Learn how to make real poutine at home with my Authentic Canadian Poutine Recipe. I will show you how to make it, as well as explaining exactly what exactly poutine is, for the uninitiated.
What kind of a Canadian food blogger would I be if I didn't have a recipe for Canadian Poutine on this blog? Poutine is a wonderful and delicious concoction of fries, gravy and cheese curds and is one of the most quintessential Canadian dishes! So if you already know how great this dish is and are just looking for a great, authentic poutine recipe to make at home, skip on down to the recipe. I've got you covered! If you'd like to learn more about Poutine, read on!
What cheese to use for poutine?
When it comes to poutine, it's really all about the cheese curds. Real cheese curds are what makes a poutine "authentic". Cheese curds are simply solid pieces of curdled milk, that can be either eaten alone as a snack or, in Canada, added to fries and gravy to make poutine :) Cheese curds can be found in white or yellow colour. White cheese curds are the ones you want for poutine.
Substitute for Cheese Curds in Poutine:
If you can't get cheese curds, the closest possible substitution if you want the poutine experience, would be torn chunks (not shredded!) of a full-fat block mozzarella cheese (NOT fresh mozzarella - use the kind you'd shred to put on top of pizza). You want it in chunks so it doesn't melt completely. Don't be skimpy. Some cheese curds are the size of my baby finger. That's part of the poutine experience - the chunks of warm, softened cheese and shredded just won't cut it because it melts completely and mixes in with the gravy. (Cheddar is not the best substitute. Even though cheese curds are technically cheddar they don't taste like it. The taste is much more mozzarella-like - soft, pliable, subtle taste, squeaky :)
How do you make poutine gravy?
I've included a perfect poutine gravy recipe below for you! If you've eaten a lot of poutine, you've probably experienced a wide range of gravy tastes. Some are clearly chicken, some are dark and beefy. I think the perfect one is somewhere in between. I looked to French-Canadian chef Ricardo for a reliable and authentic recipe. Let's face it, the French-Canadians know poutine! His gravy is 2/3 beef stock and 1/3 chicken stock, for a lightened up beef gravy. I think it's perfect.
How to pronounce Poutine:
If you are an English speaking Canadian, you'll almost certainly pronounce it "poo-teen" (emphasis on the last syllable). French Canadians might suggest that it should be pronounced as "poo-tin" (again, with the emphasis on the last syllable). I say, if you find yourself in Quebec, you could try the latter - pretty much anywhere else in Canada and elsewhere, the former will serve you well.
How to eat poutine
Even if you are strictly a person who eats fries with your hands, when it comes to poutine, a fork is the only way to go! The combination of lots of gravy and melted cheese is a mess to eat any other way.
Cook's Notes for Authentic Canadian Poutine
French-Canadians would probably recommend starting your poutine gravy with canned broth (vs. the boxed variety). I personally find it a little too salty for my taste, but that might be just the brand I use.
If you use canned, definitely taste before adding additional salt to your gravy. Don't skimp on the freshly ground pepper in the gravy, though :)
Authentic Canadian Poutine
Ingredients
Poutine Gravy:
- 3 Tbsp cornstarch
- 2 Tbsp water
- 6 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/4 cup unbleached all purpose flour
- 20 oz beef broth
- 10 oz chicken broth
- Pepper, to taste
For Deep Fried Fries:
- 2 lbs Russet potatoes, (3-4 medium potatoes)
- Peanut or other frying oil
Toppings:
- 1 - 1 1/2 cups white cheddar cheese curds, (Or torn chunks of mozzarella cheese would be the closest substitution)
Instructions
- Prepare the gravy: In a small bowl, dissolve the cornstarch in the water and set aside.
- In a large saucepan, melt the butter. Add the flour and cook, stirring regularly, for about 5 minutes, until the mixture turns golden brown.
- Add the beef and chicken broth and bring to a boil, stirring with a whisk. Stir in about HALF the cornstarch mixture and simmer for a minute or so. If you'd like your gravy thicker, add a more of the cornstarch mixture, in small increments, as needed, to thicken. Season with pepper. Taste and add additional salt, if necessary, to taste. Make ahead and re-warm or keep warm until your fries are ready.
- For Deep-Fried Fries: Prepare your potatoes and cut into 1/2-inch thick sticks. Place into a large bowl and cover completely with cold water. Allow to stand at least one hour or several hours. When ready to cook, heat your oil in your deep fryer or large, wide, heavy cooking pot to 300° F.
- Remove the potatoes from the water and place onto a sheet of paper towel. Blot to remove as much excess moisture as possible.
- Add your fries to the 300°F oil and cook for 5-8 minutes, just until potatoes are starting to cook but are not yet browned. Remove potatoes from oil and scatter on a wire rack. Increase oil temperature to 375°F Once oil is heated to that temperature, return the potatoes to the fryer and cook until potatoes are golden brown. Remove to a paper towel-lined bowl.
- To Prepare Poutine: Add your fried or baked fries to a large, clean bowl. Season lightly with salt while still warm. Add a ladle of hot poutine gravy to the bowl and using tongs, toss the fries in the gravy. Add more gravy, as needed to mostly coat the fries.
- Add the cheese curds and toss with the hot fries and gravy. Serve with freshly ground pepper. Serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information provided for general guidance only and should not be relied upon to make personal health decisions.
Hi! I'm Jennifer, a home-cook of many years and a lifelong seeker of delicious food! I'm an equal opportunity eater. I enjoy eating all the foods!
walkerny says
Living many years in central New York, I took many hockey teams up into Northern New York, Ontario & Quebec where the boys loved poutine. Coming from Philly, I was familiar with "wets", gravy on fries, how could adding cheese curds NOT be a plus (other than my doctors opinion)? Wanted to make these for the boys again when they visit. Thanks so much.
Jennifer says
Do enjoy! It's the ultimate comfort food :)
Pat says
This worked out perfect. The weather has been blue chip and we were having a small (6) party for my daughters 31st birthday. I made this all out side on my burner. Poutine complimented my home made burgers. We did the 3X version. My son in law cut all the potatoes ahead of time. I also made the gravy the night before and heated it up again. I think I was able to get a few fork fulls before it was all gone. .i did not change a thing did as you suggested it was tasty. Next time I’ll double it again so I get some.
Jennifer says
So glad you enjoyed it! And yes, you definitely need to double it :) Thanks Pat!
Mina Kerr says
My daughter is a hardcore "pescatarian." Can I use vegetable broth - or will that ruin the flavor? (She may just have to "abstain!")
Jennifer says
Hi Mina, My daughter is vegetarian, so I have a little experience in this area. She uses a powdered gravy mix from Walmart that is a beef gravy with no actual beef :) There is also no-chicken chicken base, from Better than Bouillon, among others. Surprisingly there are a lot of no-meat "meat gravies" on the market! It's worth a closer look at the ingredient labels on broths and/or gravies (canned or powdered), for sure. That wold be the best option. All that said, vegetable broth will technically work, though the flavour will definitely be a bit un-pountine-like. But ... if you want to make one that works for all, give it a go :) Enjoy!
Lora Burke-Mulkey says
Better than bullion is the bomb! Only thing I use now days. They have a veggie one that's really good flavor
Abbey says
My first time to comment.
I only followed your recipe on potatoes and how to fry them since we already had canned st. Hubert’s poutine gravy with smoky bacon. Wow! This will be the only way I will fry potatoes from now on. So i did 300 degree F for 7 minutes then followed your instructions to remove and turn the heat up to 375. I tried 2 batches. Fried it for 3 minutes and 5 mins.
I served my hubby the 2nd batch cooked in 5 mins and he loved it. I prefer light golden brown so i ate the 3 min batch. I used st. Albert’s cheese curds. Was super good cause of the fries. It reminded me of the food chain new york fries poutiine. Yum! I will try your gravy next time:)
Jennifer says
So glad to hear, Abbey :) Thanks!
Audrey says
Hi! I tried “dissolving” the corn starch in the amount of water recommended, but it ended up becoming that dry paste, as corn starch tends to do. When I added half of the cornstarch mixture to the gravy, the corn starch simply clumped up and didn’t mix at all. Could you please help me? Not sure where I went wrong.
Jennifer says
Hi Audrey, just add a splash more water to thin out the paste a bit more. It should blend in just fine.
Natalie says
Hello! Can the gravy be frozen or should I half the recipe if I don’t think we’ll use it all?
Jennifer says
Hi Natalie and yes, the gravy should freeze just fine. Enjoy!
Tre says
Can I substitute the beef broth with chicken broth if i only have chicken??
Jennifer says
Hi Tre, you can, in a pinch. Your gravy will be quite light and you'd be moving away from something more "authentic", but if you're ok with that, it's all good :)
Jodi says
Hi Jennifer,
I have a friend who is gluten free due to Celiac Disease. I’m going to try this recipe for her this weekend (her husband is of Canadian decent so she makes it for him from a mix they buy in Canada) but instead of regular flour I’m going to substitute sweet rice flour. I’ll let you know how this works out! I also add some onion and garlic powder when I make your recipe.
Jennifer says
Do let me know! Enjoy :) Thanks!
Rick says
I was in Niagara Falls two weeks ago and tried this Canadian dish for the first time ... Talk about comfort food ! I just had to look for the recipe and while browsing came across yours I will be making Poutine tomorrow! Thanks a bunch...
Jennifer says
Enjoy Rick! It definitely hits the spot when comfort food is required :)
Kyle says
First time ever commenting.
Have had great luck using cast iron and broiling the last few minutes. Can toss the whole thing into the oven and let it sit for a short while.
Jennifer says
Sounds yummy :)
Angela G says
I have had poutine before but have never made it at home until recently. This is the only recipe I have used but this one is a winner. So delicious!
Jennifer says
So happy to hear! Thanks so much :)
Joyce says
I've been experimenting with Poutine, and I'm so glad I found your site. Right now, I'm baking some fries in my oven, have the cheese curds ready, and I've got some Heinz Turkey gravy mixed with a bit of Worcestershire sauce which I'll quickly microwave.
Pretty lame, right? Next time I'll try it your way.
Jennifer says
Lol! Sometimes we have to do what we have to do, to get that poutine fix :)
christina flynn says
Oh my oh, I think I'm going to be very sorry I found this recipe! I'll be giving these a try very soon, and I think I've even seen cheese curds in a store. For the gravy, let me recommend Better Than Bouillon soup bases. They are far better than any canned gravy or other forms of bullion I've tasted. For the vegetarian, they make a vegetable base and a mushroom base; the mushroom adds a lot of depth to everything.
Jennifer says
Better Than Bouillon is a staple here, but in a nod to the "authentic" part of this recipe, canned broth is suggested, as it has the extra salty/beefy base that is typically found with poutine gravy. You can certainly use BtB if you prefer :)
Yulia says
Perfection ! My family thanks you for taking the time to share the detail of our new family staple .
Myself, I feel great for pulling this off with freshly ground kamut for flour and homemade flavors of lamb and turkey drippings along with broths with ( grass fed blah-blah ) gelatin and nutrients ( the mama talking ) .
Also, we live near awarded family restaurant who’s poutine is insane so the pressure was on, haha.
Again, this recipe is it. And I will thank the author every time we enjoy the dish :)
Jennifer says
So glad to hear, Yulia! Thanks so much :)
Andy Veenstra says
Does poutine also tastes delicious with mac and cheese, topped with pulled pork or beef ?
Jennifer says
Absolutely! The more comfort foods, the better :)
Sascha says
I tried this recipe today, first I have to say we loved it! But I have a question: It seemed to me that the gravy was way too thick? I mean it was not like in your pictures, very thin and just covering the fries a bit. It was more like pudding. I followed your recipe to the letter, but still it's weird to me.. What could I have done wrong?
Jennifer says
Hi Sascha, I learned from your instagram comment that you used the metric measurements. The metric amounts are calculated automatically by my recipe software. I have only ever used the Imperial measures. Sounds like the amount for cornstarch was inaccurately converted. I have removed the metric measurements for now, until I can verify them myself. Sorry about that error.
David says
Hi Jennifer,
I also just made the gravy using tablespoons & my gravy is also as thick as pudding. Was I supposed to use teaspoons? But I'm sure tbsp is tablespoon. Any suggestions?
My picky daughter was dipping her fried chicken into the gravy throughout dinner, which means she likes it!
Jennifer says
Hi David, Are you talking about tablespoons of cornstarch? Yes, it should be tablespoons, but I've updated the instructions to suggest not necessarily adding it all at once, but adding only as much as is needed to thicken the gravy to the desired level. That should work better at controlling the thickness.
Brianna Steele says
Hello! I'm interested in making poutine for my coworkers at a potluck we're having. Since I will be short on time I was thinking about just getting the fries from a restaurant the day before, and just making the gravy part myself. Any suggestions for this?
Also, I was wondering how big the portion sizes are as I was planning to just provide everyone with enough to fill a medium ice cream sized cup. Given that size, if I'm making for about 16 people, how many people should I actually adjust the recipe for?
Thanks for much for your help :)
Jennifer says
Hi Brianna, Hmmm. So the gravy makes about 3 1/2 cups and you'd probably use 1/2 cup per serving, so about 7 servings per recipe as listed. So if my logic is sound, you'd probably want to double the gravy/curds to feed your 16. Hope that helps :)
Rhonda Johnson says
I have a grandson who is half Canadian and American. His mother is a mostly vegetarian (no meats. Only eggs and dairy.). Can the gravy be made with vegetable broth? So she can eat it with everyone..
Jennifer Maloney says
Hi Rhonda, you can certainly make the gravy with vegetable broth if you like, though it will be lacking considerable depth of flavour. Since my daughter is vegetarian I can tell you that there are "no meat" beef and chicken gravy mixes that are pretty easy to find at most grocery stores. I have no idea what they are made of, but it's not meat, so good for vegetarians and test a little "beefier" than using a veggie broth probably. Just throwing that idea out there for you.
Tara says
Hey,
Try adding some marmite to your veg gravy that will give it some depth close to a beef gravy!
Jason says
I have 2 questions. 1. Will frozen fries work as good as fresh? 2. Will wheat flour work in place of corn starch? Thank you.
Jennifer says
Hi Jason, and yes, frozen fries will work (just won't be as delicious :) You can't mix flour directly into hot liquid like you can with the cornstarch, as it will just lump up and not thicken. If you don't have cornstarch, simply increase the amount of flour to start the gravy to about 1/3 cup, then the gravy will probably be thick enough from that, that you won't need the cornstarch. (It may taste a little more "flour-y", but should work).
Amber says
Thank you for helping the poor American who went to Canada and was introduced to poutine and then sent back to America where no one has heard of poutine. I was craving it so much and decided making some for Canada Day was only appropriate but needed a recipe!
Jennifer says
So glad to be able to facilitate your poutine fix and thanks for celebrating Canada Day with it :)
Jonathan says
Is the butter flour mixture in the gravy supposed to be like a dough ish consistency
Jennifer says
Yes, it is very thick. Be sure to cook it in the pan for a minute or so though, to cook off the raw flour flavour. (Just sort of move it around the pan so it doesn't scorch)
Hrysoula says
Would Haloumi work in lieu of cheddar curds? It definitely has the 'squeak' of curds....my precious little niece is coming to visit me again, and after 2 weeks last summer - she was going through withdrawal for poutine!
Jennifer says
Hi Hrysoula, Haloumi does have the squeak, but it doesn't melt. I'd still go with mozzarella if you can't get your hands on real curds :)
Theresa says
Hello there, we just returned from Canada where we experienced poutine for the first time and are already craving it! We have an air fryer that doesn't require any oil, so would you still take them out and turn it up and then cook them longer? Can't wait to try this!!!!!
Jennifer says
Hi Theresa! No, if you're using an air fryer, just cook them until they are nice and golden brown :) Then you can toss them with the warm gravy and cheese curds. Enjoy :)
Milena | Craft Beering says
I love, love, love poutine. It is the best thing to have with so many of my favorite beer styles. Looks great!
Jennifer says
Thanks Milena and me, too! It's my go-to comfort food, bar none :)
Katie says
HI Jennifer, can the gravy be made ahead of time and just heated up? thanks
Jennifer says
Absolutely Katie :) Enjoy!
Michelle Garber says
Made this with tater tots tonight... Used gf flour and gf tots. I LOVE this gravy, I will use it for other things!! I love following your recipes, thanks for the great meals ?
Jennifer says
So glad you enjoyed it and yes, the gravy is great for all kinds of dishes :)
Hisqueel says
Thanks man. I am going to make it this evening.
I still cant forget the wonderful poutine i had last November at Alfa, Longueil-St hubert. Hope it tastes similar.
Jennifer says
Hope you enjoyed it!