Poutine

By Melissa Knific

Published May 15, 2024

Poutine
Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.
Total Time
About 2½ hours
Prep Time
25 minutes
Cook Time
1 hour, plus at least 1 hour soaking
Rating
4(86)
Comments
Read comments

Composed of freshly made French fries bathed in a rich, brown gravy and dotted with squeaky pieces of fresh cheese, poutine is a Canadian specialty with small town roots. Several restaurants claim to have invented the dish in rural Quebec, an area known for cheesemaking, either in the late 1950s or early ’60s. (In one story former restaurateur Fernand Lachance replied, “Ça va te faire une maudite poutine!”, slang for “That will make a damned mess!”, to a customer who requested cheese curds on fries. Another story links poutine to restaurant owner Jean-Paul Roy, who noticed customers were adding the curds, sold separately at his drive-in, to their fries.) Poutine has expanded beyond its rural beginning, and can be found topped with everything from bacon to duck confit. Here, the fries are made fresh (highly recommended), but frozen packaged fries can be used in a pinch. Layer poutine a bit like you would nachos, except start with cheese on the bottom of the dish, followed by the fries, more cheese and, finally, the gravy. 

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: Give recipes to anyone

    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.

    Subscribe

  • Share this recipe

  • Print this recipe

Advertisement

Ingredients

Yield:6 servings

    For the Fries and Assembly

    • 3pounds russet potatoes (about 5 large)
    • Vegetable oil, for frying (about 7 cups)
    • 2cups (8 ounces) white Cheddar cheese curds (see Tip)
    • Salt and black pepper

    For the Gravy

    • 3tablespoons unsalted butter
    • ½small shallot, finely chopped (2 tablespoons)
    • 2large garlic cloves, finely chopped
    • 3tablespoons all-purpose flour
    • 1½cups low-sodium beef stock or broth
    • 1cup low-sodium chicken stock or broth
    • 2fresh thyme sprigs
    • 2tablespoons ketchup
    • 2teaspoons cider or distilled white vinegar
    • ½teaspoon Worcestershire sauce (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (6 servings)

693 calories; 51 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 33 grams monounsaturated fat; 8 grams polyunsaturated fat; 51 grams carbohydrates; 4 grams dietary fiber; 4 grams sugars; 12 grams protein; 1008 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Prep the potatoes: Fill a large bowl halfway with cold water. Peel potatoes, then slice them into ⅓-inch-thick planks. Slice each plank into fries, about ⅓-inch thick, and place in the water. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to overnight. (This helps rid the fries of excess starch.)

  2. Step 2

    Make the gravy: In a small pot over medium, melt the butter. Add shallot and garlic, and cook, stirring, until softened, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the flour. When combined, cook until lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Whisk in the beef and chicken stocks, thyme sprigs, ketchup, vinegar and ¼ teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until the gravy is thickened yet pourable and coats the back of a spoon, 7 to 9 minutes. Season with Worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper, if desired. Turn off heat and cover to keep warm.

  3. Step 3

    Make the fries: Before heating the oil for frying, set out the cheese curds to allow them to come to room temperature. Fit a large Dutch oven or heavy-bottomed pot with a clip-on fry thermometer. Add enough oil to fill 2 to 3 inches. Heat over medium-high until the temperature of the oil reaches 325 degrees.

  4. Step 4

    Meanwhile, line a sheet pan with paper towels. Drain and rinse potatoes, then transfer to the prepared pan. Thoroughly blot the potatoes to rid them of excess water. Fit a second sheet pan with a wire rack.

  5. Step 5

    When the oil has come to temperature, add fries in batches to avoid overcrowding (this will take 3 or 4 batches). Fry until lightly golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes. Use a spider or a fine-mesh metal strainer to remove fries, allowing excess oil to drip back into the Dutch oven, and transfer them to the rack on the sheet pan. Repeat with the remaining fries, working in batches and adjusting the heat as necessary to maintain the temperature.

  6. Step 6

    After all the potatoes have been fried, increase the temperature of the oil to 375 degrees. Wipe off the first sheet pan and line it with new paper towels. Gently reheat the gravy over low heat, partially covered. When the oil has come to temperature, return the lightly browned fries to the Dutch oven, again working in 3 to 4 batches. Fry until dark golden brown and just crisp, about 2 minutes. Transfer to the paper towels and sprinkle generously with salt. Repeat with the remaining fries.

  7. Step 7

    Assemble the poutine: Scatter half the cheese curds on the bottom of a large shallow bowl or platter. Top with the fries and the remaining cheese curds. Pour warm gravy over everything, removing thyme sprigs if desired. The cheese curds will soften but not melt. Eat immediately (with forks)!

Tip
  • Cheese curds, bite-sized pieces of young cheese solids that have been separated from the whey during the cheesemaking process, are a must for this recipe. Here, plain Cheddar curds are used (and traditional to poutine), but curds from other cheeses, including Monterey Jack and Colby, may be used, seasoned with various flavorings. Look for them in the refrigerated cheese section at supermarkets or at specialty cheese shops.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Ratings

4 out of 5
86 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Comments

bittersweetdb

I risk having to give up my Canadian passport by telling you this, but I'm in the boonies in California, and I have had the opportunity to make a completely reasonable poutine with frozen fries, Aldi cheese curds, and--believe it or not--Bisto vegetable gravy granules, available on Amazon. The Bisto gravy is vegan, so your vegan friends can still have fries and gravy. It's good gravy! I say this as someone who lived in Montréal for 8 years and ate my weight in poutine several times over.

Nancy from Montreal

Cheese on the bottom? Unheard of. (But worth trying. For science.) They won’t be quite as fresh as day-of, unrefrigerated cheese curds straight from the dairy, but some Wisconsin cheesemakers (like Gardner’s, which I recommend) will overnight excellent cheese curds to US locations and they often arrive still squeaky. (In Quebec, we often call curds or fromage en grains “le fromage squick-squick”—a beautiful onomatopoeia if ever there was one!)

Chris in Québec

Here in Québec the cheese is called "Fromage en grains" and sold absolutely and literally in every supermarket(épicerie), corner store(depanneur), Costco (in larger formats), Walmart, and other grocery stores. The sauce is also sold everywhere in cans and dry mixes. If ever you come to Québec, you cannot leave without trying our classic poutine. Merci beaucoup.

Ryan

Freezer crinkle cut are superior. You don’t need to grow your own potatoes to preserve their purity. The end product is smothered in gravy, salt, and cheese.

meure

I grew up in southern Ontario and fries and gravy was a thing (no cheese curds) I always ate it with a gourmet sauce (ketchup). We did buy chees curds at a country cheese shop in Denfield Ontario - My kids loved snacking on those when we drove up to see the grandparents from Texas. That shop is still there https://www.devizescheeseshop.com/

JRC

Yep, frozen Fast Food Fries work great - just dump half a bag in the air fryer for 8 minutes. Doubled the gravy to use with other dishes (it's that good): used homemade stock but Better than Bouillon also works, 1/4 tsp dried rosemary instead of thyme (preference), no ketchup or vinegar but definitely Worcestershire. Absolutely delicious.

Private comments are only visible to you.

Recipe Tags

or to save this recipe.