Ratte Potatoes
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La Ratte du Touquet (Solanum tuberosum) — a French fingerling potato with a reputation that has outgrown its size. The ratte is a heritage variety that originated in the Lyonnais and Ardèche regions, was almost lost due to low yields and disease susceptibility, and was saved from extinction in 1962 when a single surviving plant was regenerated at Le Touquet on the Côte d'Opale by the grower André Hennuyer. From that one plant, the variety was rebuilt. Today La Ratte du Touquet is a registered trademark, cultivated exclusively on the Côte d'Opale and in Picardy by a small group of growers under Touquet Savour.
The potatoes are small, elongated and knobbly — shaped, as the French note, like a mouse, which is where the name comes from. The flesh is firm, waxy and yellow, with a fine, silky texture when cooked and a pronounced nutty, chestnut-like flavour that no other fingerling variety quite matches. This is the potato that Joël Robuchon used for his famous purée, and the one that French kitchens reach for when the potato itself needs to be the point of the dish rather than a vehicle for something else. La Ratte holds its shape through cooking, does not break down or turn mealy, and has a buttery quality that makes it work with very little added to it.
Origin: Côte d'Opale / Picardy, France
Ingredients: La Ratte du Touquet potatoes (Solanum tuberosum)
Storage: Store in a cool, dark, dry place. Do not refrigerate — cold temperatures convert the starches to sugars and alter the texture. Use within one to two weeks.
