Hosting or in need of a dish to bring to the next gathering with your friends and family and not sure what to whip up? Australian Onions‘ easy cheesy potato bake is guaranteed to be the crowd pleaser at any event, it’s simple to make and delicious. There is nothing to fault in this perfect dish.
Serves 6
Prep 20 mins
Cooking time 50 mins
Ingredients
2 large brown onions, peeled, halved, thinly sliced
2 tbs olive oil
1 tbs brown sugar
1.5kg medium red skin potatoes, quartered, skin on
50g butter
2 tbs plain flour
1 ¼ cups full cream milk
1 cup chicken stock
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 cup grated tasty cheddar cheese
2 tsp fresh thyme leaves
Method
1. Place the onions in a microwave-safe bowl. Cover with damp paper towel. Microwave for 3 minutes on High/100% power. Transfer to a frying pan with olive oil. Add the sugar. Cook, stirring over medium heat for 10 minutes until caramelised.
2. Arrange the potatoes on a large microwave-safe plate in a single layer. Cover with damp paper towel, microwave for 10 minutes on High/100% power or until potatoes are just tender when tested with a skewer.
3. Meanwhile, melt butter in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring, for 30 seconds. Add the flour. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute until bubbling. Combine milk and stock in a jug, gradually add to butter/flour, stirring until smooth. Cook, stirring, for 5 minutes or until sauce comes to the boil. Whisk in mustard, season. This is your sauce.
4. Preheat oven 200°C. Transfer potatoes to a lightly greased 10-cup capacity ovenproof dish. Spoon the onions over the potatoes. Pour over the hot sauce. Season well.
5. Press a sheet baking paper onto the surface then cover tightly with foil. Place onto a tray and bake 20 minutes or until potatoes are completely tender when tested with a skewer.
6. Increase oven to 220°C. Remove the paper and foil, scatter over the cheese. Bake a further 5-8 minutes or until cheese is golden and edges bubbling. Sprinkle with thyme. Serve.
Tip You can add 200g chopped cooked bacon to the top of the potato bake before the cheese in step 4 if you like.
Tip Red skin potatoes are great for this recipe as they don’t require peeling. Alternately you can use unwashed Sebago potatoes, but they will require peeling before microwaving.
