Poutine—fries covered in a rich brown gravy and topped with cheese curds—is a French-Canadian dish that originated in Quebec. The dish was created as a delicious way to use up excess cheese curds, which have a short window of freshness.
This version of the dish starts with homemade french fries. The hot, crispy fries are topped with cheese curds, homemade gravy made from a mix of chicken and beef stock, and a little bit of chopped parsley for color.
Where Did Poutine Originate?
The origin story of poutine, like the origin story of many dishes, is cloudy. Most stories point to Fernand Lachance of Quebec’s Café Ideal, who claims to have added curds to fries at customer Eddy Lainesse’s request sometime in the 1950s. Years later, in 1964, Jean-Paul Roy, owner of Le Roy Jucep, noticed that his customers were ordering cheese curds to eat with his fries and gravy so he added poutine to his menu. Today, Le Roy Jucep has more than 20 variations of poutine on their menu.
By the 1980s, poutine’s popularity spread beyond Quebec and became a popular street food in Montreal. In the 1990s and early 2000s, poutine hit it big in the States, when American gastropubs started serving their versions of the classic Canadian comfort food.
