In honour of La Poutine Week being held in Quebec City, Montreal and Toronto, here is the classic recipe for the French-Canadian staple: poutine.


True Quebec poutine

Ingredients:

  • 3 large sweet potatoes or russet potatoes
  • 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
  • 2 Tbsp flour
  • 2 large shallots, sliced
  • 1 ½ Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
  • Pinch of sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper
  • 2 cups of organic beef stock
  • Handful of parsley, minced
  • Pinch of thyme
  • Pinch of brown sugar
  • 1 L peanut oil
  • 1 cup cheese curds

Instructions:

  1. Push potatoes through a french fry cutter or hand cut so that pieces are uniform in size. Soak in ice water for 30 minutes to 1 hour.
  2. Heat a pan on medium, melt butter then add flour and whisk vigorously for about 8 minutes until the roux is amber coloured. Remove from the heat.
  3. In another pan, lightly sauté shallots in olive oil over medium heat for about 1 minute. Add sea salt and pepper. Deglaze with organic beef stock, add thyme, brown sugar and bring to a simmer.
  4. Whisk in the roux and let reduce on medium low for 15 minutes. Stir in fresh, minced parsley.
  5. Strain chilled sweet potato fries and dry them in a salad spinner. It is important the fries be thoroughly dried before cooking.
  6. Heat peanut oil in a heavy pot on medium-high until oil thermometer reaches 375 degrees F. Fry the potatoes in small batches for 5 minutes, then lay them on a wire rack to drain.
  7. Place the fries on a plate, top with cheese curds and smother with gravy.