Fondant Potatoes with Duck Fat and Thyme

If you’re looking for a side dish that’s both elegant and deeply comforting, fondant potatoes deserve a place on your table. With golden, crispy edges and a soft, almost creamy center, these French-style potatoes have become a favorite among home cooks and restaurant chefs alike. Plus, duck fat makes everything better!

Fondant potatoes, or pommes fondant, originate from classic French cuisine. Traditionally served in fine dining settings, the dish was designed to transform humble potatoes into something luxurious. The technique involves cutting potatoes into cylinders, browning them in fat, and then finishing them slowly in stock. This dual method—high-heat searing followed by gentle braising—creates their signature contrast: crisp tops, golden bottoms, and a soft, buttery interior.

Instead of the traditionally painstaking and relatively wasteful preparation of doing this dish with whole potatoes, it employs small waxy potatoes with a tight scoring pattern to achieve maximum crunch and minimal waste. Worth the effort!

Though fondant potatoes were once seen as a restaurant-only preparation, they’ve recently surged in popularity thanks to social media, where their dramatic browning and melt-in-your-mouth texture take center stage. Now they’re considered one of the most impressive potato dishes you can make at home.

While fondant potatoes can be cooked in butter or neutral oils, duck fat adds a depth of flavor you won’t get from other fats. Rich, savory, and naturally high in umami, duck fat infuses potatoes with a subtle roasted flavor that pairs beautifully with the dish’s caramelization and aromatics of garlic and thyme.

Duck fat also has a relatively high smoke point, which helps create that coveted crispy crust without burning. Its silky mouthfeel and mild aroma enhance the potatoes without overpowering them—making it a favorite among chefs for both frying and roasting.

Choosing the right potato is key to achieving the perfect fondant texture. Waxy Potatoes, like Yukon Gold or Red Bliss, hold their shape better and have a creamier bite. They absorb a lot of the flavor of the duck fat and stock, especially through the light scoring of the tops. 

No fondant potato is complete without a sprinkle of flaky sea salt. Flaky salt is created by evaporating seawater under controlled conditions. As the water evaporates, the salt naturally forms delicate, pyramid-shaped crystals. These airy flakes are crunchy and dissolve slowly on the tongue, delivering clean, bright bursts of flavor and a satisfying crunch.

Try it out for yourself!

Fondant Potatoes with Duck Fat and Thyme 

Ever wanted a bite with a potato chip crunch and a buttery potato interior? Look no further, because this is the French side dish you’ve been searching for. Rich duck fat, nutty brown butter, garlic, and fresh thyme bring these potatoes to another level!

Recipe and Photography by Sam Burgess

Forge To Table Knives

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Servings: 

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces small waxy potatoes, sliced and scored in a criss-cross pattern

• Extra virgin olive oil, as needed 

• Kosher salt, as needed

• Freshly ground black pepper, as needed 

• 4 tablespoons duck fat (homemade or store-bought)

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter

• 2-3 garlic cloves, smashed

• 3 each thyme sprigs

• 1 cup chicken stock

• Sliced chives, to garnish

• Flaky salt, to garnish

Directions:

1. SCORE POTATOES. Rinse potatoes. Using your Forge To Take Nakiri Vegetable Knife, slice each small waxy potato in half. On the cut side, gently score the potatoes horizontally and the same distance diagonally. See photos above. 

2. SEASON. Preheat the oven to 450°F. Toss the potatoes in a splash of olive oil with a generous pinch of salt and pepper.

3. SEAR. In a large oven-safe skillet, melt the duck fat over medium-high heat. Once it is hot and sizzling, add all the scored potato pieces on the cut side. Lower the heat to medium and let cook without disturbing, for around 6-8 minutes. Checking after 5 minutes to assess the colour of the bases, and continue cooking until a deep golden brown color. 

4. FLIP. Once they are all evenly golden brown and crisp, turn them over and cook for another 5-6 minutes on the other side. 

5. BASTE. Once they are cooked on both sides, add the butter, crushed garlic, and thyme sprigs to the pan. Allow the butter to melt, then generously baste the potatoes in all the fragrant fat.

6. ROAST. Pour in the chicken stock, bring the liquid to a simmer, then put the pan in the preheated oven and roast until the potatoes are buttery soft and the stock has thickened, about 20 minutes. 

7. SERVE. Remove the pan from the oven, and place potatoes in a serving vessel (if desired). Top with the pan sauce. Garnish with thinly sliced chives and flaky salt. Enjoy!

Chef’s Notes:

• Multi-color potatoes are fun, but the color usually doesn’t come through in the finished product. 

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