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Gruyére Potatoes Au Gratin

If you’re a fan of potatoes, you’ll love these Gruyére Potatoes Au Gratin. They’re creamy, cheesy, and easy to make. The perfect side dish!

Thinly sliced shallots and garlic sauté in butter before becoming a thyme-infused cream sauce poured over thin slices of potato. Top it all off with grated gruyére and bake until golden and bubbly. It’s sure to become a family favorite!

Slice of gruyére potatoes au gratin on a plate with the whole dish in the backgorund.

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These gruyére potatoes au gratin are the perfect addition to your holiday table or special occasion. With their rich flavor and gooey melty gruyére cheese, they truly are a delicious side dish.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe!

  • Thinly sliced potatoes become soft and fluffy and serve as a hearty base
  • The creamy sauce is infused with fresh thyme and loaded with shallots and garlic
  • Melty gruyére cheese adds a nice nutty flavor to balance out the creamy sauce

Recipe Ingredients

The ingredients for gruyére potatoes au gratin laid out on a counter with labels over each ingredient.

Step By Step Instructions

Note: Full list of ingredients, their amounts, and instructions can be found in the recipe card below.

Step 1:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9×13 or large casserole dish with butter. Place the sliced potatoes in the prepared dish and set them aside.

Sliced potatoes arranged in a round baking dish.

Step 2:

In a saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the shallots and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for another 30 seconds.

Sliced shallots sautéing in melted butter.

Step 3:

Add the flour to the butter and stir until it is all incorporated. Continue cooking, stirring often, for 1 minute.

Flour added to the butter and shallots with a whisk.

Step 4:

Slowly pour in the room temperature milk whisking continuously until it is all incorporated.

Milk pouring into the butter and flour mixture while a hand whisks the milk in.

Step 5:

Stir in the sea salt, pepper, and fresh thyme. Gently simmer the sauce for 1 to 2 minutes, stirring often, until it becomes slightly thickened.

Salt, pepper, and thyme added to the cream sauce with a whisk.

Step 6:

Pour the cream mixture over the potatoes. Use two forks to separate some of the potatoes to help the sauce get in between them. Don’t worry about doing this with every potato though. The sauce will naturally fill the gaps as it cooks.

Two part photo showing the cream sauce being poured over the potatoes in the first photo and two forks being used to separate the potatoes in the second photo.

Step 7:

Cover the dish with the lid or aluminum foil. Bake for 1 1/2 hours. Remove the lid and spread the grated gruyére cheese over the potatoes. Bake for another 30 minutes.

Shredded gruyére cheese spread over the potatoes.

Step 8:

Turn on the broiler and broil the potatoes for 1 to 2 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Step 9:

Allow the Gruyére Potatoes Au Gratin to cool for about 20 minutes before serving.

Up close shot of potatoes au gratin in a baking dish with a spoon sticking out.

Items You May Need

For this recipe, I used my sharp chef’s knife to thinly slice the potatoes. However, a mandoline would make the task faster and easier.

A food processor with a slicing disk is another option for slicing the potatoes quickly and more evenly.

Tips & Tricks

  • Freshly grate the cheese. This results in the best melt and stringiness. Pre-shredded cheeses are coated to prevent them from sticking together but that also inhibits melting.
  • Slice the potatoes thinly, about 1/4 inch thick. A mandoline slicer makes this task easier and a bit more even but a sharp knife will do just as well.
  • When slicing the potatoes, try to keep them together. This makes it easier to place them in the baking dish in an attractive way. I like to set the round ends to the side and then use them to fill gaps.

Substitutions & Variations

  • Try using other fresh herbs to create different flavors. Rosemary, sage, dill, and chives would all make great choices. A spice blend like herbs de Provence would also be delicious!
  • For a unique flavor, try using sweet potatoes instead of Yukon gold potatoes. The sweetness of the sweet potatoes and the saltiness of the cheese would make for a tasty combination.
  • Cheddar cheese would result in a sharper cheese flavor that would taste great with the creamy potatoes.

Storage & Reheating

Store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

To reheat in the microwave, place the potatoes on a microwave-safe plate and cover with a damp paper towel. Microwave at 50% power for 2 to 3 minutes or until they are warmed through.

To reheat in the oven, place the potatoes in an oven-safe baking dish and bake at 325 until warmed through, about 20 minutes.

Slice of gruyére potatoes au gratin on a plate with the whole dish in the backgorund.

Recipe FAQs

What’s the difference between scalloped potatoes and potatoes au gratin.

Au gratin potatoes are typically sliced thinner and are topped with cheese whereas scalloped potatoes are sliced a bit thicker and are cooked in just a cream sauce without the cheese topping.

What can I substitute for the gruyére?

Swiss cheese, gouda, and fontina would provide the most similar flavor as substitutes. Mozzarella would provide stringy cheesiness though the flavor would be a bit different.

Can I use potatoes other than Yukon golds?

Definitely! I like to use waxy potatoes for recipes like this because they hold their shape a bit more. Red potatoes would be a comparable substitution. You could also use russet potatoes, but know they will likely break down more than waxy potatoes.

What can I use other than whole milk for the sauce?

Using whole milk in this recipe results in a thick but still pourable cream sauce that perfectly coats the potatoes. However, you could replace up to half of the milk with heavy cream for an even richer sauce. To lighten things up a bit, you can use skim or 2% milk, but the sauce will be a bit thinner.

More Recipes You’ll Love!

Creamy Sundried Tomato Chicken

Honey Glazed Spiral Ham

Baked Italian Sausage with Peppers and Onion

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Up close shot of potatoes au gratin in a baking dish with a spoon sticking out.

Gruyére Potatoes Au Gratin

A shallot and thyme-infused cream sauce poured over thinly sliced potatoes and topped with grated gruyére and baked until golden brown.
5 from 2 votes
Print Pin Rate Save Recipe
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: French
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Resting Time: 20 minutes
Servings: 8 servings
Author: Alicia S.

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Ingredients

  • 3 pounds Yukon gold potatoes peeled and thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup salted butter 1 stick
  • 1/2 cup shallots thinly sliced from about 6 shallots
  • 2 cloves garlic minced
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 3 cups whole milk room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon fresh thyme
  • 2 teaspoons sea salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 8 ounces Gruyére cheese freshly grated

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 350° F. Grease a 9×13 or 3.6 quart casserole baking dish with butter.
  • Lay the sliced potatoes in the prepared baking dish. (See note #1)
    Sliced potatoes arranged in a round baking dish.
  • In a saucepan, melt the butter. Add the sliced shallots and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and sauté for another 30 seconds.
  • Add the flour and stir to thoroughly combine. Continue stirring and cooking for 1 minute.
  • Slowly pour in the milk, whisking while you pour. Add the salt, pepper, and thyme. Simmer gently, stirring often, for 1 to 2 minutes until the sauce thickens a bit. Taste and adjust seasoning as needed.
  • Pour the sauce over the potatoes. Use two forks to help the sauce get down in between some of the potatoes. Don't worry about doing this to every potato though, the sauce will naturally fill gaps as it cooks.
  • Cover the pan with the lid or aluminum foil and bake for 1.5 hours.
  • Uncover the baking dish and add the grated gruyére cheese. Bake uncovered for another 30 minutes. Turn on the broiler and broil for 2 to 3 minutes or until the top is golden brown.
  • Allow the potatoes to rest for about 20 minutes before serving. (See note #2)

Notes

  1. When slicing the potatoes, try to keep the slices together so that it is easier to lay place them in the baking dish. I like to remove the round end pieces and use them to fill gaps at the end. 
  2. It’s important to leave the dish to rest for about 20 minutes before serving. This will allow the sauce to thicken. Also, these potatoes are hot(!) right out of the oven so it’s worth the wait.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 534kcal | Carbohydrates: 40g | Protein: 16g | Fat: 35g | Saturated Fat: 22g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 9g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 103mg | Sodium: 1013mg | Potassium: 947mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 1172IU | Vitamin C: 36mg | Calcium: 438mg | Iron: 2mg
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5 from 2 votes (1 rating without comment)

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8 Comments

    1. You can absolutely do that! I would just leave the cheese off the top until just before baking so that it doesn’t get soggy. Also, be sure to pull it from the fridge about 30 minutes before baking so that the casserole dish can warm up a bit and won’t crack while baking. Hope you enjoy the recipe!

      1. 5 stars
        I did not end up preparing ahead of time, but OMG do I love this recipe!! For the first time ever have my potatoes been cooked and tender! Very rich, but paired so well with a baked ham and fresh green beans! Added to my recipe file for the future!

  1. In the oven right now…recipe is a little confusing. Seems like alot of butter.. Recipe says 1 cup butter (1 stick). A stick of butter is actually a half cup. Will see how it turns out. Smells great!!