FFwD - Hachis Parmentier

You'll have some tea... are you sure you don't want any?
Aw go on, you'll have some.
Go on go on go on go on go on go on go on go on GO ON!

Mrs Doyle (Pauline McLynn), Father Ted

Shepherds pie was a dish that my Mum made often when we were growing up. I adore shepherds pie because it is warm and comforting, and reminds me of growing up. Accordingly, I was pleased when this week's French Friday with Dorie pick, chosen by Dorie herself, was shepherds pie - err, well, hachis parmentier to be exact (or French shepherds pie).


I was tempted to make the "quick" version of this pie, using ground beef and thereby eliminating around 2 hours from the prep time. I started making this on Monday night, having been away for the weekend, and the thought of putting so much effort into a weekday supper was not appealing to me. This is where the Mrs Doyle quote comes in. My mind was urging me not to take shortcuts, and was jollying me along to make the full recipe to the refrain of Mrs Doyle's "go on go on go on go go on go on ...". Well, the Mrs Doyle in my head won, and I chopped vegetables, then boiled chuck steak for an hour and a half, and cut it into tiny pieces on Monday night.


On Tuesday night, I finished off the hachis parmentier by squishing sausage meat from its casings, and heating it up with tomato paste and the bullion and beef from the night before. I used lean beef sausages with Asian herbs and spices from the local Safeway (primarily because they had about half the fat of regular sausages). I then peeled, boiled and mashed almost a kilo of potatoes, mixed them with light cooking cream, skim milk and margarine, and spread it on top of the meat in a casserole dish before topping it with grated tasty cheese (sorry Dorie, it was Devondale Light 'n' Tasty - Aussie, and cheaper and lower cal than the French alternatives).


Despite my calorie saving initiatives, this was a very tasty dish - much tastier than the ground beef versions that I know and love. The creamy potatoes proved a perfect foil for the spicy, tomato-kissed meat mixture beneath. (I loved the mashed potatoes so much that I had to resist eating them out of the pot!) Accordingly, this dish was worth the effort. However, my tip if you venture to make it is to start early in the day, or spread it out over two days, making the bullion and beef on one night and finishing it off the next.


To see how everyone else went with hachis parmentier, visit the LYL section of the French Fridays with Dorie website.