The French heirloom, dauphinoise potato, has undergone a subtle Indian twist! This easy potato dauphinoise with cardamom is made with only 4 very simple and easy to find ingredients. Serve alongside a variety of dishes for the best luxurious side dish!

Comforting and creamy side dish dauphinoise potatoes served in a skillet

DAUPHINOISE POTATO WITH CARDAMOM

Name: CARDAMOM DAUPHINOISE POTATOES
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 1 h 15 min
Total time: 1 h 25 min
Cuisine: French
Ingredients: Mandoline; Castiron Skillet 10"; Garlic presser; 500-600g potatoes - 3 large; 600ml double cream; 4 garlic cloves minced; 6-8 cardamom pods; 1/2 tsp. cardamom powder; Sea Salt; Freshly ground black pepper

Could there BE anything better than a potato dish? Potatoes covered in double cream, that's what.

Give your meal the VIP (very important potato) treatment with the addition of cardamom spice.

Why add Cardamom?

The delicious medley of cardamom and cream is unsurpassed and the two go beautifully together in this French-fusion recipe.

Cardamom is used in abundance in Indian cooking in both sweet and savoury dishes. Most often, green cardamom is used in sweets and black cardamom in robust curries.

You also have the option of using the pod whole or using cardamom seeds or cardamom powder.

Cardamom is a spice that is great for digestion and so is usually added to rich Indian food as it is heavy. Similarly here, the aromatic and floral cardamom cuts through the rich creaminess and helps make it a little lighter.

We love utilising cardamom, in particular, in our sweets. Some ideas can be found at our 19 Best Barfi Peda Recipe.

We love Cardamom flavours in Cardamom Chai and Cardamom Chai Kulfi.

We use black cardamom in homemade Curry Powder

And not only sweet and savoury, but you can use Cardamom in drinks too, like this Virgin Cardamom Mojito.

What makes Potato Dauphinoise different

Dauphinoise Potatoes do not have cheese and are made from cream, potato and seasoning only.

I personally love the flavouring without the cheese. I think cheese adds an extra savouriness and these potatoes have a creamy, buttery sweetness making them so much more ideal as a side dish.

However, I have seen a lot of contradicting information on Potato Gratin vs Dauphinoise - if you know what exactly the differences are, let me know in the comments!

Ingredients for perfect Cardamom Potato Dauphinoise

1. Potato!!! - See below for more information on the type of potato to us

2. Cream - we have used double cream here and no milk so this dish is extremely decadent. Double cream in the UK has 48% fat content. You could use a lower fat percentage cream such as single cream however, you will not get the same creamy flavour. Do not use milk alone, it is too thin.

3. Garlic - fresh garlic is minced and added to the layers of potato

4. Cardamom - we have used cardamom in two forms in this recipe. Firstly whole cardamom pods are added to the cream to infuse the cream with flavour. We have then finished the top of the dish with cardamom powder for an extra floral flourish!

What type of potato to use for dauphinoise

The age-old question for any potato recipe!!!

We want to use floury potatoes for this recipe so that the cream will get soaked up and the potatoes are deliciously soft underneath the silken creamy sauce.

Do not use waxy potatoes or potatoes that hold their shape as the potato layers will slip between each other and won't get you the perfect texture.

We used all-rounder potatoes which still gave us a wonderful finish.

How to slice perfect potatoes for dauphinoise

We want the potato slices to be as uniform as possible. Nobody likes half cooked and half uncooked potatoes in their meal right?

We want that creamy deliciousness to penetrate all the way through the potatoes and made them indulgent and soft.

A mandolin is definitely your best friend here. Not only will it give you potatoes that are all the same size but it will also save a lot of time! Win-win!!

How to layer Potato Dauphinoise

I do not think there is a steadfast rule in how you layer the potatoes but I have found that this method ensures that the dish has plentiful of flavour throughout.

Line the bottom of a casserole with a few layers of potatoes. Season with a little salt and pepper along the way.

When you have reached halfway, add half the minced garlic and some cardamom pods.

Add the rest of the potatoes and season with salt and pepper.

Pour over all of the cream then sprinkle cardamom powder.

You could also pour some cream as you go along but I do not think it makes much of a difference.

How to know potato dauphinoise are cooked correctly?

You know you have achieved the Perfect Potato Dauphinoise when a butter knife slides through without any resistance, just like ... butter.

What do Potato Dauphinoise go with / How to serve Potato Dauphinoise?

The general rule is that potatoes must go with a protein-based dish and some sorts of green salads as Dauphinoise potatoes are quite heavy and rich.

This is the ultimate comfort dish and ideal for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter dinner.

I love Potato Dauphinoise with Nut Roasts or Mushroom Wellington.

You can also serve them alongside Herby Tofu Kebab and Orange salad or Zucchini and Green bean Salad

I'll admit something to you... I've totally done a Nigella and eaten these again late at night on their own. Shh.. 😜

HEARTY potato dauphinoise is an ideal side dish for thanksgiving, easter and christmas

Can you make Potato Dauphinoise in advance?

Dauphinoise Potato is a recipe that can so easily be made in advance. It keeps well and doesn't lose its taste or texture if made a day or so early!

Simply keep in the fridge covered in cling film so it doesn't absorb any flavours/odours from the fridge.

Can you freeze Potato Dauphinoise?

To freeze from cooked, allow to completely cool and then freeze covered in clingfilm and foil for up to 6 months. Cook from frozen for around 20/30 minutes until the cream is bubbling.

You can also freeze this dish uncooked. Follow the same freezing method above but cook from frozen for approximately 60-70 minutes or until the cream is bubbling and slightly browning on top.