The holiday bird shredded in its juices, a proper buttery mash and golden Comté on top: the next-day dish everyone asks for.
Parmentier is France's family dish par excellence: a layer of tender meat, a layer of mashed potatoes, a golden top. Made with the Christmas bird it's even better, because the roast meat already has all its flavor and the roasting juices keep it moist.
Two things make the difference: a properly moist filling (poultry reheated dry turns stringy) and potatoes mashed by hand, never in a blender. And since these are leftovers, the fridge rules apply to the letter: the recipe reminds you of them.
Good to know · Cooked holiday poultry must go into the fridge within 2 hours of the meal, well covered, and be eaten within 2 days. Reheat it only once, until piping hot all the way through: this pie belongs to the evening of the 25th or the 26th, not the 28th.
Take the poultry out of the fridge at the last moment. Remove the skin, bones and gristle, then shred the meat with your fingers into 2 to 3 cm pieces. Keep it chilled while you do the rest.
Peel the potatoes and cut them into even chunks (about 4 cm). Put them in the pot, cover with COLD water, add the coarse salt and bring to a boil. Cook at a gentle boil for 20 to 25 minutes: they're ready when the tip of a knife slides in with no resistance at all.
Meanwhile, slice the onion and shallot. Soften them in the butter over medium-low heat for 8 minutes, until tender and translucent. Add the chopped garlic for 1 minute, then the poultry and the roasting juices. Stir and heat for 5 minutes: the meat should be coated and glossy, not swimming. Off the heat, add the parsley, taste and season.
Preheat the oven to 200 °C (400 °F). Lightly butter the baking dish.
Heat the milk without boiling it. Drain the potatoes, put them back in the pot over low heat for 1 minute to drive off the water, then mash them. Work in the butter in pieces, then the hot milk little by little, with a spatula. Add the nutmeg, taste and salt.
Spread the filling over the bottom of the dish in an even layer. Cover with the mash starting from the edges, to seal the meat in, then smooth the center. Draw grooves on top with a fork, sprinkle with the cheese and dot with the butter.
Bake in the middle of the oven for 25 minutes. It's ready when the top is deep golden and the filling bubbles at the edges. Push a knife into the center and touch the blade to the back of your hand: it should be very hot. The poultry must be piping hot all the way through.
Let it rest for 5 minutes out of the oven: the layers set and the portions come out clean. Serve with a sharply dressed green salad.
Check off every step to celebrate.
You can assemble the pie the day before: cover it and refrigerate, then bake for 35 minutes instead of 25. Once baked and served, cool the leftovers quickly, refrigerate them and eat them the next day without reheating a second time: pick the right size of dish. No freezing for poultry that has already been cooked and then reheated.
2 days in the fridge, as long as they went in within 2 hours of the meal, well wrapped. Beyond that, don't take chances: cooked poultry is ideal ground for bacteria.
Only if it's made with poultry that has just cooled and was never reheated: freeze it unbaked, then bake it from frozen for 1 hour at 180 °C (350 °F). A pie that's already been baked shouldn't be frozen again.
With liquid: the holiday juices, leftover gravy, or 100 to 150 ml stock. Let the meat simmer in it for 5 minutes before assembling, it gets its tenderness back.
Add this recipe to your meal, then come back for appetizers, a drink, cookies with coffee: Popotam brings them together, with the shopping for your whole table and the timeline up to dessert. Free, no account.
