Potatoes Boulangere
I’m so pleased to have a vegan version of this dish which I used to cook a lot in my 20’s but with chicken stock. It’s a delicious dish of thinly sliced potatoes, onions and good stock left to bubble away gently in the oven for an hour and a half. It’s an extremely tolerant dish so going over time isn’t going to hurt it. The potatoes soften and absorb the flavour of the stock and onions.
The ‘boulangere’ bit of the title tells you it’s a French dish coming from the word boulangerie, meaning bakery. Before people had their own ovens they’d take their dishes down to the baker who would put them in his oven after the bread had come out. The potatoes - ‘les pommes’ - would cook in the cooling oven over hours.
This is pretty damn good on it’s own with some green veggies, glazed carrots and a salsa verde (see seperate recipe). However it’s best served with mushrooms with tarragon (see separate recipe) with a salad on the side and yes, some salsa verde. You’ve then got a feast fit even for none vegans.
Ingredients
Serves 2 as a main or 4 as a veg
Special equipment - an oven proof shallow dish; a mandolin or a very sharp knife
200ml veg stock (I use @clearspringuk umami stock)
40g vegan butter
Salt and pepper
750g medium to large potatoes (I use 2 large ones)
10g fresh thyme or fresh herb of your choosing, finely chopped
3-4 banana shallots, halved and finely sliced
Method
Butter a dish approx 25x20x5cms.
Gently fry the shallots in a little of the butter until soft and golden brown.
Finely slice the potatoes, ideally on a mandolin, or very finely slice with a sharp knife.
Heat the oven to 200C/180Cfan/400F.
Arrange a layer of potatoes, then some cooked onions and a sprinkle of fresh herbs. Continue layering up in this way ending with a layer of potatoes. Pour over the stock.
Season the top layer, then scatter over the remaining herbs. Dot the top with little flecks of the butter and put the potatoes in the oven, near the top, for 90 minutes.
The potatoes are ready when the top is crisped up, the underneath is soft and most of the stock has disappeared.
