Easy Vegan Scalloped Potatoes (Dauphinoise)

These easy vegan scalloped potatoes – also known as dauphinoise potatoes or gratin dauphinois – are delicious, creamy, and indulgent. Cheesy and gluten-free, they've become one of my favourite plant-based side dishes.

I wanted to make this recipe as simple as possible without compromising on flavour, and I think I've hit a winner. Simply throw all the 'cream' ingredients into a blender, pour this over the thin slices of layered potato, add in some fresh chives, and bake in the oven.

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What are dauphinoise / scalloped potatoes?

Dauphinoise potatoes are a classic French side dish from the Dauphiné region. In a traditional recipe, thinly sliced layers of raw potato are baked in milk or cream with ingredients such as garlic.

In many English-speaking countries, these are known as scalloped potatoes and are often topped with cheese.

Is this the same as potato gratin?

'Au gratin' is a cooking method whereby an ingredient – not just potato – is topped with a breadcrumb and/or cheese crust. It is usually cooked under an overhead grill to make the topping golden and crispy.

There are very subtle differences between dauphinoise, scalloped, and au gratin, and the terms are often used interchangeably.

So, how can we confuse this even further? Let's make it vegan.

How do you make scalloped potatoes vegan?

To veganise this classic dish, we need to recreate the creamy liquid in a way that's completely dairy-free. I use a blended mix that includes cashew nuts and plant-based milk (much like my recipes for vegan cheesy pasta sauce, vegan cauliflower cheese soup, and cashew cream).

The cream gets its depth of flavour from the dried herbs, garlic powder, and stock powder, while the nutritional yeast gives it all a nice cheesy note.

Which potatoes to use for dauphinoise?

You can make this dish with either waxy potatoes (such as Charlotte or Anya) or floury potatoes (such as Maris Piper or King Edward). Floury potatoes result in a softer final product, and it's what I've used here.

Whatever you go for, just be sure to cut the potatoes into very thin slices so that they cook through. It's up to you whether you leave the skin on – I like to as it gives more texture and packs in more nutrients.

How to make easy vegan scalloped potatoes

Preheat the oven to 180°C (360°F). To a blender, add the cashews, plant-based milk, water, olive oil, nutritional yeast, stock powder, garlic powder, dried thyme, dried rosemary, salt, and pepper.

Blitz thoroughly until the mix is completely smooth. It might look quite thin at first, but it'll thicken in the oven as it bakes together with the starchy sliced potatoes.

In a greased oven dish, arrange approx. one third of the raw potato slices to create layers. Pour over approx. one third of the blended cream mix and sprinkle with approx. one third of the chives.

Repeat this process until you have used up all of the potato slices. If you have any potato ends or odd pieces, add all these in the first layer.

Press down on the potato slices using the back of a spoon – the creamy mix should come to just below the top layer of potato. If necessary, pour over a little more plant-based milk.

If using plant-based butter, dab small amounts of this all over the surface of the potatoes. Cover the dish with tin foil and bake in the oven for approx. 45 minutes.

After 45 minutes, remove the foil and continue to bake for another 15-20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender enough to easily pierce with a knife or fork. The cooking time may vary slightly depending on how thinly you sliced the potatoes.

To make the top extra golden and crispy, you can place the dish under the grill for an additional 5-10 minutes (although it should already be a nice golden-brown colour after baking with the foil off).

Once cooked, remove the dish from the oven and leave it to sit for 5 minutes before serving. This allows the creamy mix to thicken and set in the potato.

Variations/tips for vegan dauphinoise potatoes

• Slicing the potatoes: You want the potatoes to be quite thinly sliced – if you have a mandoline or slicer attachment on your food processor then by all means use this.
• Soak cashews: For extra creaminess, you can soak the cashews for five minutes in boiled water. This is useful if your blender isn’t very powerful, but not really necessary if you have a good blender. 
• Add fresh veg: I've used garlic powder to keep things simple and cut down on washing up, but you could also fry a few cloves of garlic and sliced onions or leeks and layer these into the potatoes.
• Use fresh herbs: I've used dried herbs for speed and simplicity, but you could swap these for the fresh equivalent.
• Make it cheesier: Try adding a spoonful of vegan Dijon mustard and/or extra nutritional yeast to the blender. You could also top the bake off with some vegan cheese (such as this Four-Ingredient Vegan Parmesan). 
• Plant-based milk: You could swap out some or all of the plant-based milk for water, but it won’t be quite as creamy or tasty.
• Gluten-free: If you need to ensure that this recipe is 100% gluten-free, use a vegan stock and a plant-based milk that are certified or labelled as such.

How to store vegan scalloped potatoes

Refrigerate: You can refrigerate these potatoes for up to four days. Reheat in the microwave or in an oven on low heat.

Freeze: Freeze these potatoes in sealed containers or resealable bags for up to six months. Defrost thoroughly before reheating in the microwave. You could also reheat from frozen in the oven for around 30 minutes or until piping hot.

More vegan recipe ideas

If you liked this recipe, you may also enjoy:

• Ultimate Vegan Haggis
• Ultimate Vegan Mashed Potatoes
• Cajun-Spiced Baked Potato Wedges
• Creamy Vegan Cauliflower Cheese
• Vegan Cottage Pie
• Hearty Vegan Stew
• Mashed Potato Pancakes
• Vegan Stovies (Scottish Potato Stew)

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