Potato gratin (no cream)

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Sent in by Noreen from Havering

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 ratings Rate this recipe

This is a nice easy dish that you can bung in the oven and forget about, while you cook something to go with it!

Prep Time 15 mins
Cook Time 1 hr 10 mins
Serves 6
Difficulty Level Easy

Preparation

Print this recipe

Total Time 1 hr 25 mins
Preparation Time 15 mins
Cooking Time 1 hr 10 mins

Ingredients
Method

1 onion (large)
4 potatoes (large)
garlic (1x clove), crushed
100ml milk
50g cheddar cheese (mature)
1 tsp black pepper

Slice the onion finely
Peel and thinly slice 4 large potatoes
Fry the onion and garlic in a drop of oil until soft then layer it and the potatoes in a gratin dish
Season and add some of the cheese
Pour over 100ml of milk or cream and add more grated cheese
Bake at 180'C/gas mark 4 for 60-90 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender
Turn up the oven for the last 10 minutes of cooking time, so that the top crisps up

You will need

Gratin dish - This one is crafted from durable cast iron and even comes with a a heat resistant wooden stand for serving. You can find it here at Amazon.

Potato peeler - This Y-peeler shape is easy to manoeuvre and works with every grip. See more details here at Wilko.

Tips

The milk and cheese give this a lovely creamy flavour - without having to use cream! (Though if you want to make it super decadent, you could swap some or all of the milk for single cream).

To speed up the cooking time, par boil the potato slices in boiling water for 5 minutes, drain and place in the dish as above - cook for approx 30-45 minutes.

The easiest way to get super thin potato slices is to use a mandoline slicer, though not many of us have one of those hanging around our kitchen! Instead, you could try using a vegetable/potato peeler to cut thin slices, or just use a very sharp and thin knife, and take your time! If using a knife, cut the potato in half first, so you can lay each half flat side down on the chopping board, for easier slicing.

Variations

Try using 2 sweet potatoes and 2 normal potatoes
Sprinkle on a couple of tbsp of fresh bread crumbs for a crispy topping
Why not try adding some strips of cooked bacon?

Reviews

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3 ratings Rate this recipe

Gillian L(213)

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 3

A good dish reminiscent of potatoes Boulanger, but I personally prefer it made using cream, and gruyere cheese (less oily than cheddar also in keeping with the original dish) Made with cream, of course, makes it very calorific, but a delicious and decadent occasional treat to go with roast lamb.

on 12/6/20
Helen G(1092)

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 5

I made this tonight for dinner, I parboiled the potatoes and used 200ml chicken stock and 200ml milk. This turned out to be too much liquid, but it still tasted delicious, will be making again.

on 31/3/15
Guest

★ ★ ★ ★ ★ 4

I absolutley love Potatoe Gratin.

on 23/2/15
Guest

I made this for dinner tonight and it was delicious. The best gratin I've made in a while, so simple to make and budget friendly. I used 6 potatoes in a 25 x 23 x 5 cm dish and used 200ml of milk and 200ml of chicken stock and it was perfectly cooked and moist throughout and crispy on top. I didn't par boil the potatoes either.

on 25/11/14
Guest

making this for tea tonight and wondering is 100ml right?? That doesn't seem very much? Have now added an extra 100ml but still doesn't seem like enough liquid for a slow bake on quite a high heat?? Anyone else done this?

on 24/11/14
Guest

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on 8/3/14
Guest

I mix the cream with a decent chicken stock, herbs and seasoning and pour over each layer of potato, it adds alittle extra flavour to the dish

on 21/8/13
Guest

Sarah, I wouldn't bother par boiling the potatoes, if you thinly slice them then will cook in the 60-90 minutes in the oven no bother. The onions do add a lovely flavour and can be disguised in the final result if you chop them small enough. If however you are omitting them for allergy reasons then I would double the quantity of garlic and just crush over the potato slices before adding the liquid. I would season slightly more too if I were omitting the onions.

on 6/3/13
sarah c(887)

hi, do you need to par boil the potatoes first or just slice and add to pan, if not using oinions how do you add garlic to the dish. thankyou

on 31/1/13
Guest

do you freeze before it goes in oven?

on 30/5/11
Guest

I through sum chicken in with the onions and also some garlic. Was a nice tasty simple meal! :)

on 4/5/11
Guest

Better without the onion

on 4/4/11
Guest

We have used cheese and potato pie as a better alternative to plain borring mashed potato, but our version has been passed thru generations - we mash the boiled potatos then mix in grated cheese and butter, then put in a glass bowl and sprinkle grated cheese all over the top thickly, pop in a hot oven and leave until top is crisp, its really cheesey and delicious, great for children too. We don't use onions, we think it tastes better without. Try it :)

on 6/2/11
Guest

If you don't mix the cheese in then this is basically potatoes dauphinoise I think. A friend taught me a great way to speed it up: Instead of par-boiling the potatoes put them in a pan with the milk to heat. You will need to stir constantly to stop the potato starch sticking but it will combine with the milk to make a really creamy sauce. Maybe 5 mins? I suppose you could fry the onions and garlic in the pan first so it's all in the one pot before transferring to an oven proof dish to bake with cheese on the top. I slice potatoes very thin and it only takes about a half hour to cook.

on 25/1/11
Guest

I would just like to say my children an husband and i had this for our tea and we loved it clare

on 20/7/10
Guest

How many does this serve anyone?

on 9/2/10
Guest

Another variation is to add some white wine to the potatoes just before they are baked in the oven. As they are parboiled they soak up the wine and it gives a gorgeous flavour. I also love the crispy breadcrumbs on top... I used a "stale" ciabatta last time, delicious!

on 19/2/09
Guest

Have always wondered how this was cooked, it was lovely. We had it with roast gammon will defo do again.

on 21/7/08