Crispy Cheese and Potato Cake
A golden, lacy disc from Friuli-Venezia Giulia where melted Montasio cheese binds soft potatoes and sweet onion into a cake that is crisp and dark on the outside and meltingly tender within. Traditionally served hot with polenta, it turns three humble ingredients into the most beloved dish of the Friulian table.
- prep 20 min
- cook 35 min
- total 55 min
- serves 4
- intermediate
- vegetarian
- gluten-free
- Italy
Ingredients
- 600 g Potatoes
- 300 g Montasio cheese
- 200 g Aged Montasio cheese
- 1 medium Onion
- 30 g Butter
- 1 pinch Salt
- 1 pinch Black pepper
Steps
- Peel the potatoes and cut them into thin, even slices about 3 mm thick.
- If you prefer, boil them whole in their skins until just tender, then peel and slice.
- Set aside.
- Heat the butter in a wide non-stick pan over medium-low heat, add the thinly sliced onion and a pinch of salt, and cook gently for 8 to 10 minutes until soft and translucent without browning.
- Add the sliced potatoes to the onion, season lightly with salt and pepper, and cook for 12 to 15 minutes over low heat, turning often, until the potatoes are fully soft and lightly golden.
- Lightly crush some of them with the back of a spoon to bind the mixture.
- Grate both the fresh and aged Montasio.
- Scatter the cheese evenly over the potatoes and stir gently so it begins to melt and coat everything.
- Spread the mixture into an even disc and press it down lightly.
- Raise the heat to medium and let the frico cook undisturbed for 6 to 8 minutes, until a dark golden crust forms on the bottom and the edges look crisp and lacy.
- Slide the frico onto a plate or lid.
- Invert it back into the pan to cook the second side for another 5 to 6 minutes, until it is crisp and deeply golden on both sides.
- Slide the frico onto a serving plate and let it rest for one minute.
- Cut into wedges and serve immediately while the inside is still soft and stringy, traditionally with hot polenta.
Tips
- Montasio is essential: use fresh Montasio for the stringy melt and aged Montasio for flavor and the crisp crust. If unavailable, a mix of young and aged Asiago or Latteria cheese is the closest substitute.
- Patience makes the crust: resist stirring once the cheese has melted and the disc is forming, or it will never set into a single golden cake.
- Serve it hot with creamy or grilled polenta, the classic Friulian pairing; a frico that has cooled loses its filant, molten heart.
≈ 540 kcal · 26 g protein · 30 g carbs · 35 g fat — per serving, estimate