Meryl Streep Uses This Julia Child Recipe to Make a Week’s Worth of Meals

When Meryl Streep took on a leading role in the film Julie & Julia, her performance brought Julia Child to life. Meryl has a reputation for fully embracing her roles, so it should come as no surprise that Julia’s story left a lasting impression on the Hollywood legend.

In a Glamour feature, Meryl describes herself as a “terrible cook” who mostly stays out of the kitchen. Her only exception is one of Julia’s recipes, which she loves to stretch to cover a week’s worth of meals.

What is Meryl Streep’s go-to Julia Child recipe?

Julia Child’s tarragon chicken recipe has a place in the three-time Oscar winner’s meal rotation.

The recipe first appeared in Julia’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume 1. It starts with seasoning the chicken’s cavity with salt, pepper and butter, and stuffing the bird with several sprigs of tarragon. The chicken should be patted dry, rubbed with butter and browned in a casserole pot with more butter and oil. Remove the chicken, then use the same pot to cook onions and carrots until tender. Put the chicken back in the pot and roast the whole thing in the oven for about an hour and 20 minutes.

How does she make a week’s worth of meals?

It helps that Meryl loves chicken, though she gets creative to keep it interesting over the course of a full week.

On day two, she uses her leftovers for a tarragon chicken salad. The next day, she adds mushrooms and a homemade broth to the chicken to make a risotto. By day four, she’s making a simple curry using the bird’s dark meat. Finally, she makes soup with canned cannellini beans, canned corn, chopped tomatoes, broth and the remaining meat. Leftover risotto and any fresh vegetables and herbs she has also make their way into the pot.

Honestly, Meryl, you’re being too hard on yourself. We’d happily accept an invite to nosh on your chicken leftovers any day—and we think Julia would be proud of you, too.