Aligot
This has to be one of my favorite travel dishes; aligot. Picture this: an idillyc city, somewhere in the centre of southern France, the houses around the church with closed shutters, some flowers on the balconies. It’s quiet, just a few restaurants and a souvenir shop and then a farmers market on a Wednesday evening in July. Somewhere in a corner a man spends his evening stirring a large iron bowl.
Aligot was created by monks on the plateau of Aubrac in the south part of the Massif-Central in France, some time in the 12th or 13th century. At that time there were a lot of pilgrims on their way to the pilgrimage site of Santiago de Compostella. The simple but nutricious mix of chees, garlic and bread (later potatoes) helped them on their journey to the mountain range of the Pyrenees.
The cheese used is “tome fraîche de l’Aubrac”, also called “tome fraîche” or “tome d’aligot”. This is an unaged, unsalted cow’s milk cheese that gives the mash its characteristic stretch. In France, this cheese is often replaced by “tome d’Auvergne”, but this cheese is also difficult to obtain in the rest of Europe. Alternatives include “Cantal” (especially the young version, “Jeune”) or a 50/50 mix of Gavere and mozzarella. A mixture of young cheese and mozzarella also works well. Since fresh tome cheese is hard to find, I used a mixture of 50% Gruyère and 50% mozzarella.
In this first attempt, I made a few beginner’s mistakes. First of all, I didn’t mash the potatoes finely enough; next time it really should be smoother. I also didn’t keep stirring in one direction the whole time, and the stretchy texture could probably have been better. But the taste was delicious—it really reminded me of holidays in southern France.
I served it with beef sausages from a local butcher—delicious. Of course, you can also pair it with sausages, stew, or other tasty meats. Add a simple salad, and you’re done. A little trip back to Rozier.
Aligot
Ingredients
- Kilo Potatoes Floury
- 400 Grams Tome cheese 50/50 mozzarella/gruyere
- 1-2 Cloves Garlic
- 100 Grams Butter
- 200 Grams Crème Fraîche
Instructions
- Boil the potatoes together with the garlic. Remove the garlic and mash the potatoes.
- Add the butter, crème fraîche and grated cheese, and season with salt and pepper.
- Heat the mixture over low heat and stir continuously with a wooden spatula, without letting it boil. Always stir in the same direction, this will give the mash its characteristic stretchy, stringy texture.
- Enjoy!