from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com
Roasted
marrow bones, with the marrow, served with toast.
Photograph courtesy of Pierre LANNES
www.flickr.com/photos/titounet/4528072362/
Dishes cooked with the bones in, such as slowly roasted chicken or baked fish, taste better than the same dish prepared bone-free. That special taste comes from the marrow in the bones. In French cuisine, beef and veal marrow are behind the flavor and texture of many French dishes.
Jarret
de Veau
Osso
Bucco
Photograph
courtesy of stu_spivak
https://www.flickr.com/photos/stuart_spivack/2295591814/
Os and moelle on
French Menus:
Á la Moelle – Dishes served
or flavored with bone marrow.
À la Os - On the bone.
Moelle – Bone marrow.
Os – Bone.
Os à Moelle - Marrow bones.
Dishes with bone marrow on French menus:
Jarret de Veau - Jarret de Veau is the dish
called Osso Buco in Italian.
The jarret de veau is a cut across
the bone from a veal shank. The bone in the center of this cut is a marrow
bone. It is the heart of the flavor and texture in the dish.
The words for a bone with a hole in it in Italian are osso buco.
See Chapter 22 for more about the dishes made with
this marrow bone.
Entrecôte Marchand de Vin à la
Moelle – An entrecote,
a rib-eye steak, prepared in the manner historically
favored by a wine merchant.
Sauce Marchand de Vin: A sauce made with a slightly fuller-bodied red wine sauce than that used for Sauce Bordelaise. It is typically prepared with beef stock rather than veal stock and without the addition of bone marrow. Depending on where in France you order this dish, different red wines will be used. However, here the sauce has been upgraded by the addition of bone marrow. The words à la moelle note the addition of bone marrow, and that means a more decadent and velvety sauce. In this dish, slices of bone marrow may also be placed decoratively on top of the steak. (The same cut with the bone left in is a Côte de Bœuf in French, a bone-in rib-eye, or rib steak. The steak with the bone may look great, but the short cooking time does not permit much flavor from the bone to reach the steak. Besides, rib bones are not marrow bones.
Entrecôte Bordelaise a la
Moelle.
An
entrecote, a ribeye steak, in the manner of Bordeaux with bone marrow.
Photograph
by Monkey Business through Yay Micro.com
Filet de Bœuf Cuit au Sautoir, Os à
Moelle Rôti, Betterave Confite à la Badiane –
A beef fillet,
a cut from the beef tenderloin, cooked in a sautoir frying
pan, served with a roast marrow bone and a beetroot jam flavored with star anise.
Sautoir: French kitchens are filled with many different pots and pans, and the sautoir is a broad, shallow pan with straight sides. French culinary tradition encourages the inclusion of the name of the equipment used in a menu listing. (Outside of the kitchen, a sautoir necklace is usually very long, often extending below the waist, and may have a tassel or pendant. I do not know why the same names are used. The word is derived from the French word "sauter," which means "to jump" or "to leap," possibly referring to the way the necklace "leaps" or "jumps" as the wearer moves. In the kitchen the sautoir may be used for stir-fried dishes and the cooking technique of sautéing—which means "to jump" involves cooking food quickly The "jumping" therefore refers to the method where a chef can "toss" the food in the pan with a flick of the wrist, making the ingredients "jump" and turning over so they are evenly cooked.
A
sautoir.
Photograph courtesy of
smartkitchen.com
La Badiane or Anis Étoile or La Badiane - Star Anise; the star-shaped fruit of the Chinese Anis plant. Star Anise has been used in Chinese and other Asian cuisines for thousands of years for its aniseed flavor. Two hundred years ago star anise came into mainstream European cuisine competing with and adding to Anis and other herbs for the best aniseed flavor. Beginning with Absinthe Star Anis became famous in France’s and other country’s aniseed flavored drinks. Star anise along with aniseed is an essential ingredient in France’s popular Pastis and similar alcoholic drinks. Star Anis is also the most essential ingredient in that important Chinese spice group the Cinq Épices Chinois, the Chinese five spice powder; today, however, the Chinese five spice powder often has the Western Anis included, alongside star anise, as it allows for a more mellow flavor and Chinese tastes have changed.
Os à Moelle à la Fleur de Sel, Pain Grillé – Marrow bones served with fleur
de sel, and toast. Use the spoon provided, scoop the marrow
from the bones, spread it on the toast, add a few grains of fleur de sel salt
and then enjoy the classic way to enjoy bone marrow. (Fleur de sel, the flower
of salt, is the mineral-rich salt crystals taken from the top of dried
sea-salt pans).
Marrow
bones and toast.
Photograph courtesy of Cory Doctorow
www.flickr.com/photos/doctorow/2804793503/
Onglet de
Bœuf, Echalotes au Vin et Os à Moelle - A hanger steak, a UK skirt steak, prepared
with a shallot,
wine and bone marrow sauce.
Steak Haché à la Moelle – A
chopped steak flavored with bone marrow. Chopped steak is prepared in a manner
similar to a hamburger, but with a different texture from a simple minced
patty. Here, the added flavor and texture of bone marrow will make a much more
interesting dish.
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Connected Posts:
Anis Étoile or Badiane - Star Anise the Spice. Star Anise on French Menus.
Bordeaux and Bordelaise on the Menu, and Bordeaux AOC/AOP Wines on the Wine-List.
Carottes - Carrots in French Cuisine.
Chou; Cabbage in a French restaurant? Of Course, Cabbage is very important in French Cuisine.
Entrecôte. Ordering a Perfect Entrecote Steak in France.
Filet Mignon on French Menus and Filet de Bœuf in French Cuisine.
Fleur de Sel - The flower of salt. The Special Crystals of Sea Salt Used in French Cuisine.
Steak Frites in French Cuisine.
Persil - Parsley in French Cuisine. Parsley on French menus.
Behind
the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com
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2010, 2017, 2025
