Raclette with Potatoes and Pickles
Melted raclette cheese scraped over hot waxy potatoes, with cornichons and cured meats to cut the richness.
Raclette is less a recipe than an arrangement, and it lives or dies on two things: the potatoes must be waxy and genuinely hot, and there must be enough acidity on the table to keep the whole thing from becoming a wall of fat. The name comes from racler, to scrape, because the original version was a half wheel melted by a fire and scraped onto plates. A tabletop grill does the same job with less drama.
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How to make Raclette with Potatoes and Pickles
Ingredients
Quantities scale automatically. Cooking times stay the same.
The cheese and potatoes
On the table
Alongside
Equipment
- Raclette grill or heavy ovenproof pan
- Large pot for the potatoes
- Small serving bowls
Method
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1
Boil the potatoes
Put the potatoes in a large pot, cover with cold water, add the salt and bring to a boil. Simmer 18-22 minutes until a knife slides in with no resistance. Leave the skins on; they hold the potato together under a load of cheese.
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2
Keep them hot
Drain and return them to the warm pan with the lid ajar, or tip them into a covered dish. Lukewarm potatoes are the most common way this meal disappoints, because the cheese sets the moment it lands.
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3
Heat the grill
Turn the raclette grill on 10 minutes before you sit down so the top plate and the little pans are properly hot. Without a raclette grill, lay cheese slices in a heavy ovenproof pan and melt them under a hot grill for 3-4 minutes.
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4
Lay the table
Put the potatoes, cheese slices, pickles, cured meats and the paprika and nutmeg within everyone's reach. Each person needs a pan, a plate and a wooden spatula.
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5
Melt and scrape
Everyone lays a slice or two of cheese in their pan and slides it under the heat for 3-5 minutes, until it bubbles and browns at the edges. Crush a potato on the plate, scrape the molten cheese over it, and season.
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6
Keep going in rounds
Refill the pan and repeat. Raclette is eaten in rounds over an hour or more rather than plated all at once, so pace the potatoes and keep the pickles moving.
Cook’s tips
- Waxy potatoes only. Floury varieties collapse into mash under hot cheese and turn the plate into a paste.
- Allow about 7 oz / 200 g of cheese per person. It sounds enormous and it is almost exactly right.
- Put the pickles on the table, not on the side. The acidity is structural here, not a garnish, and without it the meal becomes heavy within twenty minutes.
Variations
- Grill mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, courgette rounds or peppers in the little pans under the cheese.
- Smoked raclette gives a deeper, bacon-like note if you can find it.
- Swap in Morbier, young Gouda or Fontina, all of which melt smoothly and behave the same way.
Storage and make-ahead
Best made only for the number of people at the table. Leftover boiled potatoes keep 3 days and fry beautifully for breakfast; leftover cheese keeps wrapped in the fridge for a week and melts fine, though it is at its best fresh.
Nutrition per serving
| Calories | 692 kcal |
|---|---|
| Protein | 34 g |
| Carbohydrates | 44 g |
| Fat | 42 g |
| Fibre | 4 g |
| Sugar | 4 g |
| Sodium | 980 mg |
Nutrition is estimated from ingredient averages and will vary with brands and portioning.
