Potatoes: Gratin or Scalloped

[Shel_B]

I'm making a potato dish for Xmas brunch, and while looking through recipes on the web came across the terms "gratin" and "scalloped." What's the diff between the two? They seem awfully similar to me.

[Panaderia Canadiense]

The difference is that true scalloped potatoes contain no cheese, while gratin definitely contains cheese.

I've always gone for the best of both worlds - the main body scalloped, and topped with gratinade (parmesan or similar sharp cheese and breadcrumbs, often with parsely or cilantro thrown in for a bit of flavour.)

[IndyRob]

I've thought that a gratin can be cheese or bread crumbs or both. I checked the gratin entry on wikipedia and that appears to be the case.

But interestingly, the scalloped part appears to come from slicing the potatoes in a scallop (as in seafood) style.

But I agree with incorporating both aspects. Preferably in a thin layer to balance the scallop(ing?) with the gratin.

[ETA] crumbs

Edited December 24, 2011 by IndyRob (log)

[Ashen]

yep, traditional gratin dauphinois doesn't use cheese, but who wants to be a traditionalist when there are so many good cheeses and so little time.

[gfweb]

A well made potato gratin is elegant and fabulous without cheese. Just potato, cream, salt and pepper, and perhaps a breath of garlic. The cream gets faintly cheesy in the baking and it all improves with an hour of rest before serving.

My understanding of a gratin is that it originally was topped w bread crumbs but the current usage implies a baked veg dish with or without crumbs.

[rotuts]

I agree with everything. Scalloped done correctly does not need cheeze

but i always add a hint of freshly grated nutmeg to it and usually anything 'white'

hint means you know something is in there but it doesnt jump out and say nutmeg.!

[Panaderia Canadiense]

So nobody here considers that spiced flour is essential to scalloped potatoes? I learned them as thin-cut slices of potatoes layered with spiced flour, dotted with butter, and topped with parmesan and breadcrumbs on the last layer, and then with a cup of 50/50 milk and water poured in.

Rotuts - do you use mace at all in white sauces? Or just nutmeg?

[weinoo]

I know this is heresy, and I made a delicious gratin ( sort of from The Complete Robuchon) last week using only the ingredients gfweb mentions above (with a hint of nutmeg), but has anyone tried a "lower fat" gratin - that is, using chicken stock in place of all or most of the cream?

[rotuts]

I use nutmeg. it keeps forever as long as you remember to grate off a little first that stale. to me mace has a similar taste and 'nose' but it far more difficult to get whole and fresh and grate. if I want a 'mace-like' subtle flavor say for cookies, i just use less nutmeg and make sure its very finely grated.

mashed potatoes any way you like them with just a hint of nutmeg makes them spectacular, same for 'white sauce'

the key is to use just enough and not too much. you dont want to say 'Ah Nutmeg'

[rotuts]

Ive made gratin with ck. stock. its good, but its not a substitue for milk or 1/2 & 1/2. its a fine dish in its own right.

if the issue is calories of sat.fat, just eat less. good luck with that!

Ive also use non-fat yogurt. it tends to clump as the fat is what holds the sauce together

Edited December 24, 2011 by rotuts (log)

[JAZ]

As I understand the terms, "gratin" comes from the French term "gratinee," which refers to browning the top of whatever you're baking in order to form a crust of sorts. To aid in the browning, you can use crumbs, cheese, butter or nothing at all. Any baked dish can be finished "gratinee," but it's potatoes that most often got the treatment in American cooking.

"Scalloped," on the other hand, refers to the way the thin slices of potato (or anything else) are layered -- they're overlapped to form a pattern like a scallop shell.

From a linguistic standpoint, the presence or absence of cheese is irrelevant.

[Shel_B]

Thanks for all the input.

[weinoo]

Here's a gratin I made last night using 90% chicken stock and 10% heavy cream...