Potato Galette Cooks Illustrated Recipes

POTATO GALETTES

Steps:

• Peel the potatoes, making sure to keep their round shape, and rinse them under cold water. Using a mandoline, slice one of the potatoes almost paper-thin. (If they are not thin enough, you will have difficulty getting them to adhere to one another; also, do not rinse the slices, as you will remove the starch.) On a work surface, form a circle of overlapping slices about 5 inches in diameter. Continue to make layers of slices, sprinkling them with salt and pepper every couple of layers, until all the slices are used. Make another galette with another potato.
• Preheat the oven to 200 degrees and place 2 small skillets over medium heat. When hot, add 2 tablespoons of the clarified butter to each. Using a large spatula, carefully transfer 1 galette to each skillet. Cook until the bottoms are golden brown, 4 to 5 minutes. (Lower the heat if they brown too quickly.) Turn and cook the other side until the potatoes are golden brown and cooked through, 4 to 5 minutes more. Transfer to a small sheet pan lined with paper towels and keep warm in the oven.
• While the first 2 galettes are cooking, prepare the remaining 2 in the same manner. Serve warm.

POTATO GALETTE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Heat clarified butter in a 10 1/2-inch cast-iron skillet over medium heat until very hot, but not smoking. Place a sprig of thyme in center of skillet. Arrange potatoes in an overlapping spiral to fill pan (be careful, because the fat may spatter). Season with salt and pepper. Brush the bottom of a medium saute pan with clarified butter, and place over potatoes to weigh them down. Cook until golden brown, about 8 minutes.
• Carefully pour off excess butter, if there is any, and reserve. Turn galette out onto a baking sheet. Place another sprig of thyme in center of skillet. Using two spatulas, carefully return galette to skillet, browned side up. Season with salt and pepper. Cover with saute pan; transfer to oven, and bake until second side is brown and potatoes are cooked through, 20 to 30 minutes more. Remove top saute pan 5 minutes before removing skillet from oven. Carefully slide galette onto cutting board. Cut into wedges, and serve immediately.

CRUSTY POTATO GALETTE

Steps:

• In a small bowl stir together the butter and the oil. In a food processor fitted with a 1-millimeter slicing blade or with a mandoline or similar hand-held slicing device, slice the potatoes thin. Working quickly to prevent the potatoes from discoloring, brush the bottom of a 9-inch cast-iron skillet with some of the butter mixture and cover it with a layer of the potato slices, overlapping them. Brush the potatoes with some of the remaining butter mixture, sprinkle them with some of the rosemary, and season them with salt and pepper. Layer the remaining potatoes with the remaining butter mixture and the rosemary in the same manner.
• Heat the mixture over moderately high heat until it begins to sizzle, transfer the skillet to the middle of a preheated 450°F. oven, and bake the galette for 25 minutes, or until it is golden and the potatoes are tender. Cut the galette into wedges.