Chef Juliette
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Poulet Sauté Parmentier
Created by Chef Juliette
Based on No. 1571, Poulet Sauté Parmentier, from Le Guide Culinaire (1907) by Auguste Escoffier
Parmentier teaches the honest sequence: colour the chicken, frizzle the potatoes in butter, finish both in the oven, then loosen the fond with white wine and veal gravy for a glossy pan sauce.
Main Dishes
French
Weeknight
Comfort Food
One Pot
20 min
Active Time
45 min cook•1 hr 5 min total
Yield4 servings
Poulet sauté Parmentier (butter-browned chicken with potatoes) teaches one true thing: the potatoes must take colour in butter before they enter the oven. Put them in pale and they remain pale, however long you glare through the oven door. Colour first, then finish them beside the bird.
The old entry assumed an oval spoon-cutter, another pair of hands frizzling potatoes while the chicken browned, and a saucier drawing veal gravy from a stockpot never off the fire. At home, equal large dice replace the decorative olive shape, one heavy ovenproof skillet handles the work in sequence, and a spoonful of properly prepared veal gravy supplies the same concentrated foundation. The spoon-cutter and parallel workflow were brigade scaffolding, so they go. The butter colouring, oven finish, white wine deglaze, and original proportion of one pound of potatoes to one chicken stay. One cook, one stove, one evening.
The finished platter should carry deep-golden chicken, butter-glossed potatoes with crisp bronze corners, and just enough sauce to moisten everything without drowning the crust. Give the potatoes their colour before they meet the oven. That is the step that decides the dish.
Poulet sauté Parmentier belongs to the Paris-centered classical repertoire rather than to a single French province. In classical kitchen nomenclature, Parmentier marks a potato garnish, a tribute born from the campaign that carried potatoes from suspicion into everyday French cooking. Sautéed chicken moved easily from grand kitchens to bourgeois tables because bird and garnish could finish together, while wine and a spoonful of veal gravy turned the pan's fond into sauce.
The technique, the tradition, and the story behind every dish.
Discover Culinary ExplorerIngredients
whole chicken
Quantity
1, about 3½ lb (1.6 kg)
cut into 8 pieces
Yukon Gold or other yellow waxy potatoes
Quantity
1 lb (455 g)
cut into ¾-inch (2 cm) dice
unsalted butter
Quantity
5 tablespoons (75 ml / 70 g)
divided
fine sea salt
Quantity
1¾ teaspoons (9 ml / 10 g)
divided
freshly ground black pepper
Quantity
½ teaspoon (2.5 ml / 1 g)
dry white wine
Quantity
3 tablespoons (45 ml / 45 g)
finished veal gravy, unsalted or lightly salted
Quantity
1 tablespoon (15 ml / 15 g)
flat-leaf parsley
Quantity
1 tablespoon (15 ml / 4 g)
finely chopped
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| whole chickencut into 8 pieces | 1, about 3½ lb (1.6 kg) |
| Yukon Gold or other yellow waxy potatoescut into ¾-inch (2 cm) dice | 1 lb (455 g) |
| unsalted butterdivided | 5 tablespoons (75 ml / 70 g) |
| fine sea saltdivided | 1¾ teaspoons (9 ml / 10 g) |
| freshly ground black pepper | ½ teaspoon (2.5 ml / 1 g) |
| dry white wine | 3 tablespoons (45 ml / 45 g) |
| finished veal gravy, unsalted or lightly salted | 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 15 g) |
| flat-leaf parsleyfinely chopped | 1 tablespoon (15 ml / 4 g) |
Equipment Needed
- •12-inch (30 cm) heavy ovenproof skillet or sauté pan
- •Tongs
- •Slotted spoon
- •Instant-read thermometer
- •Warm oval serving platter
Instructions
- 1
Prepare bird and potatoes
Heat the oven to 425°F (220°C) with a rack in the middle. Cut the potatoes into even ¾-inch (2 cm) dice, or shape them like large olives with a paring knife if the practice pleases you. Dry them thoroughly. Pat the chicken dry, then season it all over with 1¼ teaspoons of the salt and the pepper. Moisture prevents browning, and both chicken and potatoes need dry surfaces before they meet the butter.
- 2
Brown the chicken
Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter in a heavy 12-inch (30 cm) ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. When the foam subsides, lay in the chicken skin-side down, working in two batches so every piece touches the pan. Brown the skin for 5 to 6 minutes without fussing with it, then turn and colour the second side for about 2 minutes. Add another tablespoon of butter between batches if the pan becomes dry. The chicken should be richly golden but still raw within. If the butter darkens toward black before the skin colours, take the pan off the heat, lower the flame, and lift out any bitter specks. Ça se rattrape, and the bronze fond underneath must stay.
- 3
Frizzle the potatoes
Transfer the browned chicken to a plate. Add the remaining butter to the same skillet, followed by the potatoes and the remaining ½ teaspoon salt. Spread them in one layer and cook over medium-high heat for 8 to 10 minutes, turning only as each face becomes golden. They need not be tender yet, but they must show honest colour around the edges. This initial frizzling is the dish, not decoration: pale potatoes sent directly to the oven will cook, but they will not develop the crisp buttered exterior Parmentier requires.
If a potato clings to the pan, leave it for another moment. Once a proper crust forms, it releases with very little persuasion. - 4
Finish in the oven
Return the chicken to the skillet, skin-side up, nestling the pieces among the potatoes while leaving as much potato surface against the pan as possible. Transfer the skillet to the oven and cook for 22 to 30 minutes, turning the potatoes once after about 12 minutes. Remove each chicken piece as it finishes: breasts should reach 165°F (74°C), while thighs are best at 175°F (80°C) or slightly above. If the breasts finish first, put them on the warm serving platter and let the legs continue. There is no prize for drying the white meat while waiting for the joints.
- 5
Arrange the platter
Transfer the cooked chicken to a warm platter. Lift out the potatoes with a slotted spoon and arrange them in generous heaps around the bird, as the original service intends. Set the skillet over medium-high heat, remembering that its handle is hot, and pour off excess fat while leaving the browned fond and about a teaspoon of butter behind.
- 6
Swill and finish
Pour the white wine into the hot skillet and swill it across the pan, scraping until every bronze trace of fond dissolves. Reduce by half, about 1 minute, then stir in the veal gravy and let the sauce bubble just until glossy, 30 to 60 seconds. If it tightens before the fond releases, loosen it with a teaspoon of water. If butter separates into oily beads, remove the pan from the heat and whisk in a teaspoon of cold water. Ça se rattrape. Spoon the sauce over the chicken, sprinkle with the parsley, and serve at once. À table!
Chef Tips
- •Choose a chicken close to 3½ lb (1.6 kg), or buy one already jointed into eight pieces. A much larger bird will not finish in step with the potatoes, and the breast will ask to leave the oven well before the legs.
- •Yukon Gold or another firm yellow potato keeps its shape while its edges bronze. Cut every piece to the same ¾-inch (2 cm) size; even cutting matters far more than producing perfect olive shapes.
- •The tablespoon of veal gravy carries considerable weight. A butcher's frozen veal jus is excellent; if you buy concentrated demi-glace, prepare it to finished gravy strength according to its directions before measuring the tablespoon.
- •Use a dry white wine you are happy to drink, then pour the rest at the table. The sauce reduces quickly, so any harsh sweetness or aggressive oak will become more obvious, not less.
Advance Preparation
- •Season the chicken up to 8 hours ahead and leave it uncovered in the refrigerator. Its surface will dry, which encourages better browning; keep it cold until cooking.
- •The potatoes may be cut up to 4 hours ahead and held under cold water. Drain and dry them meticulously before frizzling, since surface water defeats the crust.
- •Measure the veal gravy, wine, and parsley before the chicken enters the pan. Cook the dish just before serving, because reheating softens the potatoes, though leftovers keep refrigerated for up to 3 days.
Frequently Asked Questions
Nutrition Information
1 serving (about 315g)
Calories
655 calories
Total Fat
39 g
Saturated Fat
15 g
Trans Fat
1 g
Unsaturated Fat
20 g
Cholesterol
200 mg
Sodium
1160 mg
Total Carbohydrates
21 g
Dietary Fiber
2 g
Sugars
1 g
Protein
55 g
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