This Gratin Potatoes without Cream recipe is the ultimate cheesy meal to make. It features fragrant rosemary, caramelized brown vegan butter, tart lemon juice, and layers of thin potatoes. It takes a bit of time to put together, but it's totally worth it for the insane flavors that will melt in your mouth!
Ok so cheesy potatoes in a creamy sauce are Dan’s favorite holiday food. He looks forward to them every year! While I grew up on gratin potatoes and wasn’t much into the cheese part. Probably because it was gratin potatoes from a box. They're pretty good but definitely lack some of the depth of flavor I crave.
Fast forward to us hosting or bringing food for holiday gatherings, we decided to tackle the gratin cheesy potatoes without cream. The California native in me just can’t bring myself to have so much cream in one dish.
What I came up with is inspired by classic French flavors. In France, these would be dauphinoise potatoes without cream. With rosemary, browned butter, a chicken stock-based sauce, caramelized onions, and bright lemon, these cheesy potato gratin are sure to be a crowd-pleaser!
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Ingredients and Substitutions
All substitutions are a 1:1 substitute unless otherwise noted.
Cheddar Cheese: The secret to gratin potatoes - cheese! Always try to use freshly grated cheese if you can.
Substitutions: Any kind of cheddar, Colby jack, or gruyere cheese can be used. Pre-shredded can be used but it is dusted in potato starch to keep it from sticking in the bags so when added to the potatoes, the melt will not be as good as with freshly grated cheese.
Russet Potatoes: We prefer to use these potatoes because of their larger size which is easier to hold when slicing with a mandolin or trying to slice thinly with a knife.
Substitutions: Any larger potatoes can be used, such as Yukon gold or red potatoes. You can also use baby or fingerling potatoes and just cut them into cubes and skip the layering of this recipe.
Egg Yolks: Egg yolks are an emulsifier. This means they will combine with butter, similar to the rich flavor of a hollandaise sauce or in traditional carbonara pasta. This is how we emulate the heavy cream sauce texture without actually using cream.
Substitutions: Sorry, no substitutions for these.
Margarine: To make the emulsion, we need butter or margarine too. We use margarine to ensure there is no cream in the sauce.
Substitutions: You can use any butter or margarine you like, including vegan butter.
Rosemary: Rosemary adds a super comforting woodsy flavor to the dish. Rosemary is used in traditional French recipes so it only made sense to add it to these potatoes.
Substitutions: Fresh is best but you can use dried rosemary in a pinch. Sage would also be another great herb option if you can’t find rosemary.
Lemon: A little bit of acid goes a long way! This lemon juice brightens up the entire dish.
Substitutions: This can be lemon juice or juice from a fresh lemon.
Mustard: Mustard is a great way to pack in flavor without adding a bunch of seasonings. We like to use spicy brown mustard.
Substitutions: Any type of spiced mustard you like can be used.
White onion: Of course, I had to put onions in these potatoes. But then I caramelize them and layer them between the potatoes for a real flavor punch!
Substitutions: A yellow onion will work in place of white onion.
Brown sugar: This is to caramelize the onions and ensure the potatoes are balanced.
Substitutions: Coconut sugar or agave can be used.
Flour: Flour is used to thicken the sauce, similar to gravy.
Substitutions: We use white all-purpose flour but you can use any kind of white flour, including a gluten-free 1:1 replacement.
Vegetable Stock: This will be the base of our sauce.
Substitutions: Any kind of stock or broth can be used, such as chicken broth or bone broth.
Salt and pepper: Always add salt and black pepper for extra flavor!
Substitutions: Sorry, no substitutions for these.
How to Make this - Step by Step
Step one: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grab a 9x9 pan or 9x11 casserole dish. Slice potatoes into ¼” thin slices and finely chop the onion. I highly recommend doing this with a mandoline slicer to speed up the process. You can get one here!
Step two: Heat a medium saucepan or skillet over medium heat and add the margarine and rosemary. Melt this down while stirring constantly until the margarine starts to bubble and turn a slight golden brown. You will start to notice little brown flecks in it, at this point remove it from heat.
Step three: While that browns, separate the yolks and egg whites. Whisk the egg yolks with the lemon juice and mustard in a medium bowl and set aside. Save the egg whites for another recipe.
Step four: Once the margarine is done, remove the rosemary and slowly pour the browned margarine into the egg yolk mixture while constantly whisking so as to not scramble the eggs. Once combined - set aside. This is the emulsifying process!
Step five: Add the onions, brown sugar, salt, and pepper to the same pan that was used to brown the margarine. Saute this together until fragrant and soft - about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat.
Step six: While the onions are cooking, grab a large saucepan and add the vegetable stock. Bring to a low boil and add the egg mixture while mixing constantly so as to not scramble the eggs. Once totally combined, whisk in the flour and continue to cook at a low bowl until thickened and then remove from heat.
Step seven: Pour a small amount of the sauce into the bottom of the pan or baking dish and spread it out evenly. Top with ¼ of the potato slices in a shingle-like pattern, being sure the edges overlap. Then add ⅓ of the onion mixture and spread it out evenly over the potatoes. Top this with a ⅕ of the sauce and spread it out evenly.
Step eight: Repeat this layering so there are three more layers of potatoes, onions, and sauce. Then add a fourth layer of potatoes and top with the remaining sauce.
Step nine: Bake covered with aluminum foil for 35 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for another 35 minutes. After this second 35 minutes, add the cheese over the top evenly. Finish it by broiling on high for 5-7 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.
Watch How to Make This - Step by Step
Joy Tip!
Did your eggs scramble when making the emulsion? No worries! If this starts to happen, stop adding the hot butter and use a whisk to vigorously combine the egg and butter and separate the scramble. You can also add this to a blender and blend. Then slowly add the hot butter while the blender is on to continue the emulsification process.
Facts and Common Questions
All the various potato dishes can get confusing. How do you know whether to make an au gratin recipe or a delicious gratin dauphinoise recipe? Well, they're all fairly similar. Dauphinoise potatoes are a French classic and include more cream while typically an au gratin potatoes recipe has less cream and more cheese to create a crisp crust on top.
Gratin potatoes are topped with cheese while scalloped potatoes are not. Gratin is a process of topping something with cheese and baking it to get a crispy crust.
You can slice the potatoes very thinly but it will take time. If they are thicker than ¼”, you may need to increase the cooking time to ensure the potatoes become tender. You can also purchase a mandoline slicer here!
Want to Save it for Later? Here’s how!
These potatoes are best enjoyed fresh or within 3 days as they do start to dry out over time. However, they make a great freezer meal!
Fridge: To save this in the fridge, cover it with plastic wrap or place it in an airtight container. Store in the fridge for 5-6 days.
To Reheat: Cover with foil and reheat in the oven for 10 minutes or until heated through. Or, heat in the microwave for 1 minute and 15 seconds to 1 minute and 30 seconds.
Freezer: These potatoes can be frozen before or after baking.
Before Baking: To freeze before baking, follow the recipe all the way through but don’t bake it. You can top it with cheese before baking. Then cover with two layers of plastic wrap and store in the freezer. This will keep for 3 months in the freezer.
After Baking: To freeze these after baking, let them cool completely and then cover with two layers of plastic wrap. Freeze and keep for up to 1 month.
To Reheat: If not cooked yet, bake covered with foil for 50 minutes and uncovered for 45 minutes. Then broil to finish it. If cooked, bake for 30 minutes covered with foil and 10-20 minutes uncovered.
Fun Fact
If you have ever opened a bag of shredded cheese to notice a light white dusting, that’s probably potato starch or cellulose. It is added to cheese to keep it from sticking together when packaged. Cellulose is made from wood fiber but is no different than the fiber found in vegetables. It is also used as a thickener in low-fat foods like low-fat ice cream. It is very helpful to prevent sticking, hence why we prefer to use freshly shredded cheese in this Potato gratin no cream recipe to ensure the cheese does become meaty and delicious. (Source)
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Did you try this and love it? Leave us a review, we would love to hear from you!
Recipe
Gratin Potatoes Without Cream
Ingredients
- 2.5 lbs russet potatoes
- 1 onion white
- 8 tablespoon margarine
- 4 egg yolks
- 4 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon mustard
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt and pepper
- 2 springs rosemary
- 3 cups vegetable stock
- 5 tablespoon flour
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and grab a 9x9 pan or 9x11 casserole dish. Thinly slice your potatoes into ¼” slices, skin on, and thinly slice the onion. This can be done with a mandolin on the #2 setting or with a knife.
- Heat a medium saucepan or skillet over medium heat and add the margarine and rosemary. Melt this down while stirring constantly until the margarine starts to bubble and turn a slight gold brown. You will start to notice little brown flecks in it, at this point remove it from heat.
- While that browns, separate the yolks and egg whites. Whisk the egg yolks with the lemon juice and mustard in a medium bowl and set aside. Save the egg whites for another recipe.
- Once the margarine is done, remove the rosemary and slowly pour it into the egg yolk mixture while constantly whisking so as to not scramble the eggs. Once combined - set aside. This is the emulsifying process!
- Add the onions, brown sugar, salt, and pepper to the same pan that was used to brown the margarine. Sauté this together until fragrant and soft - about 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat.
- While the onions are cooking, grab a large saucepan and add the vegetable stock. Bring to a low boil and add the egg mixture while mixing constantly so as to not scramble the eggs. Once totally combined, whisk in the flour and continue to cook at a low bowl until thickened and then remove from heat.
- Pour a small amount of the sauce into the bottom of the baking dish and spread it out evenly. Top with ¼th of the sliced potatoes in a shingle-like pattern, being sure the edges overlap. Then add ⅓ of the onion mixture and spread it out evenly over the potato slices. Top this with another ⅕ of the sauce and spread it out evenly.
- Repeat this layering so there are three layers of potatoes, onions, and sauce. Then, add a fourth layer of potatoes and top with the remaining sauce.
- Bake covered with foil for 35 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for another 35 minutes. After this second 35 minutes, add the cheese over the top evenly. Finish it by broiling on high for 5-7 minutes until golden brown and bubbly.
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