Aligot

On a recent trip to Paris we stumbled across a food and wine festival near to the Sacre Coeur where regional dishes from the whole of France were showcased. The one that caught our attention was Aligot, a dish from the L'Aubrac region in the South.

They traditionally use a local cheese called Tomme Fraîche, a mild and creamy rindless cheese. Other fromage considered as alternatives are Laguiole, or Cantal. Not only is it virtually impossible to find these regional cheeses in the UK they won't be suitable for vegetarians. 

So I used Doux Montagne or Port Salut with some Lancashire cheese which did the trick.

Ingredients

makes enough for 4

1 kg potatoes

500g tomme fraîche cheese, grated (or Doux Montagne/Port Salut /Lancashire) 

2 large garlic cloves, crushed

30g butter

salt, to taste

ground white pepper, to taste

3 tbsp milk

Method

Wash the potatoes clean, then drop them in their skins into a pan of boiling salted water. Simmer for as long as it takes for them cook through and the skin has started to fall off.

In the meantime, crush the garlic cloves and grate the cheese. 

Drain the potatoes, then using a tea towel gently rub off the skins being careful as they will be piping hot. Using a potato ricer or a masher then pass it through sieve to get as smooth a mash as possible. Absolutely no lumps allowed. Even use a hand blender.

Place the mash back into the hot saucepan and season with salt and white pepper to taste.  Add the butter and the crushed garlic then stir into the mash. Add a splash of milk.

Place the pan on a low heat and stir the mash to stop it from sticking and burning. Once it feels hot enough to melt cheese add the grated cheese in batches, rapidly stirring the melting cheese into the mash. 

The puree should be smooth and comes away from the side of the pan once it's ready. It should also have a sheen to it. Add more milk if it appears too solid too soon.

Serve immediately. Traditionally served with sausage, so use your favourite veggie ones.