Frico with potatoes and onions

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Frico with potatoes and onions
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  • Gluten Free
  • Lactose Free
  • Vegetarian
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Prep time: 20 min
  • Cook time: 40 min
  • Serving: 4
  • Cost: Low

PRESENTATION

Frico is one of those dishes that looks more complicated than it is. A potato and onion frico from Friuli-Venezia Giulia is essentially three ingredients — potatoes, onions, and Montasio cheese — cooked slowly until the cheese forms a crust on the outside and the potato stays soft and yielding inside. The contrast is the whole point: crispy edges, a gooey center, and the sharp, nutty flavor of aged Montasio running through every bite.

This frico recipe uses Montasio, which is the traditional choice and worth seeking out. If you can't find it, Gruyère or Fontina work as a Montasio cheese substitute — both melt cleanly and have enough character to hold the dish together. The technique is straightforward: cook the onions down until sweet, add the potatoes, fold in the cheese, and let the pan do the work. The result is the kind of crispy cheese frico that looks like it came from a trattoria in Udine and takes about thirty minutes to make.

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INGREDIENTS
Potatoes 1.1 lbs (500 g) - to be cleaned
Onions 7 oz (200 g) - to be cleaned
Montasio cheese 10.5 oz (300 g) - semi-aged
Butter 3 ½ tbsp (50 g)
Black pepper to taste
Fine salt to taste
Preparation

How to prepare Frico with potatoes and onions

To prepare frico with potatoes and onions, start by peeling the potatoes 1, then grate them using a coarse grater 2. Set them aside for the moment 3.

Move on to the cheese: remove the rind from the Montasio 4 and grate it with a coarse grater as well 5, so it will melt evenly during cooking. Now take care of the onions: first, peel them 6.

Slice them thinly into rounds 7. In a large pan, melt about 2 tbsp (approximately 30 g / 1.1 oz) of butter over low heat 8, then add the onions 9.

Let them soften for about 15 minutes, stirring often with a wooden spoon to prevent sticking or excessive browning. When they are soft, add the grated potatoes 10 and continue cooking for about 10 minutes over medium-low heat, stirring from time to time 11. Then add the grated cheese 12.

Stir and season with salt 13 and pepper. Continue cooking for about 20 minutes over medium heat, stirring until the cheese is completely melted and well combined with the other ingredients 14. When the mixture is ready, turn off the heat. In a shallow nonstick skillet about 10 in (25 cm) in diameter, melt the remaining roughly 1½ tbsp (approximately 20 g / 0.7 oz) of butter 15.

Pour the mixture into the skillet 16, draining any excess fat if necessary. Spread it evenly and press it down slightly with the back of a spoon to level the surface 17. Cover with a lid and cook over medium-high heat without stirring, as you would an omelet, until a golden crust forms. This will take about 15 minutes.

Remove the skillet from the heat and let it rest for a moment, then turn the frico over using a plate 19 or a lid. Return it to the heat and cook the other side for about 10 minutes, until the color is evenly golden 20. Finally, let it cool slightly before transferring to a serving plate 21. Wait a couple of minutes and serve the frico with potatoes and onions while still hot!

Storage

It's best to eat frico with potatoes and onions freshly made. You can store it in the refrigerator for one day, then reheat it as needed in a skillet or in the oven.

Freezing is not recommended.

Tip

If, after cooking, the frico still appears very greasy, drain it well before placing it on the serving plate and slicing it so it isn't excessively oily.

For this recipe you can use half fresh and half aged Montasio.

If you have difficulty finding Montasio, you can substitute it with any semi-aged or aged cheese you prefer.

Curiosity

There are two versions of frico: a soft one and a crispy one. The soft version resembles an omelet more, while the crispy version is very thin and brittle and is made with grated Latteria or Montasio cheese and cornmeal; with this preparation, "little baskets" are often formed to hold, for example, polenta or cheese!

For the translation of some texts, artificial intelligence tools may have been used.
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