Creamy Nigella Potato Gratin (Print)
Tender potato layers baked in cream with nigella seeds, garlic, nutmeg, and melted Gruyère cheese.
# Ingredient List:
→ Vegetables
01 - 2.5 lbs starchy potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
02 - 1 medium onion, finely sliced
→ Dairy & Cream
03 - 1 ½ cups heavy cream
04 - ¾ cup plus 1 tbsp whole milk
05 - 1 cup grated Gruyère cheese
06 - 2 tbsp unsalted butter
→ Spices & Aromatics
07 - 2 tsp nigella seeds
08 - 2 cloves garlic, minced
09 - ½ tsp ground nutmeg
10 - 1 tsp salt
11 - ½ tsp black pepper
# How-To Steps:
01 - Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 9x13 inch baking dish evenly with butter.
02 - Arrange half of the sliced potatoes in the prepared dish, overlapping slightly. Scatter half the onions, half the minced garlic, 1 tsp nigella seeds, and half the salt, pepper, and nutmeg over the potatoes.
03 - Layer the remaining potatoes and onions on top. Season with the remaining garlic, nigella seeds, salt, pepper, and nutmeg, distributing evenly.
04 - Whisk the heavy cream and whole milk together in a bowl, then pour the mixture evenly over the layered potatoes. Dot the surface with small pieces of the unsalted butter.
05 - Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and bake for 40 minutes until the potatoes are nearly tender when pierced with a knife.
06 - Remove the foil and sprinkle the grated Gruyère cheese evenly over the top. Return to the oven uncovered and bake for another 20 minutes until the cheese is golden brown and bubbling.
07 - Allow the gratin to rest for 10 minutes before serving so the cream sauce sets and the layers hold together.
# Expert Suggestions:
01 -
- The nigella seeds give this gratin a deeply aromatic edge that nobody expects but everyone asks about.
- It is genuinely easy: slice, layer, pour, bake, and you look like you tried much harder than you did.
02 -
- A mandoline slicer is worth the small effort here because uniform potato slices mean even cooking throughout the entire dish.
- If you pull it out of the oven and it looks too loose, give it five more minutes of rest because gratins set dramatically as they cool.
03 -
- Infuse the milk with a bay leaf while it comes to room temperature for a subtle herbal background that people will notice but never identify.
- Press the potato layers down gently with your palms before pouring the liquid so everything bakes into a cohesive slice rather than a slide of separated pieces.