Raclette is essentially melted cheese, served over boiled potatoes with lots of ground black pepper, accompanied by small pickled onions and gherkins. The name comes from the French verb “racler”, to scrape, because of the way the melted cheese is scraped off the block.
A modern way of serving raclette involves an electric table-top grill with small pans, known as coupelles, in which to melt slices of raclette cheese. Generally the grill is surmounted by a hot plate or griddle. The cheese is brought to the table sliced, accompanied by platters of boiled or steamed potatoes, other vegetables and charcuterie. These are then mixed with potatoes and topped with cheese in the small, wedge-shaped coupelles that are placed under the grill to melt and brown the cheese. Alternatively, slices of cheese may be melted and simply poured over food on the plate. The emphasis in raclette dining is on relaxed and sociable eating and drinking, the meal often running to several hours.
However if you do not own such a grill, and I do not, there is still a way to enjoy this amazing dish. Simply use a sauté pan and voila – dinner is served, in all its all gooey and melting deliciousness.
Serves 3
Ingredients:
1 precooked smoked sausage (I used a saucisse de Morteau)
800 g / 1.7 lbs potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters
1 small onion, diced
1 clove of garlic
8 slices raclette cheese
5 g / 1 teaspoon butter
Large pinch of Herbs de Provence
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Preparation:
Cut the sausage into bite sized pieces
Melt the butter in a sauté pan
Add the onion, garlic and the sausage and lightly brown
Boil the potatoes until almost cooked
Drain and cut into cubes
Add the potatoes to the pan
Add the herbs de Provence and cook all for about 5 minutes
Remove from the heat
Add salt and pepper
Add the cheese and cover with a lid to allow the cheese to melt
Serve with a green salad
Enjoy!
So many people have memories of overcooked, over-chewy calamari, a bit like rubber. But fresh or good quality frozen squid, cooked either very quickly or very slowly, is melt in the mouth tender. The in-between area is where things get very tough and rubbery. The long and slow cooking in this recipe is certainly worth it for a very tender and delicious result. It is a one pot meal and all it needs is some warm, crusty bread to mop all the juices up with. A dish to be enjoyed in summer as well as winter with a glass of cool white wine.
What do you do with leftover chicken or turkey? You could, of course, make sandwiches or use it in a pasta or risotto dish but my favourite way to use chicken or turkey is to make my hearty chowder. My daughter used to love the day after Thanksgiving way more than Thanksgiving itself as she simply loved this soup. It is thick and hearty and makes a great lunch with a piece of crusty bread and butter. If you want a thinner version or feel it is too thick after having puréed the veggies, then simply add a bit more hot chicken stock, or you could just add more cream.