Our au gratin potatoes are rich, creamy, tender, and cheesy! The perfect comfort food to serve with almost anything. One of my most repeated recipe!!
Au gratin potatoes are one of my ultimate comfort foods! As soon as summer wanes, and the weather finally cools down, this is the recipe I want bubbling away in my oven. If you’re a regular reader of my blog, you know I love potatoes.
Boursin cheese scalloped potatoes and au gratin potatoes are some of my all-time favorite foods!
What’s The Best Cheese For Au Gratin Potatoes
If you’re making authentic au gratin potatoes you’ve gotta use Gruyere cheese. You can always make a less authentic version and use Parmesan, cheddar, or even provolone.
What’s The Best Potato For Au Gratin Potatoes
My favorite potatoes to use in this dish are russet potatoes. Their high starch content is ideal and contributes to the ultra-creaminess of the dish. I have made this dish for decades with them. Yukon golds are another great choice.
Scalloped Potatoes Vs. Au Gratin Potatoes
While these two yummy potato dishes have some similarities, the finished dishes are uniquely different. The difference between scalloped potatoes and au gratin potatoes is that, firstly, scalloped potatoes are generally cut thicker than the potatoes used in au gratin.
The second difference is that the au gratin potatoes have Gruyere cheese added to them. This makes them even more ooey-gooey delicious.
The third difference is that the latter is made with cream rather than whole milk.
Lastly, Au Gratin is seasoned a bit differently. They have a bit of grated nutmeg in them, which compliments and enhances the richness of the cream and Gruyere cheese.
Recipe Notes For Au Gratin Potatoes:
- Mandoline: This recipe is a snap to make if you slice the potatoes with a mandoline
or food processor. Both tools create thin, evenly sliced potatoes to help give this dish its signature texture. - Heat Up The Cream 1st: In this dish, it’s important to heat up the cream in a saucepan on the cooktop before it’s added to the potatoes. Please don’t skip this step!
- Prep The Dish: Before you add the potatoes to the buttered baking dish, pour a thin layer of cream into the bottom of the baking dish. The bottom layer of potatoes will cook well and soak up the delicious goodness of the rich cream, like all the other layers.
- Mixing It Right: After warming the cream and adding the seasonings I mix the potatoes and cream together in a large bowl, mixing it all, with my well-washed hands, then separating the potato slices a bit with my fingers so they get coated more evenly with the cream mixture.
- To Layer Or Not: Some other recipes for potatoes au gratin suggest layering the potatoes, cheese, and cream mixture, kind of like a lasagne. I think that process complicates this recipe unnecessarily. As long as you separate most of the potato slices, and get them coated with the cream mixture, there’s no need to layer the dish.
- Yes Please With The Cheese: This recipe also calls for all the cheese to be placed on top of the potatoes. This forms a perfectly delectable, lovely browned crust that is absolutely to die for! If the topping browns too quickly, loosely tent the top with aluminum foil.
Storage + Freezing + Make-Ahead
- How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge? These potatoes will last in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. Place in an airtight container or cover the baking dish tightly with plastic wrap.
- Can You Freeze This? You can freeze these but they don’t last as long as other dishes. A couple of weeks at the most will work. Thaw overnight in the fridge.
- Make-Ahead Tips: Prepare the dish the night before and store it, unbaked, in the fridge. When ready to serve, follow the recipe below for baking instructions.
- Food Safety: If you’d like more info on food safety check out this link.
More Yummy Potato Side Dishes
Au Gratin Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 pounds Russet or Yukon gold potatoes
- 1 garlic clove cut in half
- 3 cups heavy cream
- 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg freshly grated
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper freshly cracked
- 4-5 ounces Gruyere shredded
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F (177°C).
- Rub the inside of a 2 1/2-- 3-quart baking dish with the cut side of the garlic (1).
- Using a Mandoline or food processor, slice the 2 ½ pounds of potatoes 1/8 inch thick and place them in a large mixing bowl.
- In a saucepan, heat the heavy cream (3 cups), nutmeg (1/4 teaspoon), salt (1 ½ teaspoons), and pepper (1/2 teaspoon) over medium heat until bubbles form around the edge. Pour warm cream over the potatoes and use a large spoon to mix well, use your hands to separate the potatoes to make sure all the slices are coated with the cream. Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking dish. Gently push down the potatoes and pour all of the cream from the mixing bowl over the potatoes. Evenly cover the top with the shredded Gruyere (4-5 ounces). Place the baking dish on a rimmed baking pan and bake in preheated oven for about 1 hour and 15 minutes or until the potatoes in the center of the baking dish are fork-tender and the top is brown.
Fans Also Made:
Notes
- Mandoline: This recipe is a snap to make if you slice the potatoes with a mandoline or food processor. Both tools create thin, evenly sliced potatoes to help give this dish its signature texture.
- Heat Up The Cream 1st: In this dish, it’s important to heat up the cream in a saucepan on the cooktop before it’s added to the potatoes. Please don’t skip this step!
- Prep The Dish: Before you add the potatoes to the buttered baking dish, pour a thin layer of cream into the bottom of the baking dish. The bottom layer of potatoes will cook well and soak up the delicious goodness of the rich cream, like all the other layers.
- Mixing It Right: After warming the cream and adding the seasonings I mix the potatoes and cream together in a large bowl, mixing it all, with my well-washed hands, then separating the potato slices a bit with my fingers so they get coated more evenly with the cream mixture.
- To Layer Or Not: Some other recipes for Potatoes Au Gratin suggest layering the potatoes, cheese, and cream mixture, kind of like a lasagne. I think that process complicates this recipe unnecessarily. As long as you separate most of the potato slices, and get them coated with the cream mixture, there’s no need to layer the dish.
- Yes Please With The Cheese: This recipe also calls for all the cheese to be placed on top of the potatoes. This forms a perfectly delectable, lovely browned crust that is absolutely to die for! If the topping browns too quickly, loosely tent the top with aluminum foil.
or food processor. Both tools create thin, evenly sliced potatoes to help give this dish its signature texture.
Nutrition
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