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Shepherd’s pie, cottage pie, or hachis Parmentier is a dish consisting of cooked minced meat topped with mashed potato. The term cottage pie was in use by 1791. The term shepherd’s pie did not appear until 1854, and was initially used synonymously with cottage pie, regardless of whether the meat was beef or mutton. The French name hachis Parmentier is documented in French in 1900, and in English in 1898, and is generally defined as synonymous or equivalent to shepherd’s pie. In early cookery books, the dish is given as a way of using leftover roasted meat of any kind, and the pie dish was lined on the sides and bottom with mashed potato, as well as having a mashed potato crust on top. In France, hachis Parmentier was a “commonplace” and “homely” dish of the cuisine bourgeoise, which was nonetheless given place of honor at a Culinary Exhibition in Paris.
Hachis parmentier is an economical way of using leftover meat, especially from pot-au-feu. A more elaborate version in 1921 by Auguste Escoffier consisted of a baked potato whose contents were emptied, mixed with diced meat and sauce lyonnaise, and returned to the potato shells or skins to be baked. This version is not found in standard cookbooks. Sometimes there is a bottom layer of potato as well as a top. The modern Cumberland pie is a version with either beef or lamb and a layer of breadcrumbs and cheese on top. In medieval times, and modern-day Cumbria, the pastry crust had a filling of meat with fruits and spices. Shepherdess pie or shepherdless pie is a vegetarian version made without meat, or a vegan version made without meat and dairy.