This potato au gratin is the perfect make ahead dish for the holidays. We torpedo the problem of a greasy, oily separated cheese sauce by borrowing from Modernist Cuisine’s mac and cheese. The addition of a small amount of sodium citrate stabilizes the cheese sauce so your gratin will reheat to perfection – fresh out of the oven taste without the hassle.
Ingredients
- 224g (1 cup) Milk
- 450g (2 cup) Heavy Cream
- 1 Thyme Sprig
- 1 Rosemary Sprig
- 1 Sage Sprig
- 6g (1 ¼ tsp) Salt
- 1g (¼ tsp) White Pepper
- 0.5g (1/8 tsp) Nutmeg
- 113g (½ cup) Cheddar Cheese, Hand Grated
- 113g (½ cup) Port Salut Cheese, Cubed
- 37g (2 ½ tbsp) Sodium Citrate
- Russet potatoes 900g (2 lbs)
Equipment
- Small Heavy Bottomed Saucepan
- Butchers Twine
- Mandoline
- 8 inch Casserole Dish or Crock
- Parchment Paper Cut To Fit The Casserole
Timing
Active Time: 15 Minutes
Total Time: 1 Hour
Yield
1 Quart of Sauce
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Heat Milk and Cream
Preheat an oven to 375°F.
Tie the herbs into a bundle using butcher’s twine.
In a small heavy bottomed saucepan add the milk, cream, and herbs. Place the pan over medium heat and steep the herbs for 10 minutes.
-
Create Cheese Sauce
Remove the herbs and add the cheeses, salt, pepper and sodium citrate.
Increase the heat to medium high and whisk this until it becomes a smooth sauce.
-
Prepare Potatoes
Peel the potatoes and soak them in warm water. The warm water will help them lay flat in the pan whereas cold water will make them become rigid and misshapen once sliced.
Use a mandoline to slice the potatoes as thin as humanly possible into the water.
In a casserole dish place parchment paper in the bottom.
-
Create Potatoes Au Gratin
Pour a small amount of the sauce to coat the bottom of the pan.
Place a layer of potatoes as flat as possible on the bottom. Place just enough sauce to cover the potatoes. Repeat this process until the container is 95% full. Leave a small amount of space at the top to prevent too much boil over.
Cover the potato au gratin with aluminum foil.
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Cook and Serve
Place the potato au gratin the the oven for 20 minutes before removing the foil.
Once the foil has been removed, cook for 10-20 more minutes or until a paring knife passes through the middle with no resistance.
Allow it too cool for 30 minutes before cutting and serving.
Also this can be cooled completely and reheated without any fat separation from the cheese.
This will keep for up to 7 days once cooked.
Summary
Recipe Name
Foolproof Potato Au Gratin
Author Name
Modernist Pantry
Published On
Preparation Time
Total Time
Average Rating
Based on 3 Review(s)
Comments (4)
November 20, 2021 6:02 pm
1g (¼ tsp) White Pepper -Is it really 1g? Or are you talking whole pepper?
December 24, 2021 12:20 pm
Hi again! Made this recipe twice. Great cheese flavor. Thank you for introducing me to Port Salute, never heard of it before this recipe. My teenagers ask for it now.
December 25, 2021 11:30 am
Used Gruyère instead of port salut. That was a poor choice. It tasted very sour. A milder cheese would’ve been a better choice.
January 3, 2022 10:17 am
We chose port salut for that exact reason, as we’ve tried Gruyere in the past and had similar results