Cheesy Hasselback Potato Gratin

Updated Dec. 2, 2025

Cheesy Hasselback Potato Gratin
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist:Simon Andrews. Prop Stylist: Christina Lane.
Total Time
About 2 hours
Rating
5(9,835)
Comments
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This golden and glorious mash-up of potato gratin and Hasselback potatoes, from the acclaimed food science writer J. Kenji López-Alt, has been engineered to give you both creamy potato and singed edge in each bite. The principal innovation here is placing the sliced potatoes in the casserole dish vertically, on their edges, rather than laying them flat as in a standard gratin, in order to get those crisp ridges on top. Allow extra time for the task of slicing the potatoes, for which it's helpful to have a mandoline or food processor (though not necessary, strictly speaking). And do buy extra potatoes, just in case; you want to pack the potatoes tightly and keep them standing up straight. Discover more ideas for the holidays here. —Emily Weinstein

Featured in: In ‘The Food Lab,’ the Science of Home Cooking

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Ingredients

Yield:6 servings
  • 3ounces finely grated Gruyère or comté cheese
  • 2ounces finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
  • 2cups heavy cream
  • 2medium cloves garlic, minced
  • 1tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, roughly chopped
  • Kosher salt and black pepper
  • 4 to 4½pounds russet potatoes, peeled and sliced ⅛-inch thick on a mandoline slicer (7 to 8 medium, see Tip)
  • 2tablespoons unsalted butter
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

657 calories; 40 grams fat; 25 grams saturated fat; 1 gram trans fat; 10 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 62 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 16 grams protein; 1004 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

  1. Step 1

    Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Combine cheeses in a large bowl. Transfer ⅓ of cheese mixture to a separate bowl and set aside. Add cream, garlic and thyme to cheese mixture. Season generously with salt and pepper. Add potato slices and toss with your hands until every slice is coated with cream mixture, making sure to separate any slices that are sticking together to get the cream mixture in between them.

  2. Step 2

    Grease a 2-quart casserole dish with butter. Pick up a handful of potatoes, organizing them into a neat stack, and lay them in the casserole dish with their edges aligned vertically. Continue placing potatoes in the dish, working around the perimeter and into the center until all the potatoes have been added. The potatoes should be very tightly packed. If necessary, slice an additional potato, coat with cream mixture, and add to casserole.

  3. Step 3

    Pour the excess cream/cheese mixture evenly over the potatoes until the mixture comes halfway up the sides of the casserole. You may not need all the excess liquid.

  4. Step 4

    Cover dish tightly with foil and transfer to the oven. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and continue baking until the top is pale golden brown, about 30 minutes longer. Carefully remove from oven, sprinkle with remaining cheese, and return to oven. Bake until deep golden brown and crisp on top, about 30 minutes longer. Remove from oven, let rest for a few minutes, and serve.

Tip
  • Because of variation in the shape of potatoes, the amount of potato that will fit into a single casserole dish varies. Longer, thinner potatoes will fill a dish more than shorter, rounder potatoes. When purchasing potatoes, buy a few extra in order to fill the dish if necessary. Depending on exact shape and size of potatoes and casserole dish, you may not need all of the cream mixture.

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Ratings

5 out of 5
9,835 user ratings
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Comments

A couple of things...
1. Since Hasselback is called out here, acknowledgement to our friends in Sweden @ the Hasselback Hotel are in order. Legend has it this dish was invented there.
2. A lot of time can be saved arranging potatoes on their ends by taking a nice Yukon Gold, placing it in a wooden spoon (the spoony-end) and slicing till your knife hits the spoon. The tater stays together nicely at the bottom and it's very easy to handle. You can google this.

Excellent! Added a grated onion to the liquid/cheese mix for flavor. Made it through first 2 thirty minute bakings in advance. Then covered and chilled. Brought to the dinner, sprinkled cheese on top and did final baking of about 40 minutes at the meal (removed foil half way through.) Texture was great! I was worried because initially liquid barely covered bottom of pan, but juices came out with baking and it was perfect! Good crusty bits on bottom too. A real keeper of a recipe.

I made this dish for Thanksgiving with sweet potatoes (not yams) to wild success. My family practically hoisted me upon their shoulders. When I called my mother a week later, she answered the phone without a hello: "Those sweet potatoes were the best thing I've ever eaten." I said, "Hi, Mom. How's everything?" She said, "God, those sweet potatoes were good." I give my full throated endorsement for this recipe. It can make you feel like a conquering hero.

Just not enough of anything. Not flavorful enough, not cheesy enough, and not crispy enough. It was an unremarkable mush. I followed the recipe to the letter, too.

The juice wasn't worth the squeeze for me. These were too bland, although my family really liked the fresh thyme. I probably wouldn't make these again. I ended up adding a lot more cheese during the bake.

Wow, I made this for Thanksgiving. Honestly, probably the best potato dish I've had. I probably am going to make this dish a holiday tradition. I mistakenly used golden Yukon potato and it still turned out to be perfect. Although the baking time is a little time of since golden Yukon has more water content, just need to watch over while it cooks! Really love love the flavor. One more thing just as Chef Kenji mentioned, this dish needs to be heavily seasoned so that it is flavorful.

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Credits

Adapted from "The Food Lab," by J. Kenji López-Alt

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