Potato Gratin and Cornmeal Fried Chicken

In my last post I shared with you the recipe for my spicy roasted cauliflower, and here is the rest of the meal! The cauliflower was accompanied by my cornmeal fried chicken and potato gratin (there was probably also a glass of wine and some crappy reality television thrown in there somewhere too).

I posted a looooong time ago my original take on a potato gratin—back before my days at The French Culinary Institute—but I’ve since learned that you should actually cook the potatoes in the milk first before just plopping it in the oven. Pictured above and below I started with washed Yukon gold potatoes that I sliced about 1/8″ thick (with Yukon gold potatoes you don’t have to really worry about peeling, but you might want to do so with Idaho potatoes). Place the spuds in a saucepan large enough to hold them and cover with milk (or heavy cream if you want to be extra indulgent). Bring to a simmer and cook just until tender. Next you start layering the gratin:

• Put a layer of potatoes in your baking dish;
• Season with salt, pepper, and nutmeg;
• Sprinkle a little cheese (cheddar, Gruyère, and Parmesan are a few examples of what you could use);
• Repeat layering process of potatoes, seasoning, and cheese until complete.

Pour the reserved milk that was used to cook the potatoes 3/4 the height of the gratin. Bake in a 375˚F oven for about 20 minutes. Since the potatoes are already cooked, it really only needs to spend enough time in the oven for the cheese to melt and the flavors to meld a little bit. Top with a sprinkle of chopped parsley.

And just like the potatoes, I’ve also posted about cornmeal fried chicken before, which has a crunchier texture than just dredging in flour. It really isn’t any different than any of the other recipes I’ve posted about the golden, brown, and delicious bird. Season the fowl with salt, pepper, and garlic powder (I also enjoy adding a selection of ground cumin, paprika, chili powder, and/or cayenne pepper occasionally), dredge in a 50/50 mix of cornmeal and flour, and pan fry in oil that’s at about 350˚F. I believe it should take about 20 minutes of frying time, but don’t quite me on that because I’ve never actually timed it and am kind of pulling a number out of the air… (Update: If you have an instant-read thermometer available, fry until the internal temperature reaches 155 – 160˚F when inserted in the thickest part of the meat.)

So there you have it—a complete meal in the life of The Hungry Hutch.