Have you ever wondered how the best steakhouses have such tasty mashed potatoes. It’s most likely because they aren’t mashed at all! These French whipped potatoes are so decadent and delicious they might just become your preferred way of making them.
Arguably the most popular side dish in America, mashed potatoes are so ubiquitous there’s thousands of recipes for them. From basic to loaded, to skin-on there is no shortages of ways to cook these awesome spuds. However in my opinion, the French way is one of the best! I made these to serve with some delicious pork chops in creamy mushroom sauce for a fabulous fall dinner.
If you guess that the French way involves butter then you are correct. “But wait”, you might say, “don’t most mashed potato recipes add butter.” And I would say of course they do, but most don’t add this much!
What Are French Whipped Potatoes?
Unlike regular mashed potatoes, these French whipped potatoes are made in a stand or hand whisk. The trick is to be very careful not to overwork this type of mashed potato dish or it can become gluey.
This recipe is actually a little different than French mashed potatoes as it uses a whisk instead of a potato ricer.
How To Make The Best French Whipped Potatoes?
The most important ingredient when making any type of potato recipe is of course the potato. Some strains are more starchy, some less dense, some can be waxy and so on and so forth. Because this recipe for French whipped potatoes is all about decadence, try to use the best ingredients possible.
Ingredients
- 500 grams Yellow Potatoes – You want a really buttery potato like Yukon Golds to really enhance the creaminess of this recipe.
- 250 grams room temperature Butter – If you are in Europe this is easy, but if you are in America you should use a higher fat percentage butter like 82% or more. I used 82.5% and that small difference from basic American butter makes a huge difference.
- 250 ml (1 cup) Heavy Whipping Cream
- 1 tbsp Garlic – pureed
- 1 tbsp Salt – add more as needed for your preference.
- Black Pepper – freshly cracked, to taste. If you don’t like seeing black specks in your potatoes you can use ground white pepper.
Peel, wash, and large dice the potatoes. Add the pieces to a large pot and add enough water to cover them. Bring the water to a boil and let cook until potatoes are very soft, about 30 minutes.
Strain the potatoes from the water and add them to the bowl of a stand mixer (or regular bowl if you are using a hand electric whisk.
Add in all the butter, garlic puree, heavy whipping cream, salt, and pepper) The butter will easily melt from the residual heat from the potatoes, but feel free to melt it beforehand so it does not cool down the potatoes.
Since I am using a stand mixer, I want to be very careful not to let the potatoes get gluey. Run the whisk at the lowest setting for about 20-30 seconds to mash up the potatoes. Then crank it to the highest setting to whip the potatoes full of air until JUST combined. In my machine I don’t whip at the highest setting for more than 10 seconds.
Use a rubber spatula to move these tasty French whipped potatoes to a chafing dish and garnish with a sprig of thyme or other herb of your choice. I love to serve these potatoes with meat dishes like steak or a classic American meatloaf.
French Whipped Potatoes
Equipment
- 1 stand mixer or electric hand mixer
- 1 Pot for boiling
Ingredients
- 500 grams Yellow Potatoes You want a really buttery potato like Yukon Golds to really enhance the creaminess of this recipe.
- 250 grams Butter Room Temperature. If you are in Europe this is easy but if you are in America you should use a higher fat percentage butter like 82% or more. I used 82.5% and that small difference from basic American butter makes a huge difference.
- 250 ml Heavy Whipping Cream (1 cup)
- 1 tbsp Garlic pureed
- 1 tbsp Salt add more as needed for your preference.
- Black Pepper freshly cracked, to taste. If you don't like seeing black specks in your potatoes you can use ground white pepper.
Instructions
- Peel and large dice your potatoes. Add them to a pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and let cook until very soft, about 30 minutes.
- While the potatoes are boiling you can puree the garlic. I just do it with a knife on a cutting board but you can use a press or blender for convenience. You can also cut your butter into smaller pieces so it will melt more rapidly into the potatoes.
- When the potatoes are very soft strain them from the pot and place them in the bowl of a stand mixer with the whisk attachment. Add the heavy cream, butter, salt, pepper, and garlic puree. Whisk on the lowest setting just to mash the potatoes (about 20-30 seconds) then crank it to the highest setting to whip in lots of air (about 10 seconds)
- Taste and add more salt as needed, then use a rubber spatula to move the whipped potatoes to a chafing dish to serve.
Soooooooooooo good. Of course I didn’t tell the fam how much butter I used but everyone loved loved loved it