Ingredients
700g all-rounder potatoes such as maris piper, sliced into batons
1 tbsp olive oil
1 onion, finely sliced
1 garlic clove, sliced
2 tbsp plain flour
300ml good-quality chicken stock
50ml double cream
50g anchovy fillets in oil, drained and finely chopped
50g fresh white breadcrumbs
Method
Heat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/gas 6. Put the potatoes in a large saucepan, pour over boiling water to cover, salt well and cook for 5-10 minutes until nearly tender. Drain and steam dry in a colander.
Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in another saucepan, then fry the onion and garlic over a medium heat for 5 minutes or until starting to soften. Add the flour and cook for a couple of minutes, stirring constantly (it will become a thick paste). Turn the heat to high and slowly pour in the chicken stock, whisking constantly to mix the paste into the liquid, until you’ve added all the stock and there are no lumps. Keep stirring with a wooden spoon until it’s thick enough to lightly coat the back of a spoon, then stir through the cream. Take off the heat.
In a 1.5 litre ovenproof dish, make 3 layers of the potatoes, topping each with anchovy fillets and pouring over the creamy onion and velouté mixture. Season with pepper and a little salt anchovies are salty). Scatter the breadcrumbs over the top. Bake for 40 minutes or until the top is golden and crisp and the filling is bubbling. Leave for 5 minutes, then serve.