Bombine ardéchoise
A traditional recipe from Ardèche: bombine! This delicious dish made with potatoes, carrots, and onions, flavoured with thyme and bay leaf, is sure to delight food lovers on a budget. As a bonus, it’s also a perfect recipe for our vegetarian friends.
Here’s our secret recipe: a bombine perfect for a table of four, rich in flavour and true to the original! An Ardèche-style Proustian madeleine, ideal for comforting you through the winter.
Les ingrédients
Serves 4
- Firm-fleshed potatoes (e.g., Agatha): 1kg
- Yellow onion: 2 large onions
- Carrots: 2 carrots
- Garlic: 1 or 2 cloves (depending on size)
- Extra virgin olive oil: 2 tbsp
- Thyme and bay leaves (in a sachet): 1 bunch of thyme + 2 bay leaves
- Ground grey/black pepper: a pinch
- Water: enough to cover the ingredients in the pot
- Coarse salt: a pinch
- Butter
- A few green olives
How to prepare?
- Sort, wash, and thoroughly rinse the potatoes, vegetables, and herbs under clear water.
- Peel and chop the potatoes and carrots into pieces, peel and slice the onions, peel and mince the garlic, then set aside.
- In a pot (preferably cast iron), sauté the onions with butter until caramelised; add all the remaining ingredients.
- Pour in the olive oil, mix everything together, and season with salt and pepper. Cover with water up to the level of the ingredients, bring to a boil. Then cover and cook on low heat for 1.5 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally without mashing the potatoes. Add water if needed.
- Check the doneness of the potatoes by inserting a knife into one. If it slides in easily, your dish is ready.
The little extra
You can prepare this dish the day before serving and reheat it gently on low heat just before serving (a grandmother’s tip to let all the delicious flavours of your bombine infuse even more). If you wish, you can add pork or beef to the recipe for an even heartier option, either in the dish or as a side.
- Potatoes and onions: These ingredients are used in generous quantities as this rustic dish relies heavily on these staples. Cooking them slowly over a long period preserves their rich texture.
- Aromatics (thyme, bay leaf): Balance is key between the thyme and bay leaf. Be careful not to overdo these strong flavours, as they could overpower the dish.
- Olive oil: Use a generous amount to maintain the vegetables’ softness.
- Water: Add just enough to help the ingredients cook in their own steam without drowning them.
Conseils pour le service
La bombine est un plat simple mais exige un bon contrôle des cuissons : assurez vous que les pommes de terre soient fondantes sans se défaire, et que les oignons soient bien caramélisés pour ajouter de la douceur.
