10 tips for a perfect gratin
It is one of the most economical and most appreciated dishes by all members of the family. If you want to earn good points with your children, follow our tips for a successful gratin every time. Chef's hat, apron, cook!The king of gourmet recycling cooks itself both salty and sweet. The gratin allows many associations, traditional ones like the gratin dauphinois, but also original gratin recipes! Either way, it's fast, quirky and nutritious food. But what is a gratin? It used to designate the cooking container that was "scraped" to remove the grilled part. Much later, the cooking dish on its way encountered the Parmentier mince and then the gratin dauphinois to become a recipe in its own right.
1- The gratin makes too much water
Add flour or powdered milk to your dish. If you cook zucchini, tomatoes or endives, eat them beforehand in salt. Wash under cold water before adding them to your ingredients.
2- The gratin is not soft enough
Add a few drops of hot milk halfway through cooking. This will allow you to re-moisten the dish and make your gratin dauphinois much more tender.
3- The gratin does not have a pretty golden crust
Sprinkle with store-bought or homemade breadcrumbs, the crumble paste. Add grated cheese of your choice (Gruyère, Parmesan, Comté, mozzarella, Roquefort). Choose a cheese with character. If you have not planned its ingredients, use a simple drizzle of olive oil or butter cut into pieces.
4- The gratin is not well cooked
Have you thought about preheating your oven before? No ? Big mistake / Indeed, preheating your oven prevents temperature variations during baking the gratin (cake ...). This action also prevents food from drying out too quickly. In the case of gratin, if you put it in a cold oven, the heating time will be longer and your dish may be too dry or too hard.
5- The gratin is all burnt
Chef's tip: remember to put an aluminum foil halfway through cooking. It will prevent your gratin from being too browned!
6- To cook the gratin faster
You are in a hurry, your guests are arriving in a short time and you have a gratin to put in the oven. Start by precooking all of your vegetables. The advantage is that they will no longer be able to soak while the gratin is cooking. Put it in the oven and leave it simply toasted under the grill mode of the oven for 15 to 20 min.
7- I like the gratin but I want it lighter
Replace the cream with a light variant or make a combination of 50% cream-50% milk. And try potato variants, such as Alain Ducasse's famous squash gratin. or put frozen vegetables in it like zucchini rings.
8- I want to give my gratin more flavor
To do this, rub the sides of the dish with a strong condiment: garlic, shallot, onion, a ginger rhizome ... Add spices (nutmeg, paprika ...) to your béchamel sauce or cream.
9- The binder of my gratin does not take
Bechamel is known for binding gratins, but if you don't like that, there are other alternatives: milk or vegetable milk, crème fraîche, omelette, etc.
10- My gratin has lumps
To avoid this, mix the milk with the crème fraîche separately, beating with a whisk, then pour over the gratin.
HIC Harold Import Co. 98021-3 HIC Porcelain Oval Au Gratin (Set of 3), 1 EA
