Ina Garten’s Go-to Dinner Party Menu Includes This Potato Dish That Can Be Made Ahead of Time

When hosting a winter dinner party, it’s all about adding comfort foods to your menu. You want your friends’ trek out into the cold to be rewarded with something warm and inviting. Ina Garten has just the menu for those mid-winter get-togethers, and one of her favorite cold-weather sides is a potato galette that is kind of just a big fancy French fry. Plus, it’s incredibly easy to make ahead of your guests’ arrival.

“I’m always tempted to hibernate when it’s cold, but having a dinner party is exactly the kind of fun I need, instead!!” Garten captioned a recent Instagram post. “This is an easy menu to make because most of it is prepared in advance. The galette can be made an hour ahead and reheated while I carve the chicken, and the brownies can be made early in the day. I hope this inspires you to invite friends over and have a wonderful time together. It’s so important!”

To make the galette, first start by peeling just over a pound of russet baking potatoes and soaking them in water to prevent browning. Then, using the julienne blade of a mandoline (or a very sharp knife) cut the potatoes lengthwise into matchsticks then soak up any excess moisture with a clean kitchen towel.

Toss the potato sticks with a bit of salt and pepper while heating about two tablespoons of canola oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add in your potatoes and arrange them so they’re laying evenly and flat across the bottom of the pan. Press them flat with a metal spatula and let the potato sticks cook for about five minutes.

Add a bit more oil around the sides of the galette and let it cook for another five minutes. Then, when browned on the bottom, flip the entire thing and cook for another two minutes before adding a bit of butter around the sides. Cook for another five minutes until it’s nicely browned on the other side, then transfer the galette to a paper towel.

Here is where you can let it sit for a while before reheating and serving. You can cut it into wedges and serve it with chives and fleur de sel when it’s time to eat.

Grab Garten’s full galette recipe here to make it for your next winter dinner party and your guests will leave so full and happy the winter chill will be no big deal.

Before you go, check out Garten’s best dinner recipes below: