Gratin

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Avocado gratin
Avocado gratin

Gratin adapted from French cuisine[1] is a type of casserole dish that is covered with Béchamel sauce or Mornay sauce, topped with buttered breadcrumbs or grated cheese[2] and either baked or broiled,[3] then served in its baking dish with a golden crust.[4] Cooking au gratin is a technique rather than exclusively a preparation of potatoes (which is specifically a gratin dauphinois): anything that can be sliced thin, layered with a cream sauce and baked is material for a gratin: fennel, leeks, crabmeat, celeriac, aubergines.

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[edit] Potato gratin

Potatoes gratiné is one of the most common of gratins and is known by various names. In North America, the dish is referred to as scalloped potatoes. (Note that the term scalloped originally referred to a seafood dish rather than to a scallop) [5]. In French-speaking Canada, the dish is referred to as pommes de terre au gratin. The dish may also be known as gratin dauphinois, pommes de terre dauphinoises or potatoes dauphinoises.

Potatoes and onions au gratin with anchovies are as traditional in Swedish cuisine as they are in French.[6]

[edit] Gratin dauphinois

The name gratin dauphinois refers to the Dauphiné region of France, where this method of preparing potatoes is a specialty. The ingredients composing a typical gratin dauphinois are thinly sliced and layered potatoes, milk (and/or cream or creme fraiche), cheese, garlic, salt and pepper. Eggs may sometimes be mixed with the milk/cream. Gratin savoyard is a variation found in the neighbouring region. Unlike gratin dauphinois, it is made without milk, cream or eggs. Instead, it consists of alternating layers of sliced potatoes and Beaufort cheese with bits of butter, and bouillon is poured over before baking.[7]

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ The technique is older, but the French name (from "gratter", "to scrape": the "scrapings" of bread or cheese) did not appear in English until 1846 (OED, s.v. "gratin"; the French pronunciation, rather than "aw gratt'n", remains standard in English.
  2. ^ Gruyère cheese is the most traditional ingredient.
  3. ^ Raw ingredients must be baked; pre-cooked ingredients are simply broiled until the crust has coloured attractively and the sauce is bubbling hot.
  4. ^ The gratin signified the "upper crust" of Parisian society.
  5. ^ Rombauer, Irma S. and Marion Rombauer Becker (1931 [1964]) The Joy of Cooking, p 369. Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill. ISBN 0-452-25665-8.
  6. ^ Julia Child, Mastering the Art of French Cooking I, 1961:154f "Gratin de pommes de terre aux anchois".
  7. ^ Larousse Gastronomique (2001)
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