5 vegetarian ideas to accompany raclette

It is undoubtedly the most awaited dish of the cold season: from November (or even September, for the more determined among us), raclette invades evenings with friends, Instagram stories and holiday lunches. . But if melted cheese on potatoes has something that everyone agrees on, the cured meats that accompany them are not always enough. Whether you’re a convinced vegetarian or just want a change, here it is some vegetables and delicious options to go with the raclette.

The most classic: steamed broccoli

As effective as it is tasty, broccoli goes wonderfully with potatoes and melted cheese. For raclette, I recommend it steaming as follows.

Steamed broccoli

• Rinse and cut broccoli;
• put the florets in a steamer for 5-10 minutes;
• your broccoli is done when you can poke it with the point of a knife and the inside is tender.

If you don’t have a steamer, no problem: you can also cook your broccoli by immersing it in a pot of boiling salted water for about 10 minutes.

And since broccoli is only in season through December, you can replace with cauliflower for the winter! The preparation method is the same, but it will need to be cooked a little longer (15 to 20 minutes in water, 10 to 12 minutes in steam). You can also sprinkle the cauliflower with the curry for a more spicy flavor.

For the Christmas atmosphere: sautéed chestnuts

With their sweet taste, chestnuts have the advantage of being very easy to cook, especially if you use a pre-cooked vacuum-packed or canned version. If you prefer to go tough and use fresh chestnuts, take a look here!

Pan-fried roasted chestnuts recipe

• In a skillet, melt a piece of butter;
• add the chestnuts and cook over low heat for 4 or 5 minutes, then turn them over and brown the other side.

It’s simple, doesn’t take too many dishes and will bring some Christmas magic to your table!

The most classic (and expensive): the summer truffle

For a special occasion or just to treat yourself, you can add to your table setting slices of summer truffle. You can find them in delicatessens, in jars or in their dehydrated form (sometimes less expensive), or in some supermarkets during the holidays.

To enjoy it, first melt the raclette cheese. Once melted, remove the pan from the unit and put some of the truffle on the cheese. A delight!

If you don’t have a deli nearby, you can also find it truffle raclette in some dairies, but also in supermarkets. It can be cheaper and just as tasty!

The safe bet, mushrooms

If you’ve never tried it, go ahead with your eyes closed: sautéed mushrooms with raclette are a safe bet! You can prepare it with a mixture of chanterelles and oyster mushrooms (fresh or dehydrated) or Parisian mushrooms, cheaper and also very good!

Recipe for special raclette with pan-fried mushrooms

• Clean and cut your mushrooms;
• peel and chop a shallot;
• brown the shallot in a buttered pan;
• add mushrooms, salt, pepper;
• at the end of cooking you can blend them with sherry vinegar.

At the time of raclette, you can heat your mushrooms by placing them in the pans or melt your raclette on them!

The all-rounder: candied onions

From raclette to foie gras, onion confit can accompany many festive dishes. It also has the advantage of being very easy to make!

Onion confit recipe

• For 6 people prepare about 500 grams of onions (courage your eyes, it seems that swimming goggles can help);
• heat a drizzle of olive oil (about 4 tablespoons) in a pan and add the onions;
• brown them over medium heat, stirring occasionally, so that they do not stick together;
• when the onions become translucent, add a generous spoonful of icing sugar;
• pour 4 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and cook over high heat until the vinegar has evaporated;
• cover the pan and simmer for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. If the onions stick together, you can add a little water.

With all this you should have enough to serve a vegetarian raclette worthy of the name! And depending on your diet and that of your guests, you can add in bulk: quail eggs to be cooked directly in the pan, pickles, pickles, vegetable substitutes for cured meats, slices of pumpkin or roasted pumpkin… in short, enjoy!

Cover photo credit: Ellena McGuiness / Unsplash