Potato

Dutch-Oven Scalloped Idaho Potatoes

by:
April  2, 2019
4
12 Ratings
Dutch-Oven Scalloped Idaho Potatoes
Photo by Rocky Luten
  • Prep time 15 minutes
  • Cook time 1 hour 30 minutes
  • Serves 6 to 8
Author Notes

Dutch-oven potatoes are one of Idaho's iconic dishes. According to a potato farmer I met there, Brett, everyone in Idaho knows exactly what it is and everyone makes it. The dish is so ubiquitous that it’s hard to imagine a big family gathering or party without it. It also seems to be very popular as a campout dish, since typically it’s made in a cast-iron pot nestled into burning coals. —Katie Workman

Test Kitchen Notes

Featured in: An Idaho Potato Farmer's Favorite Way to Cook Potatoes. —The Editors

What You'll Need
Watch This Recipe
Dutch-Oven Scalloped Idaho Potatoes
Ingredients
  • 10 slices bacon, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 5 large Idaho potatoes, scrubbed (3 to 3 1/2 pounds)
  • 1 tablespoon olive, vegetable, or canola oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 3 cups thinly sliced leeks, white and light green parts only
  • 1 pound cleaned and roughly chopped mushrooms, any type
  • 1 teaspoon minced garlic
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
  • 1/2 cup dry white wine
  • 1 cup less-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 cup light or heavy cream
  • 2 tablespoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
  • 3 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Directions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lie a plate with paper towels. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the bacon and sauté until just crisp, about 8 minutes. Transfer the bacon to the paper towel-lined plate and pour off the excess fat.
  2. Meanwhile, slice the potatoes about 1/4-inch thick.
  3. Return the skillet to medium heat. Add the oil and then add the onions and leeks and sauté until very lightly browned and softened, about 10 minutes. Add the mushrooms and turn the heat up to medium-high. Sauté for about 8 minutes, until the mushrooms are tender and golden brown and any liquid that was released has evaporated. Add the garlic and stir for one minute until the garlic becomes fragrant. Pour in the white wine and scrape up any bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. Allow the wine to mostly evaporate, then add the broth, cream and parsley and bring to a simmer. Stir in the cooked bacon.
  4. Place 1/3 of the potatoes in a Dutch oven or other heavy ovenproof pot with a lid. Spoon over about 1/3 of the mushroom leek mixture from the skillet. Layer another 1/3 of the potatoes on top, then spoon over another 1/3 of the mushrooms and leeks. Layer over the rest of the potatoes, sprinkle over the rest of the mushrooms and leeks, then pour over the remaining cream mixture.
  5. Cover the pot and bake for about 1 hour, gently stirring the vegetables at 20 minutes and 40 minutes, then letting them cook an additional 20 minutes or so, until the potatoes are tender. When the potatoes are cooked, remove the pot from the oven, sprinkle over the cheese, and replace the lid. Let sit for 5 to 10 minutes until the cheese is melted and serve. Scoop down to get the potatoes at the bottom, and make sure there's some cheese with each serving.
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  • Janet Martin
    Janet Martin
  • Smaug
    Smaug
  • Patty Dayton
    Patty Dayton
  • Marty
    Marty
Katie Workman
Author of The Mom 100 Cookbook and themom100.com blog. A New Yorker, cook, and mom, I don't sit still very much.

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5 Reviews

Janet M.
Janet M. January 21, 2022
While this dish is undeniably yummy--I made it, and I can attest--it isn't anything close to what I grew up in the midwest knowing as scalloped potatoes--ie thinly sliced potatoes often cooked with onions, garlic and always milk or cream. It's also not very much like the potatoes au gratin I learned from my French cookbooks which were made with cream and gruyere cheese. Neither ever had mushrooms--don't get me wrong, I adore mushrooms and they are absolutely terrific in this potato dish. This recipe, however delicious, is not scalloped potatoes.
 
Marty
Marty April 3, 2019
These are New York kitchen potatoes. Idaho Dutch oven potatoes are made on the river, in the forest, or the back yard-where you don’t slice and wash leaks or mushrooms. Too bad you did not get to enjoy the real thing! Always satisfying and served with a crowd enjoying each other’s company - which is half the pleasure. This dish does not need an “upgrade”, it should be authentic to represent the culture it comes from.
 
Smaug
Smaug April 3, 2019
I tend to agree with you- there was a story that accompanied this recipe ("An Idaho Potato Farmer's Favorite Way to Cook Potatoes") that gave enough detail that you it could probably be recreated at home.
 
Patty D.
Patty D. April 4, 2019
So sorry that not all of us have the option to cook over a fire outdoors nor own a cast iron Dutch oven but would like to enjoy a delicious dish. I'm thankful that the author took the time to recreate it for the rest of us.
 
Smaug
Smaug April 6, 2019
I believe that the point was that it's not a recreation (by the author's own description of the dish), it's a new recipe.