Hachis Parmentier
A crowd-pleasing French beef built around ground beef, carrot and grated gruyère — roughly 70 minutes start to finish, and rated medium to make. Below: the ingredients split into pantry staples and a quick shopping list, a built-in serving scaler, and the method in 7 steps.
You'll mainly reach for oven and large pot. At medium difficulty across 7 steps, it's manageable with a little attention.
What you'll need
Shopping list (3)
Pantry staples (you likely have these)
🔁 Unit converter
How to make it
- Peel and quarter the potatoes, then simmer in salted water for 18 to 20 minutes until a knife slides through easily, drain well and let them steam-dry for a minute.
- Mash the potatoes with the butter and warm milk until smooth, season with salt, pepper and a pinch of nutmeg, and set aside.
- Soften the finely chopped onion and grated carrot in olive oil over medium heat for 6 to 8 minutes, then add the garlic and cook one minute more.
- Raise the heat, add the ground beef and brown it for 6 to 8 minutes until no pink remains and any liquid has cooked off, breaking up clumps as you go.
- Stir in the tomato paste and thyme, pour in the stock, season, and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes until the mixture is moist but not soupy.
- Spread the meat in a buttered baking dish, smooth the mash on top in an even layer, and rake the surface with a fork.
- Scatter the gruyère over the top and bake at 200°C for 25 to 30 minutes until deeply golden and bubbling at the edges, then rest 5 minutes before serving.
You'll use: Oven · Large pot · Saucepan · Baking dish · Steamer
Ingredient substitutions
- Butter
- olive oil (¾ the amount) · coconut oil · margarine
- Milk
- any unsweetened plant milk · ½ cup evaporated milk + ½ cup water
What to serve with Hachis Parmentier
- Baguette Vegan
- Clafoutis Dessert
- Croissant Vegetarian
- Croissants Dessert
Tips & common questions
How long does Hachis Parmentier take to make?
About 70 minutes from start to finish — an estimate based on the 7 steps and 13 ingredients. Times vary with your kitchen and how much prep you do ahead.
What can I use instead of butter?
Try olive oil (¾ the amount). See the substitutions section above for more swaps.
Can I scale this recipe up or down?
Yes — use the servings control above the ingredients and every quantity rescales automatically (fractions included). Cooking times stay roughly the same; very large batches may need a little longer.
How should I store leftovers?
Cool leftovers quickly, refrigerate in an airtight container, and eat within 3 days. Reheat until piping hot throughout.
Related recipes
Hachis Parmentier is an original French recipe developed in-house by Consomee. Photo: Hachis parmentier 02.jpg by Bycro, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons. We add the serving scaler, ingredient tools, timing and structure on top — how we source recipes.