This oven baked 4-ingredients pommes boulangere is one of those recipes that feels like it’s straight out of a well-loved, splattered recipe card from the 1950s—because it basically is. My aunt kept a version of this in her recipe box from 1952, and she made it for every family gathering: holidays, Sunday dinners, even potlucks at church. It’s just thinly sliced potatoes and onions baked in stock with a little butter, but somehow it turns into this cozy, golden, crispy-topped side dish that everyone fights over. Classic pommes boulangere is a French dish that was traditionally taken to the town bakery to cook in their bread ovens, and this is the home-oven, busy-week version: simple ingredients, minimal effort, and it makes the whole kitchen smell like comfort.
Serve these potatoes alongside roasted chicken, pork chops, or a simple baked ham—they soak up the juices beautifully. They’re also great with a green salad and steamed green beans if you want to keep things lighter. I’ll often pop the dish into the oven while a roast is cooking so everything is ready at the same time, and any leftovers reheat well next to eggs for a hearty breakfast or brunch.
Oven Baked 4-Ingredients Pommes BoulangereServings: 6
Ingredients
2 1/2 pounds russet or Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled (optional) and very thinly sliced
2 large yellow onions, very thinly sliced
3 cups low-sodium chicken stock (or vegetable stock)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus extra for greasing the dish
1 teaspoon kosher salt (or to taste)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (or to taste
Directions
Preheat your oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly butter a rectangular glass baking dish (about 9x13 inches) so the potatoes don’t stick and the edges get nicely crisp.
Prep the potatoes and onions: Peel the potatoes if you like (my aunt always did, but leaving the skins on works too). Slice the potatoes very thinly, about 1/8 inch thick, so they cook evenly and layer nicely. Slice the onions thinly into half-moons or rings.
Layer the vegetables: Spread a thin, even layer of potatoes over the bottom of the buttered dish, slightly overlapping the slices. Top with a thin layer of onions. Sprinkle lightly with some of the salt and pepper. Repeat with more potatoes, more onions, and more seasoning, building layers until you’ve used everything. Aim for the top layer to be potatoes so they can crisp and brown.
Pour on the stock: Slowly pour the chicken stock evenly over the layered potatoes and onions. You want the liquid to come just to the top of the layers or barely below—enough to bathe the potatoes so they turn soft and creamy inside while the top crisps.
Add the butter: Drizzle the melted butter evenly over the top layer of potatoes. This is what helps them turn that deep golden brown and gives the dish its rich, old-fashioned flavor.
Bake covered, then uncovered: Cover the dish tightly with foil and bake for 45 minutes. This lets the potatoes and onions steam and soften in the stock. After 45 minutes, remove the foil and continue baking for another 30–40 minutes, or until the potatoes are very tender when pierced with a knife and the top is golden brown and crisp around the edges.
Rest and serve: Let the dish rest for about 10 minutes out of the oven. This helps the layers settle and makes it easier to cut into neat squares. Serve straight from the glass baking dish so everyone can see those pretty layers of potatoes and onions with the crispy, golden top.
Variations & Tips
To keep this true to that 1952 recipe box feel, I stick to just potatoes, onions, stock, and butter, plus basic seasoning—but you can still play a little. Swap the chicken stock for vegetable stock to keep it vegetarian, or use beef stock for a deeper, richer flavor. If you want a slightly creamier version without adding actual cream, stir 1–2 tablespoons of melted butter into the stock before pouring it over the potatoes. For extra flavor, you can tuck a few sprigs of fresh thyme or a bay leaf between the layers and remove them before serving. If your schedule is tight, you can slice the potatoes and onions a few hours ahead; keep the potatoes submerged in cold water in the fridge so they don’t brown, then drain and pat dry before layering. Food safety tips: Always refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours of baking, and store them in a covered container in the fridge for up to 3–4 days. Reheat thoroughly in the oven or microwave until steaming hot in the center. If using homemade stock, make sure it’s fully cooled before refrigerating and use within a few days, or freeze it ahead of time. Avoid leaving the dish at room temperature for extended periods on a buffet table—if you’re serving for a long gathering, keep it warm in a low oven (around 200°F/95°C) after the initial bake.
