By Martha Rose Shulman
- Total Time
- 2 hours (mostly unsupervised baking)
- Rating
- 4(252)
- Notes
- Read community notes
Wild mushrooms add a luxurious dimension to this comforting, almost classic potato gratin. There is no cream here, just milk mixed with porcini broth (the result of soaking dried porcinis for 30 minutes in boiling water). You can use a mix of wild mushrooms, or just one type. Sauté them with onion or shallots, garlic and savory herbs (thyme and rosemary or sage), season them well and toss with the potatoes. The gratin requires 1½ hours in the oven; first you will doubt that all of the liquid will be absorbed by the potatoes, and about halfway through you will be convinced that the finished dish will be watery and the potatoes hard. But by the end, once all the bubbling has subsided, the soft potatoes will have imbibed all of the flavorful liquid in the dish, and the top and edges of the gratin will be crusty, the way a gratin should be.
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Ingredients
Yield:Serves 6 to 8
- ½ounce (about ½ cup) dried porchinis
- 2tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 1pound wild mushrooms, torn into smaller pieces if large, cleaned if necessary
- ½cup finely chopped onion or 2 shallots, minced
- 2garlic cloves, minced, plus ½ garlic clove, intact
- 1teaspoon minced fresh thyme leaves, chopped
- 1teaspoon minced fresh rosemary or sage
- Salt
- ¼cup dry white wine
- Freshly ground pepper
- 1½pounds russet potatoes, golden potatoes or Yukon golds, scrubbed, peeled if desired, and sliced about ¼ inch thick
- 1cup, tightly packed, grated Gruyère cheese (4 ounces )
- Salt to taste
- Freshly ground pepper
- 2-½ cups milk (whole or 2 percent)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (8 servings)
242 calories; 11 grams fat; 5 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 1 gram polyunsaturated fat; 26 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 6 grams sugars; 10 grams protein; 594 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
Step
1
Place the dried porcinis in a bowl or a pyrex measuring cup and pour on 1½ cups boiling water. Soak for 30 minutes. Line a strainer with cheesecloth and place over a bowl. Drain mushrooms, then squeeze in cheesecloth to extract juices. Rinse several times and chop medium-fine. Measure out 1 cup of broth.
Step
2
Meanwhile heat oven to 375 degrees. Rub inside of a 3-quart gratin dish or baking dish all over with the cut half garlic clove and lightly oil with olive oil. Heat oil in a wide, heavy nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion or shallots and cook gently until just tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Turn up heat to high and add mushrooms. Cook, stirring, until they begin to sweat, 2-3 minutes, reduce heat to medium, and add minced garlic, thyme, rosemary or sage and dried porcinis. Cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Season mushrooms with salt and pepper and continue to cook over medium heat until soft, about 5 more minutes. Add wine and cook, stirring, until it is no longer visible in the pan. Taste and adjust seasoning.
Step
3
In a large bowl combine potatoes, mushrooms, half the cheese, and salt and pepper. Arrange in an even layer in gratin dish.
Step
4
Combine milk and mushroom broth. Season generously with salt and pour over the potatoes and mushrooms. Press the vegetables down into the liquid. Bake 1 hour. Every 20 minutes remove gratin dish and press potatoes and mushrooms down into the liquid with the back of a large spoon. After 1 hour, sprinkle on remaining cheese and bake for another 30 minutes, until top is golden and the sides crusty. Remove from the oven and allow to sit for 10 to 15 minutes before serving. Serve hot or warm.
Tip
- Advance preparation: You can make this a few hours ahead and reheat in a medium oven.
Ratings
4
out of 5
252
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Cooking Notes
Idalu
Good but took way too long (over 3 hrs). Not really practicable for most people.
Bill Ahlstrom
Simple and very good. Added chopped garlic. Used more cheese and less liquid than called for. Also added sliced Portabella. Prep time was 45 mins; cooking time 90 mins.
JH
Very time consuming to make. There was too much liquid left in the pan even after more than 90 minutes in the oven and 20 minutes resting. I would recommend first simmering all the ingredients together in a Dutch oven on the stove until the potatoes are almost done, then sprinkling the remaining cheese on top and putting the entire thing in the preheated oven for another 20-30 minutes to brown the cheese. This way you can see the amount of liquid you need and also cut down on cooking time.
Betty
Although time consuming, this dish is outstanding and worth the work and wait. Remarkably,it turns out looking exactly like the picture. It makes quite a bit, and the left overs taste even better the next day. Using a mandolin to slice the potatoes makes short work, of them and helps them cook evenly. It's a real treat!
RTab0625
Has anyone tried using a nondairy milk? Which would work best, if any?
Brenda
Delicious. I made it as written. Perhaps the key is the size of the pan. My pan was larger so the ingredients were shallow. Perfect texture with no extra liquid and no extra cooking time.
Suzanne
Very good, quite rich dish. The prep is somewhat time-consuming but when made for 2 it can be reheated for additional meals. I couldn't get wild mushrooms so used a mix of Portobello, sh*take, and oyster mushrooms.
TDub
Used a mix of baby Bella’s and wild mushrooms and a 1/4 c of veg broth ILO porcini broth. Yes, this is a fairly time consuming dish, but we’ll worth it. Soooo good and makes great leftovers w a salad.
Too much liquid
I might use half a cup of broth and 1.5 cups of milk if I made this again
Carla
No dried mushrooms - used veggie broth. Ricotta and parmesan cheese mixed in with milk. 1/2 recipe.
Cynthia
Far too much liquid after 90 minutes of cooking and 20 minutes of rest. Tasty, and will be great leftovers, just perplexed about the amount of remaining liquid.
Elizabellaire
Fabulous! I made tonight, and was a hit for all. I added some spinach (maybe 6 oz?), increased the cheese, and reduced the liquid ( based upon other suggestions). I also used the convection oven, which allowed it to be done in about 50 minutes total. Last 2 minutes under the broiler. YUM!
Robin G
I followed the recipe exactly and the whole milk curdled early in the baking process. Did this happen to anyone else?
Robin G
I followed the recipe exactly, the flavor is outstanding but the whole milk curdled towards the beginning of baking. Any ideas why this may have happened?
Beverly
This was more time-consuming than I expected, but it turned out exactly as described with no extra cooking time. It was a huge hit with our friends!! Delicious!
Andrew H
This recipe seemed like a great idea but was bland to the point of near tasteless. I used equal portions of shiitake, hen of the wood and chicken of the woods mushrooms. Next time I'll increase the garlic, porcini and shiitake....if there is a next time.
Terry McLaury
Used plant based milk. I added goat cheese because I didn’t have enough cheese. I also added nutmeg and substituted white pepper. Delicious!
Bill
Very good. Next time we make it we’ll add some greens and canned anchovies or tuna. Probably anchovies.
Daira Muldoon
Followed these easy directions and only deviated (due to COVID) with dried wild mushrooms and added some rosemary. Other than that it was a terrific treat with a rib eye steak (stove top seared and finished off in the oven) and crispy oven fried asparagus.
Jeanette
Flavor was delicious, but I would add more cheese and less liquid if I made it again.
Marina
I combined this recipe with Martha Rose Shulman's recipe for potato and pesto gratin with delicious results! https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1013880-potato-and-pesto-gratinInstead of mixing the potatoes with the mushrooms and onions, I tossed them with the pesto and then layered the two mixtures in a pan before baking with the combination of mushroom broth and milk. Turned out deliciously flavorful and not too heavy!
Brenda
Delicious. I made it as written. Perhaps the key is the size of the pan. My pan was larger so the ingredients were shallow. Perfect texture with no extra liquid and no extra cooking time.
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