Tartiflette Is a Delicious French Cheese Dish That Anyone Can Prepare.
A bowl of mac and cheese might just say, “I love you,” but sometimes you need a more eloquent and impressive form of culinary expression. This is where the tartiflette comes to the rescue. It’s another cheese-topped carb, but more sophisticated—it’s French, after all. To really impress your dinner partner (or satisfy yourself), make this delicious potato dish that’s all hugs, kisses, and a whole wheel of cheese.
What is a tartiflette?
Tartiflette is native to the Savoie region in the Western Alps of France. This is a hearty dish made with potatoes, lard, onions and reblochon cheese. Most of these ingredients probably sound familiar to you—lard is basically a fancy way of describing a piece of matchstick-cut bacon—but reblochon may be new to you (it was for me). Reblochon is a soft, washed-rind cow’s milk cheese that we can’t get in the US because it’s raw, unpasteurized. Although some cheese manufacturers offer pasteurized versions like Reblochon, they are not exactly cheap.
If you don’t have a Reblochon near you that’s affordable enough that you can melt it with your potatoes, you can substitute any good meltable cheese (or try making your own ). If you don’t like flowery skins, try port-salut, havarti, or gouda. If you want to get closer to the reblochon experience, I suggest the cheese with the rind; try camembert, brie, Saint-André cheese or delicacy de Bourgogne.
If none of this appeals to you, just indulge yourself and use whatever cream cheese you like. I used brie because it’s easy to buy at my local grocery store and the Président brand makes a pretty ridiculous “coeur de brie” (heart of brie) for Valentine’s Day and I couldn’t resist buying it.
How to make a simple tartiflette
1. Boil potatoes
Like all common dishes, tartiflette is actually quite simple. Start by boiling some salted water in a large saucepan. Add the peeled potatoes and cook until they are soft. If the potatoes are large, cut them in half first. I used russet potatoes, but you can use any other colored potato – red, white or yellow. (In hindsight, I should have used waxier potatoes because russets don’t hold up to boiling as well, but they were still fine.) Drain the potatoes and, once cool, cut them into half-inch-thick slices.
2. Fry the remaining ingredients.
While the potatoes are cooking, fry the lard in a frying pan. If you don’t have lard, you can use pancetta or thick-cut bacon. Fry them until they are browned and crispy around the edges. Remove the meat but leave the rendered fat in the pan. Fry chopped shallots and garlic in pork fat until soft and translucent. I like to season the onions when I fry them separately, so sprinkle them with a pinch of salt. If the garlic and onions leave an aftertaste (crispy brown bits stuck to the pan), deglaze the pan with a tablespoon or two of white wine, vermouth, or even water. Don’t lose this taste.
3. Combine ingredients.
Place the chopped potatoes in a large bowl. Add the crispy pork and scrape the onion, garlic and remaining fat from the pan. (If you used bacon, it may have too much fat. A tablespoon or less is enough, but if it’s more, save it for other uses .) Stir the ingredients until well distributed and pour everything into a container. greased baking dish or cast iron skillet.
4. Cheese and casserole
Now for my favorite part: the cheese. Cut the cheese wheel (or core) in half along the equator. You need to make two circles with the inside open and the skin intact. Leave one as is. Cut the second one into half-inch pieces. Garnish the potato dish with slices of cheese. Sprinkle the whole thing lightly with salt, then press the other half of the cheese into the center, skin side up. Drizzle some heavy cream around the pan. Admire its beauty, then bake it in the oven at 400°F for 15 to 20 minutes or until the sauce is bubbling and the top ingredients are lightly browned.
Tartiflette is what I call “self-deception.” The cream, cream cheese, butter and fudge from the pan come together in the bottom of the pan to create a zesty, glossy cheese sauce. Each tender potato is topped with cheese, and you’ll occasionally find a crispy, salty piece of pork. This is a real dish for cheese lovers.
The recipe below is a tartiflette for two, but you can easily double it to serve four.
Tartiflette recipe for two
Ingredients:
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2 large potatoes, peeled and quartered (use russet, Yukon Golds or white potatoes)
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4 ounces thick-cut bacon (or lard)
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1 large shallot, chopped
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1 clove garlic, minced
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⅓ cup heavy cream
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1 serving brie (6-8 ounces)
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Salt and pepper for taste
1. Preheat oven to 400°F and grease a medium baking dish (or use a cast iron skillet). Boil potatoes in lightly salted water until soft. Drain them and cut them into half-inch thick slices. Set them aside in a large bowl.
2. In a medium skillet, fry the bacon until the outside is crispy. Remove the bacon and place it in the bowl with the potatoes, but leave the rendered fat in the pan. Gently fry the shallots and garlic in a frying pan with a pinch of salt. Fry them until they are soft and translucent.
3. Place the garlic and shallots in the potato bowl along with about a tablespoon of the rendered fat from the pan. Stir ingredients to combine.
4. Pour the potato mixture into the baking dish. Cut the brie wheel in half along the equator to create two circles of cheese. Cut one into ½-inch thick pieces and arrange them evenly among the potatoes. Sprinkle the entire surface with a couple of pinches of salt and a pinch of pepper. Press the remaining cheese wheel into the center of the dish, skin side up. Pour cream over all ingredients. Bake the tartiflette for 15 to 20 minutes or until the sauce is bubbling and the tops of the ingredients are lightly browned. Let it cool for a couple of minutes before serving.