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What Is Canadian Poutine?
Poutine is basically the greatest Canadian food invention I can think of! If I see fries or poutine on the menu, I’m now going to choose poutine over the fries.
Poutine can be described as next level cheese fries. Yes, I have a recipe for Ultimate Mozzarella Cheesy Fries, but this isn’t the same. In popular media, you may see Americans try to claim their cheese fries are poutine.
The components for a classic poutine include fries, a thick and dark beef-based gravy, and cheese curds. That’s it!
Canadians are absolutely obsessed with poutine! If you’re downtown, you’ll see a poutine truck every couple of blocks. If a restaurant doesn’t have poutine as a side dish or a main, then they’re considered crazy! Not just fast food places, mind you (I love the McDonald’s poutine!), I mean all types of restaurants! You get poutine at shawarma places, at Indian restaurants (yup, you read that right), and Chinese restaurants. Everyone’s gotta serve up their own poutine!
I had my first poutine not too long after arriving in Canada. During my first year of university, peers in my residence were asking me if I’ve tried the poutine sold on campus yet. I said no and went rushing to try it. Okay, my life changed after that day! I would go to that little hut so often for a satisfying treat! I liked having the poutine and Italian sausage combo, yum!
If you follow my Instagram stories, you know that poutine has become king of my fast food options. When I’m not feeling like making a lunch, I almost always resort to getting a nice piping hot poutine!
I get so many messages from international followers being jealous that they can’t have this goodness! I don’t blame them! I’d be upset to leave this goodness too!
As you also see from my stories and posts, poutine has been one of the most difficult recipes for me to master! When you’re reading the components for this dish, yes, it seems simple, but to make it taste and LOOK (‘cause we eat with our eyes here!) like the classic food truck poutines, it’s been tough! You want the gravy to be seasoned perfectly, the right ratio of gravy to fries, the right plating… the list goes on! This has totally made me want to rip my hair out sometimes!
I mean, what I love about recipe testing is that it gives me an excuse to keep eating an awesome dish (and it gives me an excuse to keep ordering poutine to compare my version versus from the food truck!), but I know that this has been a long awaited one. There has been so much trial and error to get this right! But I really hope that this has been worth the wait! It’s been a long road, but at long last, here’s a classic authentic poutine recipe, so that you can enjoy this awesome delight wherever you are in the world! As I mention in my BRAND NEW free guide to get you motivated to cook better than you ever have at home, The Chef’s Mindset, cooking with your heart is always the best option when you’re not sure what to make! Poutine is the heart of Canada, and it’s the heart of mine! For this Canada Day 2026, I’m happy to revive this recipe with some new touches to really replicate the flavors you find at a poutine truck in Ottawa, Canada’s capital city!
What Makes for an Authentic Canadian Poutine Recipe?
Poutine originated in the province of Quebec, Canada, in the 1950s. The exact origins of the dish are unknown, but whoever came up with this dish, well… Thank you very much! French Canadians, along with the rest of the country, quickly picked up on this dish, and now it’s just an essential Canadian dish! To be honest with you, I don’t really know what else is classified as Canadian cuisine, besides things made with maple syrup.
Apparently, poutine is Quebec slang “a mess.” I just learned this now! Well, maybe looking at this dish, you think it’s a mess, but I always say that messy food is the most fun!
There are doubts about how to pronounce poutine. I say “poo-teen,” as the English-speaking Canadians pronounce it, but French Canadians say “poo-tsin”, where the first syllable is not as stretched out as the last.
For more information about the history and origins of poutine, be sure to check out this article by The Canadian Encyclopedia.
An authentic poutine has the three core components mentioned earlier - the beef-based broth, some crispy, thick-cut fries, and cheese curds.
Simple, right? Well, there is a debate about the cheese curds. Should the cheese curds be molten or not? My uncle, who lives in Montreal, always told me that they should not be molten, and I disagreed. I was proven wrong, though, as I’ve had my uncle’s stance confirmed by a fellow Montrealer YouTuber.
As for the gravy, apparently canned broth is typically used instead of boxed. I’m using a boxed broth that I’ve come to enjoy after trying out many others. I haven’t seen a canned broth that I had wanted to try, but I would be willing to experiment further, and I’ve even thought about using a beef bouillon cube!
What Potatoes should I use for This Canadian Poutine Recipe?▼
Over the years, I’ve changed my opinions over what the best potatoes for fries are. I used to be a huge advocate for Yukon gold potatoes, however, now I’m a big fan of russet potatoes! While yellow potatoes are very flavorful and creamy inside, I do find that russet potatoes give a better crunch and resemble restaurant-quality fries more. Since updating the recipe, i will be using russet potatoes for the fries!
Cheese Curds?▼
Yes, ideally you’ll want to use cheese curds for this poutine recipe. Cheese curds are known as “squeaky cheese.” If you can find cheese curds, then you’ll definitely want to use them because you’ll love that squeak of the cheese! I love that texture!
If you’re in Canada, I’m sure you’ll find cheese curds at the grocery store. The famous cheese curds are sold by Fromagerie St Albert, as shown here.
Cheese curds are cheddar, and you’ll find them available in yellow cheddar and white cheddar. Poutine traditionally uses white cheddar cheese curds, and that’s what I’ll be using here. To be honest with you, I’m not sure when the yellow cheddar cheese curds are used. I guess if you want to switch things up you can go for it!
What if I Can’t Find Cheese Curds? Substitutes?▼
I can imagine that in other parts of the world cheese curds are harder to find, if not impossible. That being said, if you can’t find cheese curds, although cheese curds are officially a type of cheddar, I can’t really see any other type of cheddar being a direct substitute. I would actually recommend you substitute with by cutting a block of mozzarella (not fresh mozzarella!) into cubes. Mozzarella won’t melt easily with the gravy, and you’ll get a similar gooey texture that you find from the cheese curds!
Can I have a Chicken based gravy instead for Poutine?▼
No worries! In this recipe, I’ll be showing you a second method of preparing your gravy. This version uses a Roasted Chicken Gravy Mix. This version also cooks in a fraction of the time of the traditional gravy!
Why am I using this powder instead of simply a chicken gravy? Two reasons:
- It takes forever to really bring chicken broth to a nice thick consistency
- It doesn’t have the same deep brown color as beef broth has.
It was an experiment at the time of filming the video but it worked out perfectly, so I’m happy to share this with non-beef eaters or those of you who want a shortcut gravy. Spoiler alert: I actually ended up preferring this gravy over the typical beef broth! I saved the chicken poutine portion for the end!
If you’re a vegetarian… sorry, I don’t have an idea yet! I’ll work on that and be sure to provide an update on an alternative gravy! Let me know in the comments if you want a vegetarian poutine gravy recipe!
Will Frozen Fries Pair Well With poutine?▼
Sure! If you need to use frozen fries in the interest of time or you just don’t feel like making fries today, then go ahead!
BUT I highly recommend you make your own fries! Poutine traditionally uses deep fried fries. In the video, I’m going to bake my fries in the oven. This is because I’m going to be making a large amount of fries, and it’ll be the most convenient way to cook them. You can deep fry your fries or air fry them if you’re making a smaller quantity. I definitely encourage you to make your own fries! It’ll truly complete this dish!
For more details on preparing the fries, you can check out How to Make the Best Oven-Baked Fries or how to make Perfect Crispy Air Fryer Fries.
Authentic Poutine Recipe Variations
As I mentioned earlier, nowadays you go to any kind of restaurant and there’ll be a poutine option or two on the menu. Food trucks have classic poutine on the menu as well as many variations. I’ve seen all sorts of fusion poutines!
I’ve had poutine with pulled pork, sausage, bacon and chicken. I’ve seen butter chicken poutine, shawarma chicken poutine, lobster poutine, garlicky mushroom poutine, poutine on pizza… basically you can just do anything with poutine!
My favorite way to enjoy poutine is just the classic way as I’m showing you here. Maybe it’s boring but I truly get the chance to appreciate the cheese curds, the gravy, and the crispy fries. With that being said, I don’t have any specific ideas to give you, but take inspiration from foods you like and use it as a topping for poutine and see what you think! Poutine has basically become a “blank” canvas like pizza now!
If you’re looking for fusion poutine recipes on the blog, then check out my Mexican Fusion Poutine and my Indian-Fusion Aloo Keema Poutine recipes! Let me know what your favorite fusion poutine recipe is!
Tools Needed
Ingredients for Classic Poutine Recipe
Let’s break down the ingredients we’ll need for our poutine. The full ingredient list with measurements can be found in the PRINTABLE RECIPE CARD at the bottom of this post!
For the Beef Gravy
- Beef broth: You can use the carton but I always recommend you use the Better than Bouillon beef paste. It’s my favorite providing a much richer flavor and deeper brown color compared to the carton of beef broth.
- Butter
- All-purpose flour
- Worcestershire sauce
- Soy sauce: Adds some additional umami to the gravy. This really made a difference!
- Garlic powder
- Onion powder
- Black pepper: Freshly cracked always provides the most flavor.
- Salt
- Cornstarch
For the Chicken Gravy
- 1 packet Roasted Chicken Gravy Mix
- Water, as needed
For the Fries
- Russet potatoes
- Vegetable oil
- Salt
For Topping
- Cheese curds
How to Make the Classic Poutine Recipe
How to Make 5 Minute Chicken Gravy - Quick Option
I used McCormick Roasted Chicken gravy for this recipe. Add the contents of the package in a saucepan and add the instructed amount of water.
Whisk well and bring the mixture up to a simmer.
Simmer until the gravy has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon and set aside until fries are ready.
Bring the gravy back up to heat before serving and adjust consistency with water if required.
How to Make the Beef Stock Gravy - Recommended
Heat a saucepan on medium heat and add butter and flour. Whisk well and cook out the roux, until the rawness of the flour is cooked out.
Combine beef bouillon paste with water and add this slowly to the sauce pan and whisk until well combined. Then, slowly start adding the beef broth and whisk well.
Add garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, Worcestershire sauce, soy sauce. Mix well and then bring the gravy up to a simmer and cook until reduced by half in volume.
Once the stock has reduced by half, taste and adjust seasoning as needed with additional soy sauce, salt and pepper. In the meanwhile, prepare a corn starch slurry by whisking together cornstarch with water.
Add slurry to the gravy and mix well.
Simmer until the gravy has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon and set aside until fries are ready.
Bring the gravy back up to heat before serving and adjust consistency with water if required.
How to Make the Fries
For Air Fryer Fries
For more details, be sure to follow my Air Fryer Fries recipe!
Add the peeled, cut fries in a large bowl and fill with cold water and soak for about 25 minutes (see tip for a shortcut). In the meanwhile, set a large pot of water to boil.
Add soaked fries to the boiling water and boil for 3-5 minutes, or until the potatoes are partly cooked but still firm.
Drain the potatoes onto paper towel and gently pat dry. Then, transfer the fries to a large bowl and coat with olive oil. Gently toss the potatoes in the oil and arrange fries in a single layer in the air fryer basket.
Preheat the air fryer at 450 F. Set air fryer to Air Fry mode between 425-450 F and cook for 12-15 minutes. Toss the fries halfway through the cook time.
Once the fries are cooked and gravy is ready, start assembling the poutine.
What if I'm making a multiple batches of fries?
If making a multiple batch, transfer the fries from the air fryer basket to a bowl/baking sheet and repeat the steps above to cook the remaining portion of fries. Once all the fries are crispy, you can toss all the fries in a single basket to refresh the fries at 375F-390F for 3-5 minutes. Voila!
For Oven Baked Fries
- Preheat the oven to 475 F.
- In the meanwhile, cut the potatoes into slices 1/4 inch thick. In a large bowl, add the fries and fill with water. Let the fries soak for at least 25 minutes.
- In the meanwhile, set a large pot of water to boil.
- Add soaked fries to the boiling water and boil for 3-5 minutes, or until the potatoes are partly cooked but still firm.
- Drain the potatoes onto paper towel and gently pat dry.
- Transfer fries to a large enough bowl and season with salt and olive oil. Layer a large baking tray with parchment paper and place the fries on it. Bake the fries on the middle rack for 20 minutes or until they are light golden brown
- Once lightly browned, move the rack and tray to the lowest oven rack bake until crispy, flipping once to ensure each side is crisp.
- Once the fries are cooked and gravy is ready, start assembling the poutine.
Can I use cheese curds straight from the fridge?
Remove the cheese curds from the fridge at least 20-30 minutes prior to assembling the poutine to ensure it is not ice cold. Getting the chill off will ensure the cheese cards can easily soften and become squeaky when warmed with the piping hot gravy.
How to Assemble the Poutine
Tightly pack a layer of fries to a large platter/serving bowl and then add a layer of cheese curds. Pour hot gravy over the fries and cheese curds.
Repeat the same until you have the desired portion size and serve immediately.
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