Potatoes au Gratin

As far as comfort food pairings go, nothing beats potatoes and cheese. And (with all due respect to fondue) there’s no better way to combine them than potatoes au gratin. This classic French casserole is the ideal cold weather side dish—it’s tender, cheesy, hot, crispy, and perfectly golden brown on top. These cheesy potatoes are as appropriate for Christmas dinner or alongside an Easter ham as they are on a chilly weeknight, and they’re truly great for Thanksgiving, in place of more traditional mashed potatoes.

While this dish is similar to scalloped potatoes (a dish that’s also made up of sliced potatoes baked in a creamy sauce), potatoes au gratin is technically the only one of the two that must contain cheese. You can use any good melting cheese—some recipes even call for sharp cheddar cheese—but this recipe keeps it simple with shredded Parmesan, which adds a nutty note without overwhelming the flavor of the potatoes themselves. The result is a more subtle and elegant rendition. (That said, if you want a slightly cheesier potato dish, feel free to add shredded Gruyère into the casserole dish between the layers of potatoes.)

To make potatoes au gratin, you’ll need to slice a lot of russet potatoes; this is easiest to do in a food processor with a slicing attachment, but you’ll get more even pieces if you take the extra time to use a mandoline. We don’t think this recipe for potatoes au gratin needs any adornment, but feel free to garnish with fresh thyme or chopped chives if desired.