France is famous for many things - its beautiful language, charming towns, luxurious beaches. However, it is French cuisine that is known and loved all over the world, and it is impossible to forget it. Whether it's a simple croissant or a classic dish like rooster in wine, french food will always find a response gourmet gourmets. In this issue, BigPiccha presents to your attention 32 dishes that you must try in France.
1. French baguette is perhaps the most popular French food. This crispy pastry is delicious on its own or topped with a traditional French cheese such as Gruyère or Brie. If you're in Paris, be sure to try a baguette at the bakery Le Grenier à Pain: this year they won the competition for the best baguette.
2. Creme brulee is the most famous and beloved French dessert. As soon as you hear the crunch of the hard caramel crust and dip your spoon into custard, there is no turning back.
3. If you want to try the classic steak frites (steak with fries), you should definitely visit the Parisian restaurant Le Relais de l’Entrecote, which specializes in this dish. The establishment is popular with both tourists and Parisians, so queues are not uncommon here.
4. Although Moules Frites (mussels and fries) are considered a Belgian dish, Moules Marinières are French dish from Normandy, whose name translates as “sailor-style mussels.” Imagine this in France gourmet food considered fast food.
5. "Croque Monsieur" - the French version of a hot cheese sandwich. Includes ham and processed cheese Gruyere, and also bechamel sauce.
6. Chicken in the “Kok-o-ven” dish (rooster in wine) by definition cannot be dry. It is believed that the birthplace of this dish is Burgundy, so a one-year-old rooster (weighing about three kilograms) stewed in red wine with vegetables and garlic is a classic “Coq-au-vin” recipe.
7. Escargot - snails - it seems strange dish for foreigners, but in France it is considered a delicacy. Snails are served hot in their shells with garlic and butter.
8. “Profiteroles” - a puff pastry dessert filled with vanilla ice cream and covered with chocolate sauce.
9. Potatoes are a common side dish in France, and in the southeastern French region of Dauphine they are cooked with milk or cream, called “ potato casserole in the Dauphino way" ("Graten Dauphinois").
10. The word "soufflé" comes from the French verb "to breathe, to blow", this dessert is made from whipped egg whites. Grand Marnier soufflé is prepared with the addition of orange cognac liqueur.
11. Best oysters in France they should be looked for in Brittany, from the city of Riec-sur-Belon they received their French name - belon.
12. Although " blood sausage“Doesn’t sound very appetizing, but it’s one of the traditional elements of French cuisine. The sausage contains pork blood and is served on its own or with a side dish such as potatoes.
13. Croissant is also a French classic. This flaky, buttery crescent-shaped bun can be found in every bakery in the country.
14. Riet - salted pork pate. It should be eaten with bread or crackers.
15. “Cneuix de brochet” is something like dumplings. They were invented in Lyon and are prepared from fish (usually pike), butter, breadcrumbs and lobster sauce. A light but satisfying dish.
16. In Paris, bakeries and pastry shops compete to boast the best macarons.
17. If you eat raw meat, you want to be sure that it is cooked correctly. “Steak tartare” - minced raw beef meat, served with onions and capers.
18. Ratatouille is the only French stew without meat. This dish, which first appeared in Nice, is made from delicious Mediterranean vegetables such as zucchini and eggplant.
19. Quiche is a savory pie that can be found everywhere in France. One of the traditional varieties is Lorraine quiche, or " Quiche Lauren" Prepared with bacon, eggs and sometimes cheese.
20. “Pan-o-chocolate” translates to “chocolate bread.” French bakers mastered the combination of baked goods and chocolate brilliantly.
21. Niçoise salad comes from Nice and is a combination lettuce, tomatoes, boiled eggs, tuna, anchovies, olives and beans.
22. “Boeuf Bourguignon” - a dish from beef stew originally from Burgundy. Combines meat, vegetables, garlic and, of course, red wine.
23. Tarte Tatin is not easy Apple pie, and the pie is “inside out.” Before baking, the apples are fried in butter and sugar.
24. “Blanquette de Vaux” - veal, butter and carrots cooked in cream sauce. The meat does not darken during cooking.
25. Duck is a common feature in French cuisine. "Confit" - duck leg, cooked in own juice, originally from Southern Gascony.
26. Trays of crepes ( French pancakes) are all over Paris and you should stop and try them. Crepes can be either sweet or savory. The classic is “butter and sugar”.
27. “Cassoulet” is a cross between a stew and a casserole, a real feast for the stomach. The dish originates from the south of France and is made from beans, duck and pork skin.
28. Bouillabaisse was invented in the southern port city of Marseille; it is best to try it at the Le Miramar restaurant. This is a fish chowder with shellfish, vegetables and potatoes.
29. Foie gras comes from the southwestern regions of France - Alsace and Périgord. Considered a delicacy, it is made from duck or goose liver. There is a lot of debate about the admissibility of special - not very humane - fattening of these ducks and geese.
32. “Tarte flambé” - crispy pizza from Alsace with sour cream, thinly sliced onions and pieces of lard or bacon.
French cuisine is world famous. The city is considered the culinary capital of France. But in all corners of this country there are dishes that people are truly proud of. We invite you to meet the most famous representatives of the French culinary tradition.
Cassoulet
This traditional dish from the region is made with white beans and meat. The dish got its name from the name of the terracotta dish (cassol) in which it was prepared. According to legend, cassoulet appeared in the city of Castelnaudary during the Hundred Years' War (1337 - 1453). During the siege by the British, the inhabitants of this city were forced to cook together from whatever was left in the stores to feed their defenders. All that was left were beans and meat. A beautiful version, which, however, is refuted by historians, because beans appeared on the European continent only in the 16th century. If the dish was prepared, it was most likely made from beans. This story highlights the characteristics of the dish: it is made from leftovers and is very nutritious.
White veal stew with white sauce – blanquette de veau
Traditional French dish of boiled veal, carrots and white sauce. The name comes from white sauce (in French "blanc"). In principle, any white meat (turkey, chicken, rabbit, pork) can be used to prepare this dish. But it is veal that is considered classic. A famous literary character, Commissioner Maigret, was a lover of this stew.
Ratatouille
A typical dish of Provençal cuisine. Ratatouille was originally called a stew made from prefabricated vegetables. "Rata" in military jargon meant a mixture of beans and potatoes, then various vegetables, bread and meat. The classic ratatouille recipe includes eggplant, zucchini, bell pepper and tomatoes, onions, garlic and olive oil. There are two methods for preparing this dish: all the vegetables are cooked together or each one separately. Ratatouille is usually served as a side dish, but can also be a separate dish.
Frog legs - cuisses de grenouilles
Frogs are eaten not only in France, but it is there, according to statistics, that they are eaten the most. And the closest neighbors of the French - the British, and after them the rest of the world - call them Frog-eaters, froggies. Frogs appeared on the tables of the French elite in the 16th century. There are many ways to prepare and serve, e.g. garlic sauce and parsley.
Sandwiches Croque-monsieur
The title translates as “Eat Man.” This is a type of hot sandwich with ham and (most often the emmantal variety), fried in a frying pan or in an oven, or in a special apparatus. It seems that such a sandwich first appeared in 1910 on the menu of one of the Parisian cafes on the Boulevard des Capucines. The origin of the name is unknown, several versions have been put forward, according to one of which the owner of the cafe, Michel Lunarka, who invented this sandwich, started a joke that the sandwich contained human meat. The fact was that his new cafe became very popular very quickly, and competitors, wanting to spoil Michel’s reputation, spread a rumor that he was a cannibal. On the sandwich's birthday, the cafe ran out of baguette and the sandwich was made on bread. When a customer asked what kind of meat was inside, this was the answer given.
One of the varieties of the sandwich is the Croque-madame, which is topped with fried eggs.
Potato casserole – gratin dauphinois
Traditional French dishes from the Dauphine region. Its first official mention was recorded in 1788 in the description of a dinner given to officers of the city of Gap by the Duke of Clermont-Toner, Karl Heinrich, who at that time served as Lieutenant General of Dauphine. To prepare this dish choose special kind potatoes, always yellow and well boiled. Garlic, milk/cream or sour cream are added to the dish.
Beef Bourguignon - boeuf bourguignon
This is a representative of the kitchen. Prepared with red Burgundy wine, with the addition of mushrooms, onions and lard. There are numerous options for combining meat with side dishes. It could be potatoes, carrots, green beans, pasta. Initially it was festive, then Sunday dish Burgundian peasants.
Stewed beef with vegetables - pot-au-feu (pot-au-feu)
One of the emblematic dishes of French cuisine. This is a dish of beef that has been cooked for a long time in a broth flavored with vegetables and herbs. To prepare the dish, inexpensive pieces of beef are taken (they require a long time to cook, hence the long cooking time): shank, cheeks, thigh, shoulder, etc., as well as pieces with cartilage, vegetables (carrots, turnips, leeks, potatoes, celery , onion) and spices (herbs, black pepper, cloves).
Pie Lorraine - quiche lorraine
Option savory pie from the kitchen. It is made from shortbread or puff pastry, eggs and bacon cooked with sour cream. It is recommended to eat the pie hot. A very popular dish in France, which can be easily found even in a bakery.
Bouillabaisse
Traditional Marseille dish. This is a fish soup that is eaten with crackers coated with garlic oil. This dish was prepared back in Ancient Greece at the time when it was just founded (7th century BC). It was the food of the common people, fishermen and peasants. The soup contained fish remaining at the bottom of fishing nets. And today this is a “serious” dish: the fish is cooked in broth with the addition of wine, olive oil and even saffron. Bouillabaisse is served twice: first as a broth with croutons rubbed with garlic under special sauce; then like a fish. Types of fish traditional for bouillabaisse, which must be of ideal freshness: sea ruff (la rascasse), sea dragon (la vive), sunfish (le saint-pierre), sea eel(le congre), sea bream (la daurade), marlin (le merlin), monkfish (la lotte de mer), sea rooster (le grondin). In Marseille there is even a “Charter of Bouillabaisse” - a detailed classic recipe to keep the dish unchanged. In fact, there are also unscrupulous restaurateurs who sell any fish soup under the name Buaybes. Tourists need to be careful, especially in restaurants near the old port.
Rooster in wine - coq au vin
A classic French dish that appeared during the conquest of Gaul by Julius Caesar. According to legend, the head of one of the Gallic tribes, in order to make fun of the Romans besieging him, sent them to the emperor a rooster - a symbol of the courage of the Gauls. In response, Caesar invited the Gaul to dinner, during which he was served a rooster cooked in wine. Traditionally, the dish is prepared from a rooster (or chicken), cut into pieces, small onions, cloves of garlic, bacon, red wine good quality, herbs, carrots, mushrooms, parsley. It is served as a side dish boiled potatoes or pasta.
Fondue
This is a Savoyard dish made from melted cheese and bread. It is prepared from cheeses produced in the region: Comté, Beaufort, Savoyard Gruyère or Savoyard emmantal. Together with the rapid development of alpine tourism in the 1950s. Fondue is becoming popular throughout France. Eating fondue is a whole ritual. Small pieces of bread are dipped on special long forks into cheese melted in white wine. The cheese is melted in a special saucepan, which is heated from below.
Burgundy-style snails - escargots (escargots de Bourgogne)
Traditional dish of helix pomatia snails. Prepared for family holidays and Christmas. Man has been eating snails since time immemorial. Helix pomatia snails are found in eastern France and central Europe. In France, up to 30 thousand tons of snails are consumed annually. It should be noted that in view of the threat of extinction of snails, a law has been adopted in France to protect them, regulating the collection of this animal. The snails are baked in their house with garlic butter and chopped parsley. They are served in dozens or 6 pieces each with special cutlery.
Foie gras
Famous holiday dish. Prepared from duck or goose liver, the birds are specially raised and fattened. France is the largest producer and consumer foie gras. The technology of feeding poultry to produce liver was invented in Ancient Egypt and passed on to Ancient Rome through Ancient Greece. After the fall of the Roman Empire, foie gras production remained in Jewish communities, because... Jews used the liver for frying (they were forbidden to fry meat in butter, and olive oil was difficult to obtain). Now foie gras is traditional dish festive feast. Usually served cold and as an appetizer.
Friends, Auguste Escoffier said this: “National English cuisine much better than words about her.” The evil-tongued French gave English cuisine a bad name. At all times they loved to ironically say that you can stay hungry in England if you go to France three times a day.
Traditional British cuisine has always resisted. And although English cuisine is not as intricate and sophisticated as the cuisine of its closest European neighbors, it is healthy and easy to execute.
Famous English dishes: Sirloin, sandwiches and others
Despite the fact that the British have only 3-4 sauces, and not 3000, as in France, they are the best at meat dishes. Well, judge for yourself, where else would they be able to knight a bull’s thigh? This was done by the English king himself (and it’s true that historians still have not come to a consensus which one is James I or Henry VIII), who respectfully called the most tender piece bovine meat "Sir Loin" ("sir sirloin"). With him light hand henceforth the fillet is called “sirloin”. Thanks to England, the world learned what steak, bacon, and roast beef are. Who doesn’t know now the “bloody” roast beef, which is decorated with a golden crispy crust on top, and inside there is the most urgent pulp, and note at the same time - no fat. Well, why else is there sauce?
What about sandwiches? If it weren't for the British, the world would still be getting its hands dirty and dropping sandwiches butter side down. In the 18th century, there was an avid gambler, among other things, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of England, Lord John Montagu, who, not wanting to tear himself away from the card table, took it and came up with closed sandwiches, without getting your hands dirty. Remember english pudding , which the British came up with to steam in a napkin! Or English cheeses - hard cheddar with a slightly nutty tone or sharp, melt-in-your-mouth blue wean! And whiskey, and ale, and porter, and famous all over the world! No, after all, our closest neighbors, the French, are wrong.
This dish owes its birth to the small island state of Wales, which, like England, is part of Great Britain. Wales is surrounded by the sea on three sides, and even its capital, Cardiff, is also cut through by a deep river. Cod is found in abundance in local waters, which local residents called the queen of white fish.
In Cardiff, like nowhere else, they know how to cook it well; a particularly popular dish is cod in beer batter. For its preparation it is used fresh fillet cod, and the batter is made from a dark type of foamy drink. Pieces of tender white meat fish with crispy golden color the crust is served with beer - it’s simply impossible to tear yourself away from such a meal!
As you know, the children of Albion honor traditions, and, what is most surprising, not in words, but in deeds. Timetabl is a world-famous gastronomic daily routine, when work “fits” into the breaks between meals. It’s this English diet, what kind of English cuisine we’ll talk about now...
What do the British eat for breakfast?
The British have breakfast from 8 to 8.30 in the morning, just like us. 
Both in the north and south of the island they certainly eat oatmeal in the morning. True, the Scots stubbornly prepare it from oatmeal, and the British - from oatmeal. In the north, oatmeal is complemented by smoked herring or haddock. In the south they prefer bacon and eggs fried kidneys, sausages, toast with butter. The Scots choose heather honey, jam and jelly as sweets. The British - fresh fruits And Orange juice. Young people claim that oatmeal is now eaten only by ghosts in ancient castles, and have become addicted to muesli. But everyone, without exception, pays tribute strong tea with milk - tradition!
Second breakfast - lunch
The second breakfast, from 12 to 14 o'clock, is light for those who dine in the evening, and hearty, replacing lunch for those who only have dinner in the evening. Light - scrambled eggs with ham, dense - roast beef or lamb with fried potatoes and vegetables. For dessert they eat puddings and all kinds of cookies. And the meal ends with strong tea again.
Lunch - for the evening
Voltaire called England a country of dinners, and its inhabitants - a people who dine. And indeed, lunch here is quite substantial. The traditional time for this meal is 19-20 hours, and they usually serve appetizers, salads, soups, roasts with vegetables, fish, sweet dishes and, you guessed it, strong tea.
Tea and the Samurai Code
There is a special conversation about tea in England. The tea drinking culture in this country is a bit like the samurai code in Japan. It is difficult to imagine that the British once did not know the taste of tea at all - only in 1664, Charles II was presented with two pounds of dry “Chinese leaf” by merchants of the East India Company. But the British did not organize “tea riots”, but immediately appreciated tart taste, wonderful aroma and wonderful healing properties divine drink. A prominent British statesman, Sir William Ewart Gladstone, famous for his aphorisms, once remarked: “If it’s cold, tea will warm you, if it’s hot, it’ll cool you down, if you’re depressed, it’ll cheer you up, if you’re excited, it’ll calm you down.”
Perhaps, main secret The popularity of tea on the shores of Foggy Albion lies in the character of the islanders. The British are prone to a calm, almost ritual regularity of life, and the new drink gave them the opportunity to conveniently organize their daily routine.
By English standards - Five-o-clock
Tea has become both a metronome and a tuning fork of life. “It’s easier to imagine Britain without a queen than without tea,” the British joke and drink tea in bed in the morning at breakfast. at lunch, in the middle of the working day (every company takes a special break - tea bgeak), in the evening at home. But tea becomes the real king in Five-o-Clock.
This is holy time: 
no matter what happens in the world, millions of British people, from the clerk to the queen, certainly drink tea. Even if you are up to your neck in urgent work, do not try to force your English colleagues to abandon the ritual - it is futile. The five o'clock tea party has become so firmly ingrained in the flesh and blood of the nation that it is difficult to believe in its not so venerable, by English standards, age. Five-o-clock. Believed to have been brought into fashion by Anne Maria, Duchess of Bedford, a lady-in-waiting to Queen Victoria, in 1840.
Tea in Great Britain is prepared according to all the rules. The kettle is scalded, the tea leaves are added (1 teaspoon per cup), and boiling water is poured over it. Real English tea is drunk with milk or cream, but our favorite tea with lemon and sugar is called Rasian tea. Cookies, pies with candied fruits or nuts, biscuits, crispbread, cucumber sandwiches and thinly sliced bread with butter are served with tea.
How to cook English roast beef
Having learned what the cuisine of England is like, 
You and I are quite capable of preparing a traditional English dish - beef roast, or, more simply, a fried piece of meat. The recipe is extremely simple, the cooking time depends on what result you want to get at the end: deep-fried meat, medium-roasted or rare (I note that for those who like such experiments, you need to be confident in the meat supplier).
So, let's start cooking roast beef in English.
1. Wash the meat (loin, thin edge or tenderloin), cut off the tendons, rub with salt, and you can sprinkle with freshly ground black pepper. They take meat big piece, I did not indicate its weight, any piece of at least 1 kg will do.
2. Then place the whole piece on a dry, very hot frying pan and fry on all sides.
3. Put in the oven, the meat should be baked until it is ready. Don’t forget to water it with the released juice every quarter of an hour. If there is not enough juice, you can add water or a little broth.
A few words about the baking time, I deliberately did not write how long to bake the meat, since it depends on what kind of roast beef you want to get - deep-fried, medium-rare or rare.
4. When the roast beef is ready, it needs to be cut into slices and beautifully placed on a plate.
It is usually served as a side dish for roast beef in England. green pea with boiled carrots cut into slices, seasoned with oil, or potatoes (in any form: fried, boiled or mashed) and horseradish is placed on the table. Yes, and don’t forget to pour the strained juice released during frying and melted butter over the meat. You can also serve roast beef with any vegetable salad and pickled vegetables.
Bon appetit!
I suggest watching a video recipe on how to prepare another English dish that will be appreciated by all meat-eaters and, first of all, men - Wellington beef.
Friends, if you liked the article, then vote for it by clicking the buttons social networks. This is how you say thank you to the blog. And also don’t forget to subscribe for new goodies. I look forward to your feedback, it is very important for me to know your opinion, this will make the site more interesting and useful. I will be glad to see you among the group members Delicious cuisine in contact with.
Sincerely, Lyubov Fedorova.
47 chosen
"Porthos looked at the bottle standing next to him, hoping that somehow he would dine on wine, bread and cheese, but there was no wine - the bottle was empty..."
/A. Dumas. "Three Musketeers"/
As a child, when I imagined the scene of Porthos having dinner with the Coquenards, I felt very sorry for the brave musketeer who remained hungry. Wine didn’t interest me in those days, and cheese and bread seemed too ordinary. Now I would gladly agree to such a meal - provided, of course, that all its components are French... Noble French cheeses have already been the theme of our culinary journey, a wide selection of wines deserves a separate discussion, and bread... Oh, this french baguette– aromatic, with a crispy crust and tender crumb – how to get it out of the store untouched?!! But I got distracted...
So, French cuisine. These words say everything and say nothing. What do we imagine when we talk about it? Onion soup? Frog legs? Foie gras? Refinement and perfection in everything - both in preparation and in serving dishes, honed over centuries? Let's start with the fact that there is no single French cuisine... There are many regional variations (cuisine regionale), there is “ordinary” or “common” cuisine (cuisine bourgeose) and, of course, haute cuisine, the ancestors of which were the cooks of the French kings. The division, however, is very arbitrary - dishes easily “migrate” from one category to another. Yes, famous Marseille bouillabaisse went from an unpretentious dish of fishermen to a masterpiece culinary arts. And, of course, there are features that are typical for any version of French cuisine. One of them is sauces.
For me, sauce is the quintessence of French cuisine. This is not just an addition to food, it is an elegant touch, a final flourish that turns good dish into a true masterpiece. A properly prepared sauce is designed to emphasize, highlight, but in no case change the taste of the food! There is a saying: “An architect hides his mistakes under ivy, a doctor hides his mistakes in the ground, and a cook hides his mistakes in sauce” (attributed to Bernard Shaw). There is some truth in it, but it’s just some truth – no sauce can make a bad dish good, but "average" can significantly improve. About attempts to disguise as spicy sauce I don’t even say “second-fresh sturgeon” - there’s no place for that in a decent kitchen! Served with various sauces familiar dish begins to play with new shades of taste and aroma. But looking for the unusual in the familiar is so exciting!
The sauce has another important role. Beautiful design dishes are an indispensable component of French cuisine, and sauces play into the chef’s hands. If the sauce is served separately, then an elegant gravy boat will add the right note to the serving. Do we often use gravy boats that are in our sets, inherited from our mothers and grandmothers? I'm afraid that many people ignore this serving item - and completely in vain!
If the dish is served with sauce, then the scope for the culinary imagination is even wider. French chefs manage to create real pictures on the plate, “revitalizing” the appearance of the dish with bright spots of colorful sauces. Sometimes such beauty is even a pity...
How many sauces does French cuisine know? There is no answer to this question - after all, new ones appear every day. The French statesman Talleyrand is credited with the following words: “In England there are 360 religions and 3 sauces, and in France there are 3 religions and 360 sauces.” However, some claim that the British said this. But what difference does it make if the meaning is clear - there are a lot of sauces in France, much more than 360. Experts count about 3000. It is impossible to talk about them all, but here the history of French cuisine comes to our aid.
In the 18th century, France became a trendsetter in culinary fashion and consolidated its position in the next century. Not only European royal courts, but also more or less rich and noble people strive to have a French chef. It was during those times that “classical” French cuisine was born, and sauces took their rightful place in it. An important role in the classification of sauces was played by the “king of cooks and cook of kings” Marie-Antoine Carême, who served under Talleyrand, Rothschild, the English king George IV and (albeit briefly) at the court of Alexander I in Russia. The traditions of Carême’s “haute” cuisine in a more modern version were continued by the no less famous Georges Auguste Escoffier, who worked in famous restaurants in Paris, Cannes, Monte Carlo and London. He published the best-selling book " Culinary guide", where sauces are given a significant place.
|
M.-A. Karem |
J.O. Escoffier |
I present to you (according to the classification of the great chefs of the past) the main sauces of French cuisine. They are also called “basic”, and Karem called them “great” or “mother”, since many others can be prepared on their basis.
Bechamel sauce (bechamel). This is probably the most famous, most versatile and not at all difficult sauce to prepare. Like all dishes with a history, Bechamel has several versions of its origin. One of them says that the sauce was invented by the court chef of Versailles, Varennes, but the dish was named after the Marquis de Bechamel.
To prepare Bechamel sauce we will need:
- ½ l milk
- 50 grams of butter
- 50 grams of flour
- Salt, white pepper, grated nutmeg taste
Melt the butter over low heat, add flour, stirring continuously. This will be the base of the sauce, called roux in French. Remove from heat, add cold milk to the hot base, whisking until completely smooth. Put it back on low heat, cook with constant stirring until it boils and for a few more minutes. Add salt and spices.
The main difficulty, in my opinion, is to achieve complete homogeneity of the sauce. If it doesn’t work out, then you can strain it through a strainer.
"Béchamel" goes well with light meat, chicken, for lasagna, potato, vegetable and mushroom casseroles. And this sauce also opens up wide scope for culinary experiments- you can add various spices, herbs and many other products to it. A wonderful sauce is obtained if you add onions fried until golden brown to the Bechamel. Grated cheese (preferably a few) different varieties), yolks and cream will turn “Béchamel” into a “Mornay” sauce, ideal for pasta and seafood, and chopped shrimp with cream - into an exquisite “Nantua”...
Hollandaise sauce(Hollandaise) is another masterpiece of French cuisine that has nothing to do with Holland.
For Hollandaise sauce you will need:
- 2-3 yolks
- 250 grams of butter
- 2 teaspoons lemon juice (you can substitute half wine vinegar)
- Salt, pepper to taste
According to the classics, the sauce is prepared in a water bath, but you can simply beat it with a mixer (although the first method makes the sauce more tender). Beat the yolks with salt in a water bath, then gradually add butter, pour in lemon juice and add pepper. The main difficulty is that the yolks should not overheat and curl. If the sauce is too thick, you can add a little warm water. Hollandaise sauce is prepared immediately before serving and is not stored.
There is another option - using proteins, which are whipped separately and added to the finished sauce. This “Dutch” is more airy, and it can also be stored and even reheated. Hollandaise sauce goes well with vegetables (especially asparagus), fish and seafood, and eggs (like the famous eggs Benedict).
There are many variations on the theme of Hollandaise sauce. If we add shallots and tarragon to it, we get a wonderful “Béarnaise”, ideal for steak, and Dijon mustard will turn it, accordingly, into “Dijon”. Mayonnaise, by the way, is also a relative of Hollandaise sauce. There is a legend that the well-known mayonnaise was born on the island of Menorca, where during the siege a French chef ran out of butter and came up with a sauce based on olive oil. Homemade mayonnaise is a wonderful sauce, high in calories, of course, but very tasty... You can also prepare “Tartare” by adding herbs, pickled gherkins, capers and mustard to mayonnaise, or “Remoulade” - with herbs, capers, spices and anchovies. These sauces are very good for seafood, vegetables and meat.
Veloute sauce (velouté) has been known since the middle of the 16th century and exists in several varieties - depending on the broth - the base. The broth (weak and light!) can be made from veal, chicken and fish, and it is thickened with the same roux base that we mentioned in connection with Bechamel.
It is prepared in the same way as Bechamel, but instead of milk they use broth, which is added hot to the base. Very simple and very tasty, try it! IN pure form The sauce is served with poultry and fish, and can also be used as a base for soups.
On the basis of "Veloute" you can prepare many of the most various sauces. The most famous of them is perhaps “German” (allemande). Interestingly, during the First World War, the patriotic French abandoned this name (but not the sauce itself!) The sauce is prepared by adding yolk, cream and lemon juice to Veloute. White wine, shallots and butter are often added to fish Veloute, while cream and fried mushrooms are added to chicken Veloute. Try experimenting with different herbs and spices - I'm sure you'll find your own!
"Spanish" sauce (Espagnole) is a member of the family of dark, or brown, sauces. Its features are a strong dark broth, which is boiled from veal, beef and bones, and a base of butter and flour is fried until Brown. According to legend (this sauce also has one), its author was a Spanish cook who came to France with Anne of Austria.
To prepare Espanol you need:
- 1 liter strong broth
- 50 grams of butter
- 50 grams of flour
- Salt, pepper to taste
- Tomato paste or tomato puree – 1-2 tablespoons
Add flour to melted butter and fry until brown with continuous stirring. Mix with tomato paste, add warm broth, and cook for at least 4 hours over low heat. The sauce should not boil and, of course, burn. Sauteed onions, carrots and celery, various spices and herbs are often added to this sauce.
Preparing "Spanish" sauce is a long and troublesome process, but it can be done in large quantities, and then freeze, which does not affect the taste at all.
This sauce is rarely used in its pure form, and others are created based on it. You can search for your options by trying different combinations of spices, herbs and spicy vegetables by adding red or white wine, bacon or mushrooms. Or you can turn to numerous recipes - Okhotnichy, Peregue, Robert, Lyon... These sauces are perfect for meat dishes.
And finally tomato sauce, which for some reason I want to attribute to Italian or Latin American cuisine. But it became one of the main sauces with the light hand of Escoffier at the beginning of the 20th century and became an integral part of the national cuisine of France. You can, of course, buy tomato sauce in a store - fortunately, the range of modern supermarkets allows this. Or you can cook it yourself, which is what I'm in Lately and I try to do it. The technology for preparing it is not at all complicated, it just takes time, so I make it “in industrial scale"and store in sealed jars in a cool place.
Basic tomato sauce is simply reduced puree from fresh and ripe tomatoes with the addition of olive oil, salt, garlic and other spices. By the way, it is better to add spices (except those that can be crushed) to the sauce in a bag towards the end of cooking. What's good about tomato sauce? First of all, there is room for creativity - it goes perfectly with greens and herbs (try Provençal!), with vegetables, olives, mushrooms and cheese... Adding chopped meat, we will get the classic "Bolognese", and with cream the sauce will turn into a delicate tomato-creamy... This sauce and its derivatives are indispensable for pasta, pizza, dishes made from potatoes and other vegetables, meat (especially chopped), fish and seafood.
Of course, “mother” sauces and even those based on them do not exhaust the richness of this page of French cuisine. There are whole families wine sauces and sweet sauces, as well as salad dressings(the most famous of them is “Vinaigrette”). But, as they say, you cannot embrace the immensity...
I confess - for a long time sauces remained a “secret with seven seals” for me. It seemed to me that it took too long to cook them, it was difficult, and in general, you could do just fine without them. But once I started, I can’t imagine how I managed without these elegant culinary additions that so diversify the usual cuisine. How interesting it is to experiment with ingredients, creating your own signature sauces! One of the great French chefs (either Brillat-Savarin, or Dumas the Father) is credited with the statement that it is impossible to learn how to make sauces - you need to be born with this talent. With all due respect, I disagree! There would be a desire.
How do you feel about sauces? Is it common to cook them in your home?
Svetlana branch , especially for Etoya.ru
Photo: mebelramka.ru, msk.lookmart.ru, luzana.ru, ru-gold.ru, azurworld-rossia.ru, vkysnoemenu.com, turist-mira.ru, abc8.ru, discoveric.ru, sharemykitchen.com, amasauce.fr, simplyrecipes.com, videojug.com, fr.wikipedia.org, kitsapcuisine.com, marsupialkitchen.com, escoffierathome.com, recettesduchef.fr, recettessimples.fr, ediblecommunities.com
Loading...