Wash and peel the potatoes, then cut them or slice them with a mandolin of 3 mm thickness. Take a large bowl and add the cut potatoes.

In the meantime, place a large flat sauce-pan on low fire, and add the butter with the garlic and sauté for 3-4 minutes. Discard the garlic and pour the melted butter in the bowl with the potatoes and season with salt and pepper, tossing well for all the slices to be covered with butter.

Go back to the previously used sauce pan and place again on low heat. Add the potatoes in a circle sequence with each of the slices overlapping a bit the next one and move the circle movement towards the centre. Then repeat the process with a second, third and so on, layer of potato slices.

You want to press the potatoes, and this can be achieved by placing on top of them a pot full of water to weight them down and cook for 15 minutes.

In the meantime, Preheat the oven to 200 degrees C, air circulation, rack in the middle and place the saucepan, with the pot on top, in the oven and bake for further 15 minutes.

Remove from the oven and keep warm for 10 minutes. Then take off the pot and place the serving plate upside down on the saucepan. Flip and remove the saucepan. The potatoes should be a bit crisp and browned. Garnish with the thyme and serve.