and remove gratin. Slice it to portions. If you need to reheat just a few portions, the best way of doing it is in a covered conteiner in a microwave. If serving for a larger group of guests, reheat in 350F oven on a baking sheet, covered with foil.

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