Chantilly potatoes: The French secret to perfect mash revealed

Mashed potatoes are a favourite dish worldwide. While they can be enhanced with mascarpone, bacon, or cheese, the essential ingredients are salt, butter, and milk or cream. However, the French add an element that imbues the dish with lightness. This secret is using cream, but carefully selected and treated before blending into the mashed potatoes.

Mashed potatoes are an incredibly popular side dish, valued for their creamy texture and versatility. To create the ideal mashed potatoes, it is suggested to use type B or C potatoes, such as Irga or Bryza, which are high in starch, contributing to the dish's fluffiness. An essential step is the gradual incorporation of liquid ingredients to better manage the consistency. The best outcome, characterising French-style mashed potatoes, is a delightful, smooth texture. How do you achieve this?

Chantilly is not only a town in France but also refers to whipped cream in the form of a thick cream. Once you have peeled and cooked the potatoes (approximately 1 kilogram), as you would normally do for mashed potatoes, you need to press them through a ricer. At this stage, the texture transforms significantly. Next, add soft butter (about 100 grams) and milk, mixing and controlling the consistency to your preference. It should remain quite thick, as it is time for the final ingredient. That's whipped sweet cream - in Polish stores, it's 30 percent, and roughly 7 tablespoons is enough for 1 kilogram of potatoes. The cream must be well chilled and thoroughly whipped. Finally, use a silicone spatula or wooden spoon to fold it into the potatoes. And to further enhance the flavour, as advised in the article on mashed.com, you can sprinkle the mixture with grated Parmesan cheese and bake at about 200 degrees Celsius for approximately 12 minutes. This creates a golden crust, while the whipped cream maintains its airy, souffle-like consistency.