Whether you’re cooking fish, chicken, turkey, beef, pork, lamb, or venison, potato gratin is the perfect side dish. It is creamy, buttery, and comforting. You will not find a better side dish. What’s more, it seems much more complex than it actually is. The only “difficult” part is slicing the potatoes. After that, it’s all a breeze. I don’t know what you’re having for dinner tonight, but I do know that this should be on the plate beside it.
For this recipe, you can use either russet or chef potatoes or Yukon gold or yellow potatoes. Either will work fine. However, don’t use white or red potatoes. Those won’t hold up to the cooking process. Wash the potatoes before peeling them because washing them after peeling and slicing will remove excess starch. When making mashed potatoes, excess starch can make the potatoes gummy. However, when making potato gratin, that excess starch helps prevent the dairy from curdling and helps to hold the gratin together once cooked. So, wash the potatoes well, then peel.
Potato gratin is all about layers of thinly sliced potatoes. The potatoes should be no more than 1 to 2 mm thick. The easiest and best way to cut the potatoes is on a mandolin slicer. Aka. The scariest piece of equipment in your kitchen. If you don’t have a mandolin, your cheese grater or food processor may have a slicer on it as well. You can cut the potatoes by hand, but it will take a long time, and they will not be even. Don’t put the sliced potatoes in water. I know this probably goes against what you’ve been taught, but it’s essential to keep that starch in the potatoes.
Once the potatoes are sliced, you can get the milk ready. Pour 1 and 3/4 of a cup of whole milk into a medium pot. Add two cloves of garlic and a pinch of nutmeg and pepper. Don’t add salt yet, as the salt may curdle the milk.
One of the most overlooked sides of box graters is the slicing side. Some graters come with a single slicer slot, others have three or more. Use this like a mandoline, to slice raw vegetables such as potato, zucchini, cucumber or radish.
Par Cooking The Potatoes
Put the potatoes in the milk and put the pot on the stove on medium heat. Heat the milk until it starts to steam, then turn the heat down to medium-low. Simmer the potatoes in the milk for about 8 minutes or until the potatoes begin to soften. Stir the potatoes often, so they don’t stick to the pot. Season the potatoes with salt, taste and adjust as needed.
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FAQ
Can you use a cheese grater to mash potatoes?
What kind of grater do you use for potatoes?
Can You grate cheese with a box grater?
That said, you’ll always need a firm hold of the cheese block, no matter what type of grater or method you follow. I recommend using large blocks of cheese when you’re using a Microplane or box grater. It’s just easier to avoid shaving your knuckles this way. 3. Consider Partially Freezing Your Block of Cheese
How to choose a cheese grater?
It’s very important that you get a tight grip on your cheese grater. A slippery handle is a sure recipe for disaster. That’s why picking an ergonomic model that’s easy to hold is the way to go. This isn’t usually a massive problem with most kinds of cheese graters, except for box graters.
Can you use a cheese Planer on potatoes?
You just need to run the cheese planer up and down the potato to get the thin slices that you’re looking for. Some people actually prefer using a cheese planer to using a mandoline. It works well when you’re trying to get thin slices of long vegetables, and it can work just fine for potatoes, too.
How do you grate a cheese block with a box grater?
Lay your box grater on its side, with the holes you’re going to use facing up. Then, slide your cheese block horizontally, sideways. You’ll get perfectly grated cheese with minimum room for injuries. 2. Hold the Block of Cheese Firmly That said, you’ll always need a firm hold of the cheese block, no matter what type of grater or method you follow.