Julia Child's Garlic Mashed Potatoes Are Intense, But That's Why They're So Beloved

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"Mastering the Art of French Cooking" — the seminal cookbook co-authored by the legendary celebrity chef Julia Child — had many recipes that could be quite complicated, but Child and company did the hard work for cooks at home. They tested extensively to make sure each recipe was the best it could possibly be. All home cooks had to do was follow the instructions exactly — even if, as with Child's recipe for garlic mashed potatoes, it called for a truly staggering amount of garlic.

You may have heard it said that there is no such thing as too much garlic; you may have even diced up a few more cloves than the recipe called for on more than one occasion. But how many cloves did you use for that homemade pasta sauce made with Italian San Marzano tomatoes? Six? Eight? Maybe even 10? 

Well, Julia Child's garlic mashed potatoes call for a jaw-dropping 30 cloves of garlic. Considering the average number of cloves per bulb is 10 or 12, that means you'll be using around three entire bulbs of garlic for these spuds. It sounds deliriously excessive, but testimonials sing the dish's praise. "Those are definitely going on the Thanksgiving rotation," said @thefeedfeed on TikTok; meanwhile, on Reddit, one user said, "I'm sold on using garlic bechamel in all my mashed potatoes from now on."

Now, all this is well and good, but you might be wondering if we can circle back to the whole "30 cloves of garlic" thing. How does that work? Do you chase it with an industrial-strength breath mint, or do you just accept that you'll have to kiss your spouse on your wedding day through a gas mask? Well, believe it or not, Julia Child's garlic mashed potatoes aren't quite as overpoweringly garlicky as they sound on paper. Due to a process called blanching, where an ingredient (most often a vegetable) is plunged quickly into boiling water before being placed in ice water to cool off, the garlic is mellowed out considerably. You probably still want to think twice before boarding a crowded elevator after eating it, but it makes sure the flavor is robust and not overwhelming.

Then there's the matter of a béchamel. If you've made a lasagna or macaroni and cheese, you may have already made a béchamel, one of the five mother sauces of French cooking, but it's not something you'll often find in mashed potato recipes. But after you try Julia Child's recipe, you may be wondering why no one else seems to do it. Mixing the garlic with butter, flour, and milk results in a thick, creamy, utterly delicious sauce, infused with roasty, savory notes perfect for a hearty side dish. And if you have leftovers, you can turn them into Gene Kelly's "man sandwich" recipe, which makes use of leftover mashed potatoes.