Hungarian Potato Casserole
Hungarian potato casserole or scalloped potatoes (in Hungarian: rakott krumpli or rakott burgonya) are a great alternative to a traditional baked potato. Sour cream, potatoes and hard-boiled eggs all baked together… few ingredients, big meal. A Hungarian culinary classic that is not difficult to prepare. The main actor here is the fantastic Hungarian smoked sausage!
The history of the Hungarian potato casserole
In Hungary, it was first mentioned in the 1840 edition of the “Hungarian National Cookbook” by master chef István Czifray. Casseroles can be found in the kitchens of almost every nation, just think of lasagna or moussaka. The potato casserole comes directly from French, with the honest name of “Tartiflette”, which contains camembert cheese, bacon, onions and potatoes with some white wine. However, it lacks eggs and sausage, so of course the Hungarian potato casserole is much better.
Hungarian casseroles
Casseroles are very popular in Hungary. Housewives make this or a similar dish from almost any vegetable. Whether it’s green beans, cauliflower, peas or potatoes, you can make a layered dish out of anything. As a rule, minced meat ragout, sour cream or cheese can’t be missing in a casserole.
Tips for the preparation of potato casserole
– The potatoes should be a quality, which preferably does not fall apart after cooking
– The sausage should preferably be of good quality and smoked. If its fat content is very high, you can melt the rings in a pan over low heat before baking
– It is worth mixing the melted fat of the sausage with sour cream between the layers of potatoes, sausage and egg
– Begin the layering with the circled potatoes. After that, the sliced eggs and sausage are arranged in the desired quantity, proportion, and order
A vegetarian potato casserole
Because the French version of this casserole is made without meat, this creamy, filling version is also suitable for vegetarians. The sausage, eggs, and bacon are not included in this version. Ingredients include onions and garlic. This version is also quite tasty! (but we’ll stick with the traditional one). If you want a more restrained potato casserole that vegans can eat, substitute tofu for the cheese and use soy sour cream instead of sour cream.
Whichever version you choose, we wish you a very pleasant time while cooking! To help you, you can find our short film about making it at the bottom of the page. Enjoy your meal!
Ingredients:
- 1 kg of potatoes
- 7 eggs
- 1 tablespoon of lard
- 2 cups of sour cream
- 200 g sausage or chorizo
- 200 g sliced bacon
- 1 teaspoon of salt (or more to taste)
- 1 teaspoon of ground black pepper
- 1 tablespoon of breadcrumbs
Steps:
- Wash potatoes and boil in salted water until tender (about 20 minutes). Let cool. Peel and cut into slices.
- Prepare 6 hard-boiled eggs. Let cool, peel and cut into slices too.
- Cut the sausage into thin slices.
- Prepare the casserole sauce: Mix the sour cream with one egg and the spices.
- Layer the ingredients in a deeper-, oiled baking tray: some breadcrumbs, half of the potato slices, all the eggs, all the sausages, half of the sauce, potatoes-, and sauce again…
- Place bacon slices on top and bake at 180°C (350°F) for 45-50 minutes.
Watch our video about this recipe: