Crispy smashed potatoes loaded with a mound of squeaky cheese curds, homemade beef based gravy, pancetta chunks and topped with fresh chives. Oven baked baby potatoes smashed into crispy bits with perfectly golden crunchy exterior and soft centre pilled high with the classic toppings of a traditional poutine. Everything you need after a big day of winter fun outside if you ask us.

Truly a Canadian classic. We swapped out the french fries for smashed potatoes to give it our own unique spin and oh boy- it’s a game changer! Can’t say for certain if it was because I was just starving when I had this or if it had been too long since I had a poutine but it was the best damn thing I ate.

What makes a poutine a poutine? Well you’ve got to have a combination of french fries, squeaky cheese curds and a damn good gravy. The cheese curds have to be smooth and slightly elastic so that when you eat one it makes a sort of squeaky sound. We recommend room temperature curds to achieve this. The gravy can definitely make or break it. You want it to be hot but too scorching and it has to have a good texture. Not watery and not too thick but somewhere in the middle so that it can coat your fries and also drip down in between to the bottom fries.

OUR GRAVY

We opted for a “quick fix” approach where we used the Better than bouillon beef base concentrate and built our gravy around that. You can find it at any grocery store near the soups and stocks. The flavour is exactly what we were looking for in a gravy. We enriched it with a bit of bacon fat to make it more authentic.

Not all poutines are made the same and equally as good. The ones that do stand out use fresh cut fries, real cheese curds not shredded cheese and have a homemade gravy that’s usually made from scratch that have a deep beef flavour from beef bones, pork and even duck which is very popular across Quebec.

We hope you enjoy this recipe! If you give this recipe a try, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it (once you’ve tried it), and take a picture and tag it on Instagram! We love to see what you come up with. #thecommunalfeast Follow along our social media account on instagram for quick videos on how our recipes come together!

Print Recipe

smashed potato poutine

Crispy smashed potatoes topped with classic poutine fixings of pancetta, chives, cheese curds and a homemade beef based gravy

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time40 minutes mins

Total Time1 hour hr

Course: Lunch

Servings: 2

Author: the communal feast

Ingredients

• 1 lb baby potatoes such as little gem
• olive oil
• salt and pepper
• chopped chives
• cheese curds
• 1/2 cup cooked pancetta + reserved TBS fat
• 1 TBS butter
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 TBS better than bouillon beef base
• 2 cups warm water

Instructions

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Boil potatoes for 15 minutes until fork tender. (easily be pierced with a fork) Drain and let cool slightly.
• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Transfer potatoes to baking tray and "smash" using the back of a glass drinking cup. Apply a good amount of pressure to break open the potatoes. Repeat until all the potatoes have been smashed. Season with olive oil and salt and pepper on both sides. Bake for 30 minutes flipping halfway. Bake a little longer for extra crispy. Baking time may need to be adjusted depending on how "smashed" your potatoes are. The more flatten the crispier they will get.
• While the potatoes are baking make the gravy. In a medium sized saucepan, melt butter. Add flour and whisk into a roux until the colour begin to golden. Add the beef base and 2 cups of warm water. Whisk into a smooth consistency. Add the reserved bacon fat and stir to combine. Let simmer and whisk occasionally until ready to simmer. Do not remove from heat as this may cause the gravy to clump.
• Assemble: Start with the potatoes as the base. Layer with cheese curds, pour gravy overtop and finish with pancetta and chives.
• Serve immediately.