POV: Cooking (Probably) the Best Potato Dish in the World

Will takes on the classic Boulangère Potatoes and argues why it’s the best potato dish in the world. Forget the heavy cream of dauphinoise—these potatoes are light, crispy, and packed with flavour, thanks to layers of thinly sliced potatoes, onions, herbs, and rich stock. Perfect for any meal, this dish combines simplicity with elegance, making it a standout on any table.
Will breaks down step-by-step how to prepare this French favourite, highlighting key techniques for achieving the perfect balance of crispiness on top and melt-in-your-mouth tenderness inside. Whether you’re making it as a side dish or the star of your meal, boulangère potatoes will quickly become a go-to recipe in your kitchen.

VIDEO CHAPTERS
00:00 - Intro
00:08 - Caramelising the onions
00:31 - Preparing the potatoes
01:11 - Layering the boulangère
07:14 - Making a cartouche
08:42 - Cooking the boulangère
11:47 - Finished boulangère

Ingredients:
Agria Potatoes
1 Block of butter
Brown Onions
Beef Stock
Oil

Recipe:
1. Caramelise the onions:
Add salt to sliced onions to help them break down and release moisture.
Cook gently over medium heat until they are deeply caramelized, about 30 to 40 minutes. Ensure there are no black bits to avoid bitterness.

2. Prepare the potatoes:
Use a mandolin to thinly slice the potatoes. This helps achieve uniform slices, which is important for even cooking.
Do not wash the potatoes after slicing to preserve the starch, which will help the dish bind together.

3. Clarify the butter:
Melt butter in a microwave for about 20 seconds. It’s okay to leave the milk solids in the clarified butter as they will not burn at the temperature used for cooking.

4. Layer the dish:
In the base of an oven-safe pan, spread a layer of the caramelized onions.
Add a thin layer of sliced potatoes over the onions.
Drizzle some clarified butter and beef stock over the potato layer.
Season with salt and pepper.
Alternate the direction of the potato slices with each new layer to ensure an even arrangement.
Continue layering potatoes, clarified butter, and beef stock, seasoning each layer with salt and pepper as you go.

5. Finish with thyme:
After the last layer of potatoes, season again with salt and pepper, and sprinkle fresh thyme leaves over the top.

6. Make a cartouche:
Cut a piece of greaseproof paper to fit the pan. Make a small hole in the centre to allow steam to escape. Place the cartouche on top of the layered potatoes to help with even cooking and caramelisation.

7. Bake:
Cover the dish with a heavy plate to weigh down the potatoes.
Bake in the oven at 120°C (250°F) for about 1 hour to 1.5 hours.
Halfway through the cooking time, flip the plate to ensure even pressure on the potatoes.

8. Increase the temperature:
After 45 minutes to 1 hour of cooking, remove the cartouche and plate.
Raise the oven temperature to 130°C (265°F) to allow the beef stock to reduce and the potatoes to caramelise on top. Bake for an additional 25 minutes or until the potatoes are golden and tender.

9. Glaze the top:
Before the final 5 minutes of cooking, brush the top of the potatoes with more clarified butter and a little beef stock to create a shiny glaze.
Add a final sprinkle of fresh thyme leaves for aroma.

10. Serve:
Remove from the oven and let the dish rest for a few minutes.
Serve with crispy edges and tender layers of potato, with the rich flavour of caramelised onions and thyme infused throughout.

[jasandper]

Butter was the dish. Potatoes was the garnish.😆 looks amazing

[kazmanscoop]

It's 11pm as I'm writing this and I'm considering starting this 4 hour recipe right now. I want potato boulangere at 3am and I'm not ashamed to admit it

[AndyGait]

I had a ham sandwich for dinner. Watching this almost in tears. 😂

[saltytothebones]

I never thought I would make this when I watched this video. But as I was looking in my fridge one morning I stared at some oxtail bone broth and potatoes. I then continued to make the best dish I ever tried. Thank you for sharing ❤️

[jessicabader]

I'm French and there are a lot delicious recipes with potatoes 😊
That chef is genuinely explaining all the steps with professionalism and passion.

[AlexMPruteanu]

Anthony Bourdain said: you wanna know why stuff in restaurants tastes so much better than home cooking? BUTTER. TONS OF BUTTER.

[lrfiv]

"Thirty to forty minutes, " to caramelize the onions. FINALLY a recipe that reflects reality! Thank you. I'm so tired of recipes that tell you to saute onions for 5 minutes, until "golden brown" - not unless you're cooking them in the heat of Satan's asshole, pal! This recipe looks both accurate, and fire.

[olliec]

Alright youtube algoritihm, you've won. You've put this at the top of my feed every time I've refreshed. Even though I've ignored it every time. I've finally clicked. Are you happy now?

[markhamm]

My wife made this today as a trial run for Thanksgiving. Holy smokes it was good. Way past our expectations. Will be fun seeing family's reaction. And what a fun name.

[beefman]

It's moments like these where I do appreciate the YouTube algorithm. It's rare, but I'm glad when it happens.

[mosriteminioncause]

Will is the best instructional chef I've come across...I am a 60 yr. old man and cook, who has been cooking from age 12 to help my Mom, who left homemaking for work, to pay for my college education...I have seen the best intructors, Julia Childs, Graham Kerr, Jacques Pépin, Paul Prudhomme, Justin Wilson, Wolfgang Puck, and Nick Stellino. But this is the best no B.S. straight forward instruction I have seen... Cheers to you Will.

[trissalopez]

I admire chefs willing to share their knowledge. That’s confidence!

[btbbgie]

If anyone is curious about what makes a good chef - watch this guy. One word - Inspirational.

[erl]

pommes boulangere is one of the first dishes i made at culinary school which i learned all about including the history. its called boulangere because people didn’t have time to cook before working cleaning wealthy homes and it was dangerous to have a fire without being at the house. so they’d go to the baker, who’s ovens were hot but cooling from the morning batches, and they’d put meat over potatoes and onions, and leave it until they’d come back from work. boulangere means “like the bakers wife”. no onions or stock is pommes anna; this is stretching the idea of boulangere, the idea is that the meat drips into the potatoes, but just stock is still amazing. cheers chef.

[whiskybar]

This is so heavy with grease and meat flavours, like a full English in the middle of the day! The timing is spot for this chilly autumn with snow we have all over Europe. Thank you

[irenedeane-ir]

Boulangères potatoes, from a time before people had ovens in their homes and would take their dish to the bakers for the baker to cook in their oven after baking the daily bread

[taraxia]

My son now wants complicated French potatoes for Thanksgiving thanks😊

[NaughtyGoatFarm]

I grew up in New Zealand. Now live in Australia. My grandmother who was from Yorkshire used to make Lancashire Hot Pot when I visited her. She passed away many years ago. Thanks for bringing back that memory for me.

[Kate-crfz]

I was lucky enough to be invited to a French end of season hunting dinner where they served this. It was insanely good, I have never been so surprised by onions and potatoes !

[jerrod_e]

This is the first dish i’ve cooked from a recipe in over 10 years. It turned out great!! Thanks so much for the clear instruction