Pan-Fry

Cheesy Potato Bread

by:
October  4, 2022
5
1 Ratings
Cheesy Potato Bread
Photo by YI JUN LOH
  • Prep time 30 minutes
  • Cook time 1 hour
  • Serves 2-3
Author Notes

Cheese. Potato. Bread. They’re a carby trinity that is represented in so many ways across so many cuisines. Most of the time though, they appear as duos. Think cheese toasties, oozing scrapes of raclette on potatoes, or naans stuffed with masala-spiced spuds. But just imagine, if two of the three together can be so gorgeously filling and stomach-nourishing, what if all three came together in a dish? Enter cheesy potato bread.

As its name might give away, this is a hefty dish of cheese and mashed potatoes, stuffed within a flatbread-like bread. Cheese and potato in bread alone sounds like a promising prospect already, but there are intentional additions and steps to further elevate the flavor of the dish. The mash, for instance, is seasoned with mayonnaise to give it a softer, more pliable pull. The cheese—often mozzarella—is sprinkled in two layers, sandwiching the mash to give you an aligot-like ooziness. And the bread is unleavened and fried in a pan on both sides until alluringly browned, giving it calculated crisp to contrast the pillowy cheese and potatoes within.

I first discovered this dish in the ASMR-y annals of Korean YouTube cooking videos, done by Nino’s Home and table diary, among a handful of other popular channels, each with their own spin on the dish. Cooking tree garnishes the top of the bread with rivers of cheese that gets oozy as it bakes. Delicious day adds yeast to the bread for a puffier version. Some add scallions in the bread, or top it with a flurry of chopped parsley. In my case, I sneaked some caramelized onions in between the cheese and mash, adding a layer of savory-sweet depth to the dish.

Whatever the variation though, the core of this cheesy potato bread is always the same—cheese, potatoes, and bread, in all their glory. —Jun

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 1 1/2 cups (180 grams) bread flour, plus more as needed
  • 1 teaspoon (5 grams) kosher salt, divided
  • 1/3 cup whole milk
  • 1 large egg, lightly beaten
  • 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened, divided
  • 1 tablespoon neutral oil, such as canola
  • 2 medium yellow onions, peeled, halved crosswise, and thinly sliced into half-moons
  • 1 large (10 ounces/(300 grams) Russet or Yukon Gold potato
  • 2 tablespoons mayonnaise, preferably Japanese-style like Kewpie
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 cup (100 grams) low-moisture mozzarella cheese, shredded
Directions
  1. In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, sift in the flour and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Make a well in the bowl, and add the milk and egg. Mix with a spatula or a bowl scraper until it forms a shaggy dough, then knead with your hands or the dough hook until the dough is smooth, 4 to 5 minutes. Add 2 tablespoons of the butter to the dough, and knead it for another 2 to 3 minutes to incorporate, until it forms a smooth, slightly tacky but not sticky dough. Form the dough into a ball and cover the bowl with a kitchen towel.
  2. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the onions to the pan with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Cook for 20 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding a splash of water if they start to stick to the pan or singe, until the onions have shrunk significantly and are deeply browned and caramelized. Remove from the heat and let cool slightly.
  3. Fill a medium saucepan with water and bring to a boil over medium high heat. Peel the potato, quarter it, then boil for 15 minutes, or until knife-tender. Drain the potatoes and transfer to a medium bowl. Mash immediately with a potato masher or fork until very smooth. Mix in the mayonnaise, a few cranks of black pepper, and 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
  4. Split the dough in half and reshape it into a ball. Place one piece of dough on a floured work surface and roll out into a circle about 10 inches in diameter. Repeat with the other piece of dough.
  5. Sprinkle half of the mozzarella cheese over one dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edge. Spread the mashed potatoes over the cheese in an even layer. Spoon the caramelized onions over the mashed potatoes in an even layer. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the onions. Place the other dough circle on top, and pinch all around the edges of the dough to seal. To make it a bit neater, tuck the top edges just underneath the bottom. If the dough looks uneven, you can gently smooth it out with a rolling pin, shaping it into a neat, flat circle.
  6. Melt 1/2 tablespoon of butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Using two wide spatulas, carefully slide the filled bread into the pan, cook for about 5-10 minutes, until the bottom is browned and crisp. Brush 1/2 tablespoon of butter onto the top of the bread, then carefully flip it over to cook for another 5-10 minutes, until browned and crisp.
  7. Transfer the bread onto a cutting board or serving plate, slice it into wedges, and serve immediately.
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