I wasn't very excited last week with the prospect of five days of French regional cuisine up ahead. Almost everything we have learned so far has been French cooking, so my goal was to get through the week because next week we start Italian regional cuisine which sounds much more exciting.
Although I have been to France a couple of times, I clearly had no idea how varied and exciting regional cooking in France can be. Each region has a distinctive cuisine which shows heavy influence from bordering countries and commitment to using local and seasonal ingredients.
Brittany and Normandy:
Homard à l'Américaine
These two regions are found in the northwestern part of France. Brittany has a huge coastline and is well known for its seafood, especially Belon oysters. In class we made a the famous dish Lobster à l'Américaine, which in case you were wondering, has nothing to do with Americans. The name comes from the bastardization of the region which is known as Armorica in the Celtic dialect spoken in Brittany.
The cuisine of Normandy is heavily dependent on milk, cream, and butter. The region is known for its exceptional dairy products which include many famous soft ripened wash-rind cheese such as Camembert, Brie, Explorateur, and Pont l'Eveque. To celebrate the wonderful dairy products found in Normandy, we made a twice baked cheese soufflé which was light, fluffy, and incredibly addicting.
Cotes de Porc Normande
Brittany and Normandy are the only two regions of France that do not produce wine. What they do produce is hard cider and an apple brandy called Calvados. Because of the abundance of dairy and apples, any dish prepared à la Normande will have a cream sauce made with cider. In class we pan-fried pork chops and then baked them with cream sauce and apples.
Alsace, Lorraine, and Champagne:
On our second day of French regional cuisine we traveled to northeastern France. This region, which currently borders Germany, and has been under German rule many times in the past really reflects Germanic heartiness in its cuisine.
Choucroute Garni
The most famous Alastian dish, which we tried to recreate in class, is made with sauerkraut, potatoes, and sausages. Lorraine is well known for is quiche, which is made with eggs, cream, and bacon and Champagne is famous for the sparkling wine produced in the region. The whole region is also well known for its patés, terrines, foie gras, fruit preserves, and savory tarts.
Tarte aux Pommes de Terre
In class we made two tarts. Both were delicious but the first was too rich for my taste. It was filled with layers of potato, hard boiled egg, bacon, and cream. The other tart, which I would definitely make again, was kind of like pizza topped with white sauce, caramelized onions, and bacon.
Tarte Flambée
Midi:
This is the southwest region of France and it gets its name from the French word for noon because the sun is so intense during that time. The regional cuisine of this area is influenced by the Basque region of Spain, which it borders, and Roman influence that has remained since the time of the Roman empire.
Salad of Duck Confit with Red Cabbage, Chestnuts, and Watercress
The duck confit salad we made in class does a good job of highlighting well known items from the region, such as duck and chestnuts. As amazing as this salad was to eat, I don't think I would have the patience to make it at home. The word confit just means something preserved in its own fat but the process of making a confit took two days. On the first day we trimmed the duck legs of excess fat, cured them with salt, and pressed them overnight to squeeze out excess moisture. The fat was melted, strained, and saved for the next day. After curing, we scraped off all the salt and cooked the the duck legs really, really slowly in the fat we had purified the day before. When the meat was almost to the point of falling off the bone we place it into storage containers and completely covered the legs with fat. At this point, the confit could have been stored in the refrigerator for months but we used it to make our salad.
Cassoulet
Another well known dish of the midi region is cassoulet, named after the casserole dish that it is traditionally cooked in. It is a hearty meat and white bean stew with the type of meats varying from city to city. In Toulouse it is made with lamb and sausage, while in in Castelnaudary it is made with pork rind and lots of garlic. We made ours with lamb, sausage, salt pork, and duck confit. It was definitely my favorite dish of the week.
Provence:
Provence is in the southeastern part of France and is located on the Mediterranean sea. The typical Mediterranean climate plus the fact that Provence shares a border with Italy greatly influences this regions cuisine. Elements such as garlic, olives, olive oil, basil, lavender, shallots, and honey are used to prepare simple foods with tons of flavor.
Provençale Stuffed Vegetables
In class we made stuffed mushrooms, tomatoes, and zucchini which tasted very Italian (probably because everything was topped with a generous handful of Parmesan cheese). We also made a bourride which is pretty much the same thing as bouillabaisse, the famous fish stew of Marseilles. As far as I can tell, the main difference is that a bourride doesn't use rockfish and is topped with aioli for extra flavor.
Bouridde
At the beginning of culinary school I made a commitment to try everything at least once with an open mind. As much as shellfish creep me out, I have at least tasted everything we have made. However, at this point, I can safely say that I do not like shellfish. Luckily I had a friend over for dinner the day we made bourride and he said it turned out pretty well.
Burgundy and Lyon:
Lyon is known as the gastronomic capital of France. It is surrounded by incredible ingredients such as Charolais beef, and Bresse poultry, as well as fantastic wines from Burgundy. The salad we made in class was good but it was nothing special. It is the combination of high quality ingredients and good cooking techniques that produce the extraordinary food of Lyon.
Salad Lyonnaise with Warm Vinaigrette
Of course we couldn't leave Burgundy with out making its signature dish, Beouf Bourguignon. I remember thinking, "what could be so special about a beef stew?" when I was watching the movie Julie and Julia. It turns out that when it's made with good ingredients and lots of love, a simple beef stew can be very special. I will definitely be making it again soon.
Boeuf Bourguignon
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