- 1 week ago
Chef Alexia Duchêne shares three French potato recipes every cook should know. Learn how to make crispy, buttery Pommes Anna, light and pillowy pommes dauphine, and ultra-silky pommes purée. From achieving perfectly golden layers to mastering restaurant-quality mashed potatoes, Alexia breaks down the essential techniques behind these impressive French potato dishes you can make at home.
Feeling inspired? You can follow these recipes here:
https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/pommes-anna
https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/pommes-puree
https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/pommes-dauphine
Feeling inspired? You can follow these recipes here:
https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/pommes-anna
https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/pommes-puree
https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/pommes-dauphine
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00I'm going to introduce you to my three favorite ways of using potatoes.
00:05So to start, we'll have pomana, which is kind of like a potato cake.
00:12Then we have pomme dauphine, which is this pillowy little potato fried pillows.
00:19And then pomme purée, which is the silkiest of them all,
00:22and is this buttery decadence of mashed potatoes.
00:26Pomana is maybe a bit less common.
00:29You don't see it very much just because how labor-intensive it is.
00:33It's basically thin layers of potatoes put one after the other.
00:38And in between, the only ingredient you will have is clarified butter and a touch of salt.
00:42I'm going to start with Yukon Gold potatoes.
00:44Yukon Golds are great because of their very rich, buttery taste.
00:50And also they just hold their shape.
00:52You're looking for a potato that will get crispy, but will also keep the nice layers without going in too
00:57mush.
00:58You just want to peel them nicely.
01:00You want to keep all that starch so you're not looking to rinse them.
01:04And now the next step is just the mandolin.
01:07It has to be perfect because otherwise it will not kind of like compact and condense as like a cake.
01:15So, if you're looking for quite a thin potato, you want to make sure you get quite long just because,
01:21first of all, it's going to take less time and you'll have something that looks a bit nicer.
01:24I'm just going to make piles of potatoes and I'm going to punch just the first layer so that when
01:31you put it, like, you know, when it goes upside down, you're going to have a perfect circular pomana.
01:37I would say if you don't have a mandolin, you won't be able to make it the way it should
01:41be made.
01:42The pomana really requires very minimal ingredients, but you do need a toucheric look.
01:47When you slice potatoes, they, you know, they will oxidize.
01:50So you need to move fast because in some recipes you can rinse them and keep them in water, which
01:55will prevent that.
01:56But in that case, you really don't want to because otherwise you're taking all that starch away and the potatoes
02:02are not going to stick to one another.
02:04So there's only one rule here.
02:06Work fast.
02:06That's my last potato.
02:07Here I have clarified butter.
02:10Clarified butter is just basically regular butter that was brought to temperature, low and slow, and the milk solids separate.
02:17And while we're doing this, it creates a more even coloring.
02:22It doesn't burn when you're going at higher temperatures.
02:24So I'm just putting a bit of butter at the bottom of the pan.
02:28This will help stick the parchment paper at the bottom.
02:33So to start, we're going to do what we call a cartouche.
02:37Cartouche is basically this parchment that is going to be cut perfect diameter of the bottom of the pan.
02:45For that, you want to fold that a certain way.
02:48This paper is parchment.
02:49And now that I've folded it, I want to just make sure that I'm going to be at a perfect
02:54diameter of the bottom.
02:57Like that.
02:58It's thick.
03:00Then we'll put a bit of butter at the bottom.
03:05Perfect.
03:06If you don't put the cartouche, and there's one slice of potato that's sticking in the bottom.
03:12When you're going to flip it, it's going to kind of look not so nice.
03:16You'll have some uneven pieces.
03:18So now the idea is to punch the potatoes.
03:20We have to move fast because it's starting to brown.
03:24So you want to take the bigger slices of potatoes that you have and crunch them.
03:31We don't need to do all of it.
03:32It's just for the bottom layer.
03:34And again, this is not really mandatory.
03:36You don't have to.
03:37It's just like a little extra labor of love to show that you care.
03:42At the first restaurant I worked at, we were making them like tiny, tiny potatoes.
03:46And also the thinnest possible.
03:49It would take us like two, three hours a day.
03:52And also sometimes we would sell out during service.
03:54And we had to make them like on the fly.
03:57Because there was no way we would be allowed to run out of them.
04:00So it was kind of a stressful preparation for me.
04:03So I think we're pretty good with the potatoes.
04:05We have the layer.
04:07Now it's time to build.
04:09This is the bottom of the dish.
04:10But this will be the top of the presentation.
04:13Because we're going to flip it upside down.
04:15So this is really where you want to put all your energy to make sure it looks super nice.
04:20Then it's just basically layering potatoes.
04:22Putting clarified butter.
04:23And a bit of salt.
04:25That's it.
04:25And repeating that process over and over again until we're done.
04:30You want to make sure they're nice and tight, compact together.
04:33Just because if you leave too much space, they won't really like mold into each other.
04:40You want to make sure you season every single layer.
04:43It might feel like a lot of salt.
04:46But a pinch on every layer is going to give you a very even cooking and tasting potato.
04:53And you want to just warm it with the clarified butter.
04:56Kind of drizzle it.
04:57Now it's all about speed.
04:59Making sure you're moving fast.
05:00The potatoes are not browning.
05:01There's not a specific amount of layers that you're looking for.
05:05I would say you do want a certain amount just to make sure you have texture.
05:10I feel like if there's not enough layers, it's going to be quite crispy, kind of like a rusty.
05:16And you want it quite soft.
05:18And I don't know, like you're cutting into butter in a way.
05:22You want to make sure also it's quite pressed down, that everything cooks together.
05:27And I'm adding butter at the end.
05:29And it's just this thing that we used to do at the restaurant I worked at.
05:33It gives, like, this little amount of the milk salt that you want, but not enough for it to disrupt
05:39the perfect color that you're looking for.
05:41It's a lot of butter.
05:43Put a lid on.
05:44This will allow the potato to really, like, steam, cook through, and kind of get that sweetness out of it.
05:53And then you're looking for caramelization, nice color, and the exterior that's a bit crunchy.
05:59In the oven, the pomaya will cook at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for roughly 50 to 55 minutes.
06:06Then I'll take the lid off probably another 45, 50 minutes just to make sure you have this night coldly
06:12pressed.
06:14Okay, so, moment of truth.
06:16This is kind of like the tadig level of stress version for potato.
06:21Okay, let's pray we don't break this plate.
06:28Okay, I'm super happy with the pomana.
06:33I love the crispy edges.
06:35This is what you're looking for, for something that has some crispiness, but also to have the kind of really
06:42nice, super fondant, which means you're cutting through the potato, and it's melting in your mouth with all the butter.
06:51So, let's cut into it.
06:54This is really what you're looking for, this, like, millefeuille of potatoes cooked through, nice, crispy edges.
07:02You can see that it's full of butter.
07:05It's like a potato cake, I think.
07:11So, now it's time to make pommes dauphines.
07:14A pommes dauphines is a mix of potato pulp that you fold into a pâte à choux.
07:20The pâte à choux is the base for very classic French desserts, such as choux, éclairs, religieuses, and all these
07:32things.
07:32So, it's just a mixture of this batter, potatoes, fried, and just, like, golden, crispy, delicious, and perfect.
07:40So, first step for this recipe, it's just cooking the potatoes on salt.
07:45Why I like to cook potatoes on salt, it's like when you're making gnocchi, you want to release the moisture
07:51from the potato, so you're not adding moisture to the pâte à choux.
07:55So, now the potatoes are cooked, best way to check is just to run your knife inside, they come out
08:04like that, we're good.
08:06Every recipe calls for different ways of cooking potatoes, you know, you might think, oh, I mean, cooking them on
08:12salt and in water is pretty much the same thing.
08:14But depending on what you're looking for to achieve in this recipe, you need to adapt the cooking method.
08:20So, here it's salt, because you really, really want a dry, firm pulp.
08:25So, this is a lovely food mill.
08:27Basically, it makes mash of any vegetable that you want.
08:32It keeps really just the pulp.
08:34You want to work those potatoes while they're still hot, because otherwise it gets a bit gummy and hard to
08:40work with, because of the starch.
08:42You cut the potato in half, you want to peel potatoes.
08:47We're using Yukon Gold.
08:48I think it's a very versatile potato.
08:51It's the one I'm using for all three recipes.
08:54This is another French recipe named after a woman, which is Dauphine, which means the wife of the heir to
09:02throw.
09:03Just smashing that, making sure we get all that dry pulp.
09:12Great.
09:13We have our potato pulp.
09:16Now, we're going to make pâte à choux.
09:17Pâte à choux is pretty simple.
09:19It's one of the first recipes they teach you in pastry school.
09:22It's an easy recipe, but it's also very easy to mess up if you don't do it the right way.
09:26Some people do half water, half milk.
09:29Here, water it is.
09:30First, you add your butter, and we're just going to wait for it to simmer.
09:37Pâte à choux is a very classic pastry dough that puffs in the oven into big, shallow shells.
09:47It's the base for gougere, this little cheese puff that's very famous in France.
09:51Here, we have water and butter simmering.
09:55We'll add our flour.
09:59And here, you just want to make sure everything is incorporated.
10:02It's going to start looking like potato pulp, kind of like dough.
10:08You want to dry out that dough so you don't want it to stick to the sides anymore.
10:12You want to make sure that the flour is cooked off.
10:16I like to use this hard spatula compared to one like that that bends a bit more.
10:22Just because you want a hard grip, you want to make sure that you're hitting all the sides.
10:29And here, you see that the pâte à choux is ready.
10:31It's rolling on all the sides.
10:34It's not sticking at all.
10:37Let it sit for like a minute, minute and a half.
10:40The reason why is because when you're going to add the eggs,
10:43you don't want it to cook instantly.
10:46You want it to fold gently. It's not a scramble.
10:49I'm going to add the egg one by one.
10:51You really want the eggs to be fully incorporated before you add the next one.
10:56It's going to take a bit of time to kind of like incorporate at the beginning.
10:59So you see how hard it is to incorporate the egg already with one egg.
11:03If you put the three at the same time, it's like mission impossible.
11:07We're lacking of that clear V that I'm looking for.
11:11So just a touch of water.
11:12This is a question of experience.
11:15You know, understanding what you're working with.
11:18This is what we're looking for.
11:20This V drop.
11:25We'll make sure there are no lumps.
11:28Here we have the pâte à choux.
11:30We're going to mix in with the potato pulp.
11:34Anyway, you want to work it together.
11:40Let's try it for salt.
11:41That is, again, a great canvas for you to season to your liking.
11:46Espolette pepper, thyme, chopped, I don't know, tarragon, whatever you want.
11:52So now we're looking pretty good.
11:54Again, try it.
11:56We're good to go.
11:57There are different ways of shaping those pommes dauphines.
12:01If you want to be fancy, you put it in a piping bag with a piping tip.
12:05And you put, like, twine attached to both sides of here.
12:09Just like a string of twine.
12:10And you're just going to pipe it upside down like that.
12:13And they're going to fall naturally.
12:16Which can look a bit fancier, a bit more restaurant style.
12:19Today we're going to do a bit of a more rustic version.
12:22And that is just with a spoon.
12:23I like to have a bit of oil in a little cup like that.
12:28Oil, spoon.
12:29This really helps, like, release the dough that's quite moist.
12:33And we're just going to take it with one spoon.
12:35You want to just shape it.
12:37Dump it.
12:38That's it.
12:39Because it's going to be imperfect, there's going to be lots of, like, little nooks
12:42and crannies where, you know, you're going to have this very crispy edge
12:45that's super delicious.
12:47Which is probably going to take four minutes.
12:49You want a really nice golden exterior.
12:51And the temperature with four minutes should cook the egg through.
12:55Potato is already cooked.
12:56So you're just looking to cook the flour and the egg.
13:00You don't want to overcrowd the pots.
13:03Make sure they have room to breathe and fry.
13:07It's hard to resist, not pull them too early.
13:09But you want to wait the proper amount of time.
13:12It's horrible.
13:13I feel like I'm, like, there's, like, saliva just by, like, the smell.
13:17It just reminds me of my childhood.
13:19You just want to eat them, like, right now.
13:21And you know you're going to burn yourself.
13:23But that, with a bit of, like, maybe, like, smoked salmon.
13:26And, like, from fresh chives.
13:29That's, like, a dream.
13:31They're beautiful.
13:32You see that they start, like, bursting.
13:34The potato is, like, kind of, like, trying to get out.
13:37That's perfection.
13:41So you want to make sure when you're frying that you always salt straight after.
13:45Like, that it kind of, like, soaks in the batter.
13:49And always put a towel or paper underneath to really get all the moisture from the frying onto this.
13:56Because if you, for example, put these little pommes dauphines straight on a tray,
14:01they're going to release oil and absorb back into it.
14:05And you're going to have something that's mushy and not crispy.
14:09That's it. That's what you want.
14:11Oof. This is high, pink, hot.
14:17It's like a cloud.
14:19So now it's time to make pommes purées, which is the French way of saying mashed potatoes.
14:26It's the version that resembles the potato puree from Joël Robuchon,
14:32which is this very famous Michelin star chef that makes this ultra-silky, buttery,
14:38melt-in-your-mouth potato puree.
14:40Yukon Golds are my preference.
14:42Potatoes go in, and then you want to cover probably, like, that amount above the potatoes
14:48to make sure that when it boils, it doesn't evaporate.
14:50You want to cook your potatoes in a cold water to start,
14:54just because by the time it goes up in heat, the potatoes will cook evenly.
14:59If you put your potatoes straight into hot water, it will cook the outside,
15:03but the inside won't be cooked.
15:05So we have our water and potatoes, and now heavily salted.
15:13One, two, three.
15:15Looks like a lot, but the skin actually prevents it from getting too much inside,
15:20and you need the potatoes to be salted throughout.
15:24We're going to wait for these to boil for 25-30 minutes,
15:26and I'm going to warm my milk in the meantime.
15:29Best way to check if they're cooked, you put your knife through them.
15:32If potatoes release instantly or cooked, take the potatoes out on a tray,
15:40and then you have to act fast.
15:42You don't want the potatoes to cool too much, so the idea is to just peel them.
15:46I like to cut them in four and put them in the food mill.
15:51I love potato skins and fries and love different preparations.
15:55I just don't think that in mashed potatoes, it's very enjoyable.
16:00I think that having this like very silky smooth consistency is like pure luxury in a way.
16:11When you do a pomme puree, you can't really use a food processor or blender,
16:15just because it's going to release the starches and make it extremely gummy.
16:19That's the one thing even in restaurants, we have to use the food mill no matter what.
16:25This is more like taking it up a notch. This is for the tammy.
16:29It's also a utensil that we use in bakeries to sift flour or any powder to make sure it's
16:36really nice and uniform. This is maybe the only step that you can skip,
16:41if you don't want to go through the hassle of doing that.
16:44It really ensures that there's no more pieces of pulp in the potato,
16:48but this is also why when you go to the restaurant and you're like,
16:51why is that puree so good? This is what we do.
16:54So this is a plastic bench scraper. It's really the ideal tool.
16:59And then you just take all of the bottom part like that.
17:07When I use a tammy, I love to kind of scrape anything on parchment because it's clean
17:13and I could just like dump it directly in my pan without making a mess.
17:19So what makes the Robuchon potato so special is that you're going to add moisture, but it's controlled.
17:25For example, if I don't dry out my potato puree, I already have moisture in that.
17:30I'm going to add more moisture and it's going to dilute the flavor of potato because this is like water
17:35in that.
17:35So by taking that water out and adding flavored moisture, which is milk and butter,
17:41it will just intensify the flavor of potato. And now you just want to dry it out.
17:45So what you're looking for is to see that the potato is not really sticking to the edges anymore.
17:50So that's when they're dry. So a few minutes, don't go crazy.
17:54Don't bring color to the bottom of your pan. Try and move fast.
17:58Pretty good here. The goal now is to really add the milk bit by bit.
18:04You want to warm the milk because as soon as the potato gets cold, the starch gets really hard to
18:10work with.
18:10And so you want that temperature to be similar to what it already is right now.
18:15You have to work fast because you want to make sure the potatoes don't cool off.
18:18You know, it's it's all about keeping all the components warm.
18:22The texture you're looking for puree is kind of spoonable.
18:25I'm going to keep the rest of my milk and adjust after I put the butter to see if it
18:31needs a bit more.
18:32You want the butter cold to really kind of emulsify with your with your potato.
18:37What makes the Robuchon potato famous is the amount of butter.
18:40It's roughly for like a kilo of potato.
18:44You'll have like 400 grams of butter.
18:47So it's quite it's quite rich. It's a lot.
18:49You can warm a touch.
18:51Don't go full heat when you reheat it because otherwise the butter will split.
18:54There's just too much fat in that preparation.
18:57So you want to go low and slow.
19:00It smells like butter. It's crazy.
19:02I want to use a whisk to make sure there are no lumps.
19:05Take a spoon.
19:07Taste. It needs a lot of salt.
19:09So we're going to go quite generous here.
19:11I think it does need the last cubes of butter.
19:15Add the touch milk.
19:17Sounds crazy, but I think it's not enough butter.
19:20So you know that the potato puree is done when the texture is kind of like this.
19:26You see like spoonable.
19:27It kind of folds.
19:28Kind of does this v-shape.
19:30It's like kind of like pata choux.
19:32You're looking for a really like v-shaped drop.
19:35It's luscious, silky smooth, and also it just tastes good.
19:41So again, this tastes.
19:43Make sure the salt hits it.
19:48That's it.
19:50All you need is a bowl.
19:53I like the plating.
19:54Quite simple.
19:56So the idea is you take your spatula.
19:58You're just going to come at an angle and make this little decoration.
20:03Clutch the fleur de sel on top.
20:07That's potato puree, bun puree.
20:10Time to taste.
20:15Honestly, there's nothing better in this world than butter and potato.
20:18And together, it's just the best.
20:22We are done with what I think are the three most impressive potato recipes.
20:29These are the three most technical recipes that I think represent what French food is about.
20:34It's about simplicity and ingredients and care of techniques.
20:42It's about simplicity and ingredients and care of technique.
20:43So take care of technique or something.
20:43There's nothing to do with the one to do with the one.
20:43I'm going to go.
20:43I'm going to go.
20:43I'm going to go.
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