Warning: If you’re on some kind of diet or detox program, walk away NOW.

Let’s talk about the life blessing that is the potato gratin. What is it? Picture this; soft slices of potatoes, arranged side by side in layers, and bathed in gooey, stringy, creamy cheese sauce. Serve them warm and steaming, perfect for a chilly day. Got your attention yet? Okay.

The best potato gratin I’ve had was at a small French restaurant at Lake Annecy, on a summer afternoon. While looking for lunch options, we walked past this restaurant but stopped dead on our tracks and moonwalked back, because we saw a French woman devouring a large bowl of potato gratin, which looked like it was begging us to eat it. So we sat down, ordered a serving, and the next hour was a heavenly memory of scooping up creamy, cheesy potatoes and dipping crusty bread into the sauce. This restaurant uses four types of regional French cheeses in its gratin. For a money-saving, more relevant option, here’s my twist on a potato gratin to make at home. 

Here’s what you need:

300 g potatoes, or 5 Malaysia-sized ones
A packet of instant Mushroom soup
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Cheddar if you have some

Here’s what you do:

1.      Wash, peel potatoes
2.      Slice them into 0.5 cm thick slices
3.      Par-boil them. By that I mean until it’s slightly soft, but not until they break into mush.
4.      Add water to the mushroom soup mix. Taste. Add salt if needed. Make sure it’s runny (it will thicken in  the oven)
5.      Layer the slices of potatoes in a small baking tray. The layer goes like this – potatoes, mushroom           soup mix, cheddar & mozzarella. Keep going.
6.      Make sure the potatoes are submerged in the sauce.
7.      Dust the dish with some ground pepper. Top with mozzarella.
8.      Into oven, 180 deg C for about 15 mins or until cheese melts.
9.      Take out. Eat while sitting on a couch.
10.    That breakup seems ages ago, doesn't it?