Casserole dishes of this kind were codified out of older cooking traditions in the late 19th century when they became trendy. This version is based on a traditional French-Savoyan dish called Tartiflette, which uses Reblochon cheese. We use Alsatian Munster cheese instead, but the recipe is otherwise the same.
Alsatian Potato Casserole (Munstiflette)
Casserole dishes of this kind were codified out of older cooking traditions in the late 19th century when they became trendy. This version is based on a traditional French-Savoyan dish called Tartiflette, which uses Reblochon cheese. We use Alsatian Munster cheese instead, but the recipe is otherwise the same.
Servings: 6
Ingredients
- 600 g Potatoes of the kind which remain firm after boiling
- 3 Medium-Large Onions
- 300 g Smoked bacon
- 200 ml Dry White Wine
- 400 ml Cream
- 500 g Munster Cheese For this recipe, substituting Munster requires a soft or semi-soft alternative (American-styled Muenster Cheese will not work). The closest option is Raclette Cheese.
- Salt
- Pepper
- Olive Oil
- Parsely or other herbs to garnish
Instructions
- Boil the potatoes in salt water for 20 minutes until easily pierced by a fork. Optionally peel the potatoes, but then slice them into ½ cm thick slices.
- Preheat the oven to 185°C
- Chop the onion into cubes and fry with the bacon until the onion has turned translucent. Then add the wine and simmer until reduced by half.
- Add the cream, stir, and then remove from the heat.
- The next step will be to layer the potatoes and the sauce in the casserole. Start by laying out the potato slices with generous overlap to create connected layers. With the first layer added, pour some sauce over the potatoes, then add the next layer. Repeat until all the potato slices have been added, and pour the remaining sauce over the top.
- Slices the cheese roundel into thick 1-2 cm slices and layer those over the top of the casserole.
- Back for 15-20 minutes until the cheese is starting to brown. Remove from the oven and serve.