Potatoes, smoked bacon and onions baked under a whole melting cheese. A ski-resort dish from the French Alps, made here with Oka, a washed-rind cheese from Quebec that melts like Reblochon, with a stronger smell.
Tartiflette is sliced potatoes, smoked bacon and onions cooked in white wine, then baked under a whole cheese laid rind-side up until it melts down through everything. It's ski-resort food from Savoie, and a Canadian winter is as good a reason to make it as a day on the slopes.
My pick for tartiflette here is Oka Original, the younger Oka rather than the aged one, because it melts more evenly into the potatoes. It won't fool anyone who grew up on Reblochon: it's firmer and the smell is stronger.
But the dish still tastes like a tartiflette: smoky bacon, soft potatoes and a cheese that runs down through everything. And Oka sits in the cheese case at Walmart and Sobeys, which imported Reblochon rarely does.
Which Canadian cheese melts like Reblochon?
Reblochon makes the dish, and imported Reblochon is hard to find and expensive here. Oka, a washed-rind cheese made in Quebec, is the closest everyday match. When there's no Oka, raclette cheese does the job, milder but just as melty.
Cream or no cream?
The Savoie version doesn't need it: the cheese makes the sauce. With Oka, I'd add the 125 mL of 35% cream anyway. It loosens the firmer cheese and helps it run down into the bottom layer instead of sitting on top.
Making it in Canada
The 4 French ingredients, and what to buy for them in Canada.
Reblochon→Oka Original (semi-soft, washed-rind, from Quebec)
Reblochon is soft, creamy and pungent, with a washed rind. Oka is semi-soft and washed-rind too, so it melts down through the potatoes the same way, but it's firmer and smells stronger, which is why the slices go on rind-up. Pick Oka Original rather than the Aged: the younger cheese melts more evenly.
🛒 Walmart and Sobeys list Oka Original in 190 g wedges, and Sobeys also sells Oka Classique by weight. No Oka? Use raclette cheese from the deli case, such as Monsieur Gustav Trio Raclette at Walmart and Metro: milder, same melt. If you do see imported Reblochon, one whole cheese (about 450 g), halved horizontally, is right for this dish.
Lardons fumés→Thick-cut smoked bacon, or packaged smoked lardons
Cut thick-cut bacon crosswise into 1 cm batons and you have lardons. Choose a plain hardwood smoke: maple-cured or maplewood-smoked bacon makes the dish sweet, and double-smoked bacon takes over.
🛒 Great Value Thick Sliced Naturally Smoked Bacon (375 g) at Walmart, President's Choice Dry-Cured Thick Cut Naturally Smoked Bacon (375 g) at Loblaws and Real Canadian Superstore, Compliments Thick Cut (1 kg) at Sobeys. In Quebec, Metro sells Plaisirs Gastronomiques smoked lardons in 200 g packs, exactly the amount here; Sobeys lists them too. Skip PC Old-Fashioned Style, which is smoked over maplewood.
Pommes de terre à chair ferme (Charlotte)→Yukon Gold potatoes
French cooks use a firm potato so the slices hold through the bake. Yukon Gold, bred in Ontario and sold everywhere, keeps its slices after boiling; small red potatoes work too. Russets are floury and break up.
Vin blanc de Savoie→Dry, unoaked white wine
Savoie whites are light and crisp. A dry Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc or unoaked Chardonnay does the same job; an oaky Chardonnay tastes of vanilla against the cheese.
Good to know: Oka sits in the specialty cheese case, not with the everyday blocks of cheddar and mozzarella, so look there first.
Ready to cook?
Tartiflette
Potatoes, smoked bacon and onions baked under a whole melting cheese. A ski-resort dish from the French Alps, made here with Oka, a washed-rind cheese from Quebec that melts like Reblochon, with a stronger smell.
Prep time
30 min
Cook time
1 hr 5 min
Resting time
5 min
Total time
1 hr 40 min
Servings
6
Rest 5 minutes out of the oven before serving.
Ingredients
Original recipe: 6 servings.
Instructions
Cook the potatoes. Put the whole potatoes in a pot of cold salted water, bring to a boil and simmer 15–20 minutes, until a knife goes in with a little resistance. Drain and let cool enough to handle, then peel and slice 1 cm thick.
Cook the bacon and onion. Heat the oven to 200°C (400°F). In a large frying pan, cook the bacon over medium heat for 5 minutes. Add the onion and cook 10 minutes, until soft and lightly golden.
Add the wine. Pour in the wine and simmer 2–3 minutes, until reduced by half. Season with pepper; it won't need salt.
Layer. Butter a 2–2.5 L baking dish. Layer half the potatoes, then half the bacon and onions, then repeat. Pour over the cream, if using.
Add the cheese. Cut the cheese into slices about 1 cm thick, keeping the rind on, and lay them over the top, rind side up, covering most of the surface.
Bake. Bake 20–25 minutes, until the cheese has melted into the potatoes and the top is bubbling and golden. Rest 5 minutes before serving.
Notes
Assemble up to the cheese a day ahead and refrigerate. Add the cheese and bake 30–35 minutes.
Leftovers reheat well in a 180°C (350°F) oven for 15 minutes.
If some slices break as you layer them, tuck the broken pieces into the bottom layer and keep the whole slices for the top.
Course: Mains · Cuisine: French · Adapted for Canadian kitchens
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