Can someone tell me the secret to

i precook my sliced potatoes and while they are cooking i make up a packet of cheese sauce. then layer potatoes with whatever i want - onion, veges, bacon etc. then put cheese on top

These yummy potato bake ideas sound fantastic!

Have you thought of taking "Oakhill" Potatoes. the last time I took them to a large family gathering everyone raved about them.

Oakhill Potatoes
This is comfort food that won't break the bank! Although it requires a little time and effort, you can double or triple the recipe, make it a day in advance, and refrigerate it until needed.
For 4-6 servings:
4 large (about 800g) cooked all purpose or floury potatoes
2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and roughly chopped
2 rashers bacon
1 medium onion
50g butter
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp salt
2 cups milk
1/2 cup grated tasty cheddar cheese
1 tbsp butter
1 cup fresh breadcrumbs

Slice the cooked potatoes into a shallow, sprayed or buttered baking dish. Add the eggs.
Chop the bacon and onion and cook them together in the first measure of butter in a large pot until the onion is transparent. Stir in the flour, mustard and salt, half of the milk then bring to the boil, stirring constantly. Add the remaining milk and bring to the boil again. Take off the heat and stir in the grated cheese straight away. If the sauce seems too thick to pour easily, thin it with some extra milk. Pour the sauce over the potatoes, covering the entire surface.
Top the sauce with buttered crumbs made by melting the second measure of butter and stirring it into the crumbs.
Refrigerate for up to 24 hours or bake immediately, in the middle of the oven, at 180ºC for 30-45 minutes until the potato mixture has heated through and the crumb topping is golden brown.
Serve as part of a buffet dinner or as a family meal, with a salad and small bread rolls.
VARIATION: For a vegetarian meal, leave out the bacon and use twice as much cheese.

Note from Toadfish.I don't do the buttered breadcrumbs, just sprinkle with dry breadcrumbs and a little cheese.

I think the secret to the perfect potato bake/gratin is the type of cheese you use; Gruyere cheese has a wonderful nutty flavour and is the perfect cheese to use in a potato bake. Here is Annabel Langbein's recipe:

POTATO GRATIN WITH GRUYERE AND GARLIC

Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 1 - 1 & 1/4 Hours

10 large potatoes (2kg)
4 cloves garlic, finely sliced
100g gruyere cheese (or cheddar), coarsley grated
1 - 1 and 1/2 cups cream
2 teaspoon salt (more if using flakey salt)
ground black pepper

* Preheat oven to 200'C and grease the base and sides of a shallow
bakingdish (30 x 25cm).
* Place the sliced potatoes, garlic, Gruyere cheese, cream, salt and
pepper in the baking dish.
* Toss to combine, making sure each potato slice is coated with cream.
Spread mixture evenly in the dish.
* Bake until potatoes are tender and golden - about 1 and 1/4 hours.

Annabel says that this recipe can be made ahead of time by baking it for half the time and then finishing it off just before you serve it.

slice your spud and onion have a pot of boiling salted water with a lid ,tip your veg in and as soon as your water comes back to the boil drain and let steam dry then add your cream and eggs what ever you wont to use , your spud will cook well and it comes out in layers hot or cold

i slice and par boil my potatoes. Layer them in a dish with onion. then make up a packet of your favourite cheese sauce mix and pour over, then put grated cheese over top

I never use anything but cream in mine and enough to almost cover the (uncooked) potato slices,plus of course theseasonings. Always turns out beautifully rich and creamy.

This is my one which I have used on numerous occasions. It makes a very good dish for a pot luck tea too :)

1 kg potatoes
2 medium onions, diced
2-4 rashers diced bacon
250 g lite sour cream (Or regular, it's up to you)
1/2 c milk (Can be low fat)
Pkt of bacon and onion or onion soup mix
1 c grated cheese

-Peel the potatoes and cut into 2-3 mm thick slices
-Grease a shallow casserole dish,
-Saute onion and bacon and set aside.
-Sprinkle half of the onion and bacon over the dish. Cover with half the sliced potato, overlapping if need be.
-Sprinkle over the remaining onion and bacon and arrange the rest of potato on top.
-Whisk together the sour cream, milk and soup mix. Pour over the potato, sprinkle the top with the grated cheese and bake at 220 for 30 minutes, with tinfoil covering the top. Uncover and bake for another 30 minutes until golden brown and potatoes in the middle are cooked.

Quotetony556 (106 )3:30 pm, Sat 7 Jan #5

Cheese sauce instead of the cream etc.
It's how I do it too.

Oakhill Potatoes

5 x med potatoes,cooked and diced.
1/2 tsp salt
3 x TBS butter
2 x TBS flour
2 x c milk

Make a white sauce,cooking the flour well.

Combine the cold potatoes,2 x hard boiled eggs,a small finely chopped onion, 2 x rashers of cooked bacon and salt and pepper.Add white sauce and mix to combine,and turn into a greased oven dish.

Melt 1 x TBS butter and combine with 1/2 c breadcrumbs and sprinkle over the potatoes.

Bake at 180C for about 30mins.

Quotejessie981 (75 )10:38 pm, Sun 30 Jan #3

jbsouthland wrote:

Now theres another great recipe with cooked potatoes ,large pkt of Creme Chicken soup,tin of whole corn,cream,onion,bacon,cheese.-
-
.must hunt it out that is a great Pot luck meal always commented on.

Please do i'd love to try it

Quotecrails (268 )11:16 am, Tue 1 Feb #20

Oakhill Potatoes
Preheat Oven to 180C
Ingredients:
4 to 5 medium potatoes, peeled & diced. 1/2 tsp salt . 3 tsp butter. 2 tbsp flour. salt and pepper . 2 cups milk. 2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and sliced . 1 chopped onion. 3 tbsp dried bread crumbs. 1/2 cup grated cheese. 1/2 cup pre-cooked bacon bits.
Method:
Place potatoes in large saucepan with cold water. Add 1/2 tsp salt and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low and cook 20 mins until potatoes are tender, drain; reserve. On low, melt 2 tbsp butter in medium saucepan. Add flour, salt, and pepper; cook until bubbly. Add milk, stirring constantly until thickened. Let cool a little.
Add the raw onion, and grated cheese and return to low heat and mix till cheese just melts. Layer potatoes, in lightly greased casserole. Layer sliced hard-boiled eggs, little salt and pepper. Spread pre cooked bacon pieces over top. Sprinkle very finely chopped parley on top. (optional). Add cheese sauce mix over the top. Melt remaining 1 tbsp butter and add bread crumbs; mixing well.
Sprinkle buttered crumbs over casserole. Bake at 180 degrees for 30 minutes.
Most ingredients and methods are pretty similar.

Quotefisher (658 )12:51 am, Mon 9 Jan #32

saving for the archives .

variations on potato bake

more potato bake

I sometimes put pumpkin and/or broccoli in with potato bake

the one you just made that looks curdled will probably be ok tomorrow, leave it set overnight and then reheat slowly. Yeah, the one on the cooking show looked great. I used to make one, thinly slice potato and onion, put it in layers with grated cheese between each layer, garlic too if you want, and then I poured a bottle of cream over it and baked slowly till cooked, used to make it in the big roasting pan, so adjusted the cream to just come up about 3/4's of the way of the potato and then grated cheese on the top, was always a bit sloppy to dish up but tasted yum, and if any was left over it was set the next day.

I make my potato bake, by slicing potatoes and layering in a lightly buttered oven proof dish, sprinkle some garlic and herb salt over the potatoes, toss over a sachet of Maggi's mushroom soup or a tin of condensed soup and pouring a pottle of cream over it and bake in the oven for a good hour or so - easy and delicious!

I make a really easy and tasty potato bake, it takes half an hour from unpeeled to the table.
Peel (or not) your potato's slice very thinly, put half into a container (microwavable) then toss in what ever (I usually put in onion, mushroom, ham, chicken stock) then cover with more sliced potato's.
Pour cream (about 300mls for 4 large potatos) then cover with cling wrap and microwave for 12 - 20 mins check after 12 mins that they are cooked, at this stage I use another container as a weight, to press the potaoto mixture so it is firm, then grate cheese, and pop under the grill. Nice, tasty, fast and easy

I use a "baking roasting" type of potato and 300 mls of liquid to 1 kg of potatoe, with onion, cheese, etc as desired.Always seems to work.

I have never pre-cooked potatoes for a creamy bake. #1 you could try this.which is lovely and very tasty. although rich.
"Pams creamy potatoes" recipe, so here it is.
25g butter, melted;1 clove garlic,crushed;1/4 tsp nutmeg;2 cups grated tasty cheese; 1 kg potatoes,peeled and sliced thinly;2 eggs,lightly beaten;1x 300ml carton cream;1 cup milk;1/2 cup stale breadcrumbs;fresh herbs to garnish.
combine melted butter,garlic and nutmeg in a bowl. Brush a shallow oven proof dish with half the butter mixture. Sprinkle half the cheese over the base and layer the potato slices. Combine remaining butter mix, eggs, cream and milk in a jug and pour gently over potato slices. Sprinkle top with remaining cheese and breadcrumbs ( I dont usually bother with the breadcrumbs) Bake in hot oven - 200C for about 1 hour or until potatoes are tender. (Cover with foil if top becomes too brown.

* Quote
from the potatoes thread.

Sounds delicious Pam but I think I've put on weight just reading that.

Have you thought of taking "Oakhill" Potatoes. the last time I took them to a large family gathering everyone raved about them.

Oakhill Potatoes
This is comfort food that won't break the bank! Although it requires a little time and effort, you can double or triple the recipe, make it a day in advance, and refrigerate it until needed.
For 4-6 servings:
4 large (about 800g) cooked all purpose or floury potatoes
2 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and roughly chopped
2 rashers bacon
1 medium onion
50g butter
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp salt
2 cups milk
1/2 cup grated tasty cheddar cheese
1 tbsp butter
1 cup fresh breadcrumbs

Slice the cooked potatoes into a shallow, sprayed or buttered baking dish. Add the eggs.
Chop the bacon and onion and cook them together in the first measure of butter in a large pot until the onion is transparent. Stir in the flour, mustard and salt, half of the milk then bring to the boil, stirring constantly. Add the remaining milk and bring to the boil again. Take off the heat and stir in the grated cheese straight away. If the sauce seems too thick to pour easily, thin it with some extra milk. Pour the sauce over the potatoes, covering the entire surface.
Top the sauce with buttered crumbs made by melting the second measure of butter and stirring it into the crumbs.
Refrigerate for up to 24 hours or bake immediately, in the middle of the oven, at 180ºC for 30-45 minutes until the potato mixture has heated through and the crumb topping is golden brown.
Serve as part of a buffet dinner or as a family meal, with a salad and small bread rolls.
VARIATION: For a vegetarian meal, leave out the bacon and use twice as much cheese.

Note from Toadfish.I don't do the buttered breadcrumbs, just sprinkle with dry breadcrumbs and a little cheese.

I think the secret to the perfect potato bake/gratin is the type of cheese you use; Gruyere cheese has a wonderful nutty flavour and is the perfect cheese to use in a potato bake. Here is Annabel Langbein's recipe:

POTATO GRATIN WITH GRUYERE AND GARLIC

Prep time: 10 mins
Cook time: 1 - 1 & 1/4 Hours

10 large potatoes (2kg)
4 cloves garlic, finely sliced
100g gruyere cheese (or cheddar), coarsley grated
1 - 1 and 1/2 cups cream
2 teaspoon salt (more if using flakey salt)
ground black pepper

* Preheat oven to 200'C and grease the base and sides of a shallow
bakingdish (30 x 25cm).
* Place the sliced potatoes, garlic, Gruyere cheese, cream, salt and
pepper in the baking dish.
* Toss to combine, making sure each potato slice is coated with cream.
Spread mixture evenly in the dish.
* Bake until potatoes are tender and golden - about 1 and 1/4 hours.

Annabel says that this recipe can be made ahead of time by baking it for half the time and then finishing it off just before you serve it.