Ingredients
Soup
Alternative
Milk may replace the source’s¾ cup cream, or omit the cream.
Croutons and finish
Alternative
Olive-oil spray in place of 1 tablespoon melted butter.
Method
- Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add garlic and leeks and sauté 7 minutes until soft and sweet.
- Add potatoes and stock. Bring to a simmer, cover and lower the heat. Simmer gently 25 minutes, until the potatoes are very soft and almost falling apart.
- Turn off the heat. Blend with an immersion blender only until just smooth; do not over-blend.
- Season with salt and pepper, then stir in the cream.
- For the croutons, heat the oven to 180°C /350°F, or 160°C fan. Drizzle the bread with melted butter, or spray with olive oil. Bake about 5 minutes until golden and crisp, then sprinkle with a pinch of salt while hot.
- Serve the soup with extra cream, chopped chives and croutons.
Equipment
Large lidded pot; Immersion blender; Baking tray; Oven
Notes
- Leeks: use the white and tender pale-green parts. Remove tough outer layers and dark tops. If there is grit, split the leek and wash between the layers before slicing.
- Potatoes: choose starchy or all-purpose varieties such as Maris Piper, Sebago or Russet. Waxy salad potatoes do not break down as readily. Simmer until the pieces are very soft before blending.
- Blending: stop as soon as the soup is smooth. An immersion blender gives control; with a jug blender, first mash the potatoes in their liquid, then pulse briefly. Over-blending can make the texture gluey.
- Alternatives: chopped onions can replace leeks; soften them gently for 10–12 minutes without caramelising. Use vegetable stock if preferred. Milk can replace the cream, or omit it.
- Serving: finish with croutons or crusty bread. The original batch gives five meal portions or eight starters. The retained nutrition estimate is per one of five meal portions, 393 g.
- Timing: the card gives 10 minutes preparation and 35 minutes cooking but a 40-minute total. Allow at least the longer combined time; no overlap has been established.
- Cream measure: use the published ¾ cup measure. Its volume standard is not stated, so no metric amount has been assigned.
How to
Photos
7 photos
About this dish
Potage Parmentier belongs to the French tradition of potato and leek soups, sometimes enriched with milk or cream. In Ma cuisine, published in 1934, Escoffier softened leeks in butter, cooked them with potatoes and broth, then finished the purée with cream, fresh butter and fried croutons. It is a dish whose richness can come from careful treatment of familiar vegetables.
Nagi Maehashi first made leek and potato soup from a Julia Child recipe. Her version adds garlic, uses stock in place of water and softens the leeks in butter before simmering. She playfully braces for protests from Julia’s admirers, then wonders whether French leeks and potatoes have such remarkable flavour that they need no extra help.
The important restraint comes at the blender. Potatoes cooked until almost falling apart need very little work to become smooth. Brief blending keeps the texture soft; too much can make it sticky. The croutons add the buttery crunch Nagi considers the ideal partner to that creamy bowl.
Recipe and cooking notes adapted from RecipeTin Eats.