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Jansson's temptation
Potato, onion and sprat gratin
Janssons frestelse: Swedish potato, onion and sprat gratin
No Swedish Christmas table, from Gothenburg to Luleå, is complete without a dish of Janssons frestelse, and it often comes back at Easter and midsummer too. Matchsticks of potato and soft onion are baked in cream with Swedish-style spiced sprats (labelled ansjovis in Sweden), which melt into the sauce and season it with a salty, sweet-spiced depth rather than a fishy taste. It is rich, so a spoonful sits beside ham, meatballs and pickled herring rather than being a main course on its own. Many people go wrong by buying Mediterranean salted anchovies; they are far saltier and the gratin turns harsh, so look for the sweet-cured sprats in Scandinavian shops. Chef's tip: cut the potatoes into thin sticks rather than slices; the starch on their many edges thickens the cream as it bakes.
- Total time
- 75 min
- Difficulty
- medium
- Serves
- 6
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ lb firm potatoespeeled and cut into 5 mm matchsticks
- 2 onionsthinly sliced
- 1 ⅜ oz butter
- 4 ½ oz Swedish-style spiced sprat fillets1 tin, with its brine
- 1 ¼ cups double cream
- ½ cup whole milk
- ½ tsp ground white pepper
- 2 tbsp dried breadcrumbs (optional)for a crisp top
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Method
0/7 doneStep 1: Heat the oven to 400°F (350°F fan). Rub a 20 × 30 cm baking dish with a little of ⅓ oz butter.
Step 3: Rinse 2 ¼ lb firm potatoes in cold water and pat dry. Spread a third of them in the dish, then half the onions and half of 2 ¼ oz Swedish-style spiced sprat fillets torn into pieces. Repeat, and finish with a layer of potato.
Step 4: Mix 1 ¼ cups double cream, ½ cup whole milk, 2 tablespoons of the sprat brine and ½ tsp ground white pepper. Pour it over the potatoes; it should come about three-quarters of the way up. Taste a drop: it should be well seasoned, but add salt only if needed, as the sprats are salty.
Step 5: Scatter 2 tbsp dried breadcrumbs over the top if using and dot with the rest of ⅓ oz butter.
Step 6: Bake for 50–55 minutes until the top is golden, the cream has thickened and bubbles at the edges, and a knife meets no resistance in the middle. Cover loosely with foil if it browns too quickly.
55 minStep 7: Rest for 10 minutes before serving so the sauce settles. It can be assembled a few hours ahead and kept in the fridge, then baked; leftovers keep 2 days chilled and must be reheated until piping hot.
10 min
Nutrition per serving
- Calories
- 430 kcal
- Protein
- 9 g
- Carbs
- 33 g
- Fat
- 29 g
- Fibre
- 3 g
Nutrition values are estimates.
KrazyBadal
Good to know
- How long does jansson's temptation take?
- About 75 minutes in total: 20 minutes to prepare and 55 minutes to cook.
- How many people does it serve?
- 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
- Can I make it ahead?
- Yes. It keeps well, so you can cook it earlier in the day or the day before and reheat it.
- What can I use instead of firm potatoes?
- Sweet potato, same weight (sweeter, cooks a little faster).
- What can I use instead of onions?
- 2 shallots per onion.
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