The very first poutine we reviewed here at Portland Poutine, back on October 26, 2009, was that from The Original: A Dinerant:
Despite the horked up name of this establishment (dinerant? really?), The Original: A Dinerant, cooks up crispy fries, stirs up an interesting gravy, and hides orange cheddar cheese curds beneath it all.
Gravy is known for its breakfast (and the 30 people out front Saturday and Sunday late mornings waiting to get in), and rightfully so.
But Gravy also has a lunch menu (weekdays only) . . . and Gravy Fries.
When I was a child, I remember my grandparents eating gross-looking gray potato blobs they called “putsins.” My grandfather was from Maine and spoke French. I have heard a rumor that every American who shares my unusual last name was a descendant of one guy and his four horny sons. Judging that both of my paternal grandparents had over a dozen siblings each, I tend to think the rumor is true.
These “putsins” they ate were an Acadian delicacy also known as poutine râpée. They are a combination of grated and mashed potatoes with chopped salt pork in the center, which are boiled for two and a half to three hours. Yum. I mean, yuck. I guess they are served with either ketchup or with maple syrup.
As I googled around to refresh this dim childhood memory, I was stunned, STUNNED, I say, at all the people who seemed to know about this dish. And there were plenty of recipes. We were actually able to talk to my grandparents over the summer about how to make putsins (as they pronounced it) and despite the grossed out memories of my childhood, we endeavored to have a go at making our own poutine râpée.
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