Potatoes au Gratin – forget scalloped potatoes, THIS is the creme de la creme of all potato recipes!! Also known as Dauphinoise Potatoes, this French classic is made with layers upon layers of finely sliced potatoes, cream, butter and cheese with a hint of fresh thyme.
Adapted from a Julia Child’s recipe, this is luxurious and thoroughly indulgent. Bonus: It’s the ultimate make ahead potato side dish!
Potatoes au Gratin
Potatoes au Gratin? Or Scalloped Potatoes?
If you’re wondering what the difference is between Scalloped Potatoes and Au Gratin Potatoes, scalloped potatoes are made with a flour-butter-milk roux, whereas Potatoes au Gratin are made with 100% indulgence: cream, butter and cheese.
So I ask you again: Potatoes au Gratin? Or Scalloped Potatoes?
There’s no contest. Cream trumps flour Every. Single. Day. 😂
Potatoes au Gratin for the win!!!
All the essential food groups present
I was going to say that it’s quite remarkable how so few ingredients can make something so luxurious. But the reality is, it’s pretty hard to go wrong when potatoes, cream, butter and cheese are involved.
We’re working with all the good stuff today!
Best kind of potatoes for au gratin
This is the sort of potato dish where we want the potatoes to breakdown and become lovely and soft under that golden cheesy crust, so we need to ensure we use starchy potatoes. Australia – I use Sebago (those dirt brushed potatoes). America – Russet is perfect, and for those of you in the UK, King Edward or Maris Piper are perfect. Or any other starchy potatoes – Dutch creams, King Edwards or red delight.
To be honest, as long as you do not use a waxy potato then it’s going to work great – I’ve used all sorts over the years. Waxy potatoes are the kind used for potato salads and if used in Potatoes au Gratin, the layers sort of slip apart and you’ll have paper-thin-potato UFO’s flying all over the place.
Been there, done that. Not good, my friends.
How to make potatoes au gratin
Thinly sliced potato is layered with a cream-butter-garlic mixture, sprinkled with thyme and the mandatory cheese in every layer. Bake covered for 75 minutes (yes really, it takes that long), then uncovered just to make the cheese on top lovely and golden.
While it might seem daunting to thinly slice 1 kg / 2 lb of potatoes, this is the sort of task where you’ll quickly get into a rhythm. By the 3rd potato, you’ll be slicing like a pro!
Though having said that, a mandolin will make short work of it….
I am yet to meet a form of potato I don’t like. And of all the ways to cook potato, this is my favourite.
Sure, sometimes I stray and get excited by my latest obsession. I went mad for Ultra Crispy Smashed Potatoes, and crazy over Parmesan Crusted Potatoes. I thought Twice-baked Stuffed Jacket Potatoes were the ant’s pants.
But Potatoes au Gratin are a classic that I’ll love forever and ever. First made using Julie Child’s recipe which then evolved slightly over the years to what it is today. A slightly more streamlined assembly process, the addition of garlic and… I upped the cheese.
Do you think Julia would approve?? 😂 – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Potatoes au Gratin
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups cream , full fat (Note 1)
- 2 garlic cloves , minced
- 30g / 2 tbsp unsalted butter , melted
- 1.25 kg / 2.5 lb starchy potatoes , Russet, Sebago, Maris Piper (Note 2)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 2 1/2 cups gruyere cheese (colby, cheddar, havarti or tasty), freshly grated yourself (Note 3)
- 2 tsp thyme leaves , fresh (optional – but highly recommended)
Instructions
- Cream Mixture: Place butter, cream and garlic in a jug. Mix until combined.
- Preheat oven to 180°C/350°F (both fan and standard ovens).
- Slice potatoes: Peel the potatoes and slice them 1/8"/3 mm thick. Or use a slicer!
- Layer 1: Spread 1/3 of the potatoes in a baking dish (Note 3), then pour over 1/3 of the Cream Mixture, scatter with 1/3 of the salt, pepper and thyme. Sprinkle with 3/4 cups cheese.
- Layers 2 & 3: Repeat for the 2nd and third layer, but do not finish with cheese on the top layer (will add later).
- Cover & bake: Cover with lid or foil, and bake for 1 hr 15 min or until the potatoes in the middle are soft (use knife to test).
- Top with cheese, bake again: Remove foil, top with cheese. Bake for a further 10 to 15 minutes until golden and bubbly. Stand 5 minutes before serving.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Au Gratin Potatoes recipe originally published December 2014. New photos, recipe video and updated post in December 2018, then some tidying up done in December 2020. No change to recipe!
Feed your potato obsession
Crispy Parmesan Crusted Potatoes (side dish or to nibble)
Life of Dozer
Love it! Easy and delicious! I also added a French onion soup mix! YUM
Hi just wondering, can this recipe be prepared and frozen uncooked?
I just made this and it was delicious, however the cream curdled, I know it is OK but woulf not serve this to company.
Has anyone made this in foil trays for catering a party? Did it turn out ok? Any extra considerations I need to address?
Always a family favourite. But I’d never tried making it with gruyere cheese. You sold me on that one. My normal go too was always strong and bitey cheddar. I’ve also blended half cream and half sour cream or cream fraiche for a richer mouth feel. Gruyere is now top of my list of cheeses though. Thanks Nagi
Will give this recipe a try. But I will definitely be adding sliced onion. This type of dish needs onion. It looks amazing, hope I can make it taste the same.
Honestly, it doesn’t need onion. Made it yesterday and it had a lot of flavor–thyme and gruyere makes a huge difference. So unlike many recipes, this does not need it (and I wouldn’t add it if I made it again). Plenty of flavor already.
A great dish…mama always made it for us…delicious as always….
Loved it!
Oops, I didn’t read ahead and combined everything in the sauce. So I stirred it all up for the last 15 min. bake.
I added a little onion, we like the flavor.
I used our food processor to slice the potatoes. It’s quick, and even so, the potatoes started to brown. It’d help to have everything ready before cutting the potatoes.
Delicious! The whole family (+extended family) loved it. Your recipes never let me down Nagi, you’re amazing!
I made this yesterday for Easter lunch. I didn’t have quite enough Gruyere, so I added a block of cheddar too. It was absolute heaven!!!! The garlic and thyme and cheese!!!! I will be making this again and again! Thanks!
I made this for Easter Sunday lunch instead of my usual sour cream & spring onion potato dish. My family all love the original so it was a bit risky 😅 – BUT … this was an absolute WINNER! I followed the recipe to the letter (except chose to leave out the thyme) & it was delicious! So creamy and a perfect balance of flavours – definitely a keeper! Thank you again for another great recipe Nagi!!!
I found this recipe years ago and we’ve been making them as part of Easter dinner ever since. Delicious!!!
Okay I’m obsessed!
I made this recipe today because I had just bought a brand new mandolin slicer (that also got a taste of my thumb cleaning it before use).
I’d probably recommend a par boil without the mandolin, but with the mandolin it came out perfect!
As I pulled it out of the oven I did like other comments have some of the oil of the butter at the top. Gave it a solid 10 minutes resting time and it was beautifully rested and ready to serve.
Smelt amazing cooking, tasted even better. Am looking forward to devouring the leftovers tomorrow.
What I loved about this was how easy it was to cut in very neap shapes! You could honestly serve this at a restaurant!
I just made these for Easter. I used smokey cheddar to go with the ham we’re having. So good! Mine baked a bit longer (extra 20 minutes) but maybe I had thicker layers than the original recipe.
Just popped this in the oven for Easter dinner tomorrow after making it for the umpteenth time over the years. Truly decadent and beautiful to serve. After the first couple of times making it I came to the conclusion that I prefer to make it one day ahead. The potato mixture all condenses a bit as it sits in the fridge making a firmer au gratin. Once finished the next day, I allow it to stand for a bit and am able to slice perfectly square portions for serving for presentation purposes an they look beautiful. For those who say that their cream has split and left an oily film on top, there are a couple of reasons that can happen. One is the type of cream you are using, I have only used Heavy Whipping Cream (40% fat) and Gruyere or a mixture with Mozzarella. If you are using Cheddar or another type cheese that doesn’t melt well you will have an oily effect and NEVER use pre-shredded cheese. Thanks again Nagi for blessing us with this lovely recipe.
Made this a day ahead and it was absolutely delicious. In fact it was better than the one I made on the day of eating so definitely recommend making ahead. Teenage grandsons said it was “banging!” 😂
How far ahead can I make this? If I make this on Friday night, is it ok for Sunday at 1pm? Thanks!
Did anyone reply as to how far ahead you can make it !? I have the same question 🙋♀️… today Wednesday for consumption Friday
Hi Nagi,
On the au gratin potatoe….. any substitute for the Thyme? Do not like it at all☺️ Rosemary maybe? Thank you😀
This potato gratin is delicious! Used parmesan and it worked perfectly. Only advice is to give yourself time to assemble and remember it does take 70 min in the oven. Thank you Nagi 😋
This recipe is really good and easy to put together, just like my mom did in the old days. I have to say, not sure about where you are, but mozzarella cheese would lend no flavor at all to this dish. If you don’t want to use Gruyre I might suggest Havarti or Jarlsberg which both add flavor and are great melting cheeses. Cheers.