They call this classic dish by many names around the world… But folks also add their own touches, which can make a generic ‘potato bake’ into something unique. The Aussies keep it simple, but make it very special…
I grew up calling hem ‘scalloped pota-toes’. That was an artifact of my British heritage. In many parts of the US, they call them ‘funeral potatoes’. In France, they’re ‘gratin dauphinois’. In Germany, they’re either ‘Kartoffelgratin‘ or ‘Kartof-felauflauf’. In the Czech Republic (and generally in Central Europe) they call them ‘francouzské brambory’ – French potatoes. And in Australia and New Zealand, they’re simply a ‘Potato Bake’.
But that simple name doesn’t mean a bland, boring dish! In fact. I’ve come to the conclusion that the southern Hemi-sphere Potato Bake may have it all over’ other potato gratins I’ve tried…
What you need
Here’s one dimension in which the Aussie Potato Bake exceeds and excels the ordinary British or French versions. It adds onions and grated cheese – both classic companions for spuds.
The full ingredient list for Aussie Potato Bake also includes spuds (of course), cream, a clove of garlic and salt & pepper. That’s all. But that’s all it takes to elevate the classic gratin to something really special.
What you do
Slice the potatoes and onions thinly – no more than 1/8 in. / 3 to 5 cm – and as uniformly so as possible. This will ensure the potatoes all cook at the same rate. Divide all three of these ingredients into three equal portions.
In a generously greased casserole dish, start with a layer of potatoes, overlapping the slices enough to cover the bottom of the dish. Add a layer of onions. Then sprinkle on about a third of the cheese. Repeat for two more layers.
Pour the cream over all, making sure it’s evenly distributed to all regions of the casserole dish, before adding the final layer of onions and topping with the final layer of cheese.
Bake in a pre-heated 350 F / 160 C oven for 45 minutes covered. Then uncover for another 30 minutes or so of baking. This produces a beautiful, golden brown, cheesy top on the dish and adds a lot of caramelized flavour.
Tips and hacks…
The garlic clove in this recipe is optional. Garlic isn’t, in fact, something Aussies and their NZ cousins use as much as cooks in other cultures; certainly nowhere near as much as they use in Italy or France, for example.
DO use Cheddar cheese as the recipe specifies. They make classic Cheddar in Australia as a holdover from their predominantly British heritage – the same way we do in Canada. Cheddar is, in fact, also a popular cheese in the US, especially in the Northeast, where predominantly British immigrants first settled what they called New England.
Use starchy potatoes such as Russets for best results in this dish. Waxy potatoes will take forever to cook through, and that will result in a gummy or dried-up sauce.
My take
I’ve added onions to my scalloped potatoes before – on a whim. And I thought they were really good in it! But some folks I served them to thought them strange, probably because they were expecting ‘standard’ British scallops, and the onion was a shock as well as a surprise…
So be sure to warn your dining audience that this is a ‘special’ gratin: With a whimsical Aussie touch!
~ Maggie J.