Behind the French Menu: Porcini

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Caille - Quail. Quail on the Menu in France.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Quail and their eggs.

Photograph courtesy of Yay Micro.

Farm-raised quail taste slightly sweeter than chicken and when simply roasted you will note that slightly sweeter taste. N.B. Quail is also more easily flavored than chicken and so often that slightly sweeter taste is lost among the other flavors in the cooking process.

Roast quail for three.

Photograph Yay Micro

A serving of quail, a whole European quail, will most likely weigh in at less than 150 grams (5.30 ounces) and that’s with the bones; if the quail are smaller you will often be served two.

Quail on the French menu:

Caille à la Stanislas - Quail in the manner prepared for Stanislas, Duke of Bar and Lorraine, France. In the original recipe, the quail was deboned, roasted and then served stuffed with fattened goose liver, foie gras de oie. Caille à la Stanislas is still on some French menus today; however, the amount of fois gras will be greatly reduced from the serving in the original dish. That should not be too surprising, given today's cost of foie gras in France.

Stanislas, before he became a French Duke, was a Polish king who was fired from that job, twice! Unemployed kings do not usually have good job prospects. Nevertheless, Stanislas received the title Duke of Lorraine with a job to go with it from his son-in-law, who was King Louis XV of France. Stanislas also received a chateau outside the city of Nancy in the Lorraine. The chateau was not a small one, and it is still known as the Versailles of the Lorraine. Stanislas's building of three stunning squares in the City of Nancy would make the city world-famous, and the squares are now UN World Heritage sites. Despite Stanislas's great works and (for the times) progressive rule, he is best remembered as the man who gave the name to the dessert Rhum Baba. Rhum Baba or Rum Baba and other dishes that were first served in Stanislas's chateau. The Savarin or Savarin au Rhum is based on the Rhum Baba but named after Jeanne Anthelme Brillat-Savarin who lived over 100 years later.

Fig and quail egg salad.

Photograph courtesy of Yay Micro

Caille Rôtie Farcie de Girolles, de Cèpes et de Roquette, Sauce Porto – Quail roasted while stuffed with the girolle chanterelle mushroom, and cèpes, the French Porcini mushroom, along with rocket leaves. The dish is served with a port wine sauce. Despite France having its own Port style wines, both Port and Madeira wines will be in every French kitchen and in many sauces.

Caille Aux Raisins - Quail prepared and served with grapes.

California quail

Photograph courtesy of Phillip Cowan

www.flickr.com/photos/71073348@N08/6920753719/

La Crème de Topinambours en Cappuccino et Son Effilochée de Poitrine de Caille – A frothy cream of Jerusalem artichoke soup served with small pieces of quail breast.

The use of the word cappuccino in this menu listing refers to the froth on the soup and not to coffee. When the Italians named their coffee creation cappuccino little attention was paid to the froth. Cappuccino coffee received its name from the color of the milky coffee, which is similar to the color of the hood of a Capuchin friar's robes. However, do not let us get confused by the facts. On today's French menus cappuccino, apart from when the word is actually used for cappuccino coffee, means froth. The word effilochée in this menu listing indicates the way the quail meat has been cut. Your French-English dictionary will show the translation of effilochée as frayed; however on a French menu effilochée refers to the way meat is cut and here it indicates the slicing of quail breast into small pieces to serve in the soup.

Salade d'Oeuf de Caille, Pointe d'Asperge et Aiguillette de Canard - A salad of quails’ eggs, they will be served either fried or boiled, whichever looks better, along with asperge, asparagus spears, and slices of Magret de Canard, duck breast.

Fig and quail egg salad.

Photograph by Apolonia courtesy of freedigitalphotos

Salade de Cailles Rôties au Vinaigre Balsamique – A salad of roasted quail dressed with a balsamic vinaigrette.

Quail Eggs

The European quail is a little smaller than the American quail. Despite the quail family's connection to pheasants you would not know it to taste one or to look at one. Farms that raise quail also raise these birds for their beautiful eggs; quail eggs are an essential part of quail farming economics.

Quail eggs

Photograph by Phiseksit courtesy of freedigitalphots.net

Quail eggs taste exactly the same as a chicken egg; however, if you were planning to make an omelet the size of a two chicken-egg omelet you will need about 10 quail eggs.

A hen’s egg and a quail egg.

Photograph courtesy of Yay Micro.

During the short hunting season, wild quail are legally hunted in France; if they appear on a restaurant’s menu the term used will be caille sauvage, wild quail. Wild quail are smaller and stronger tasting than the farmed variety, but they are also tougher and so they will be prepared with different recipes to farmed quail.

Wild quail in the bushes.

Photograph courtesy of Sid Mosdell

www.flickr.com/photos/sidm/4220112535/

In the Old Testament, Exodus 16, it is the quail, along with Manna that God sent for the Israelites to eat in the desert. The original recipe served at that time, has been lost in the sands of the Sinai desert. In France, there are many new and recreated recipes for quail.

Caille - Quail in the languages of France's neighbors:

(Catalan - guatlla, guatla, guàtlera), (Dutch - kwartel), (German - wachtel), (Italian - quaglia comune), (Spanish - codorniz común).

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Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

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Lotte or Baudroie - Monkfish or Anglerfish. Monkfish on French Menus.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Grilled monkfish..

Photograph courtesy of Stu_Spivack

www.flickr.com/photos/stuart_spivack/3253855079/

Lotte, Lotte de Mer, Diable de Mer, Baudroie - The Angler Fish, Monkfish or Goosefish, one of the tastiest of all saltwater fish with succulent, very firm, very white meat. On French restaurant menus, I would place monkfish as number four or five in the top ten popularity stakes. (Baudroie is the Occitan and Provencal named for Monkfish and as most of France’s monkfish are caught in the Mediterranean this is the name on most local menus),

. If you see a whole monkfish in fishmongers you quickly understand why one of its French names is Diable de Mer, the devil of the sea; it is an extremely ugly fish. You will also see that there is no meat whatsoever in its hollow body, and even when a 1 meter (3.3’) fish is caught all the meat is in the last third, which is its tail. A large fish may weigh 20 kg (44 lbs) of which 12 kg (26 lbs) is the tail.

Facing down a monkfish.

Photograph courtesy of Paul Arps

www.flickr.com/photos/slapers/40531567550/

Apart from this fish’s meat, all of which come from its tail, its cheeks and liver have always been considered a Provencal and Japanese delicacy; now the monkfish’s cheeks are also growing in popularity in the rest of France, and they will be on the menu as Joues de Lotte or Joues de Baudroie.

Monkfish with Ratatouille

Photograph courtesy of Edsel Little

www.flickr.com/photos/edsel_/19676933856/

N.B. On some restaurant menus, there may be another fish called lotte or lote de rivière; this is a freshwater fish. In English, this fish is the Burbot, and while it cannot compete with the monkfish it is a meaty fish; by the lakes and rivers where Burbot are caught in France, they will be on the menu. The Burbot may look somewhat like a catfish, but it is a freshwater member of the cod family if the menu is not clear ask.

Monkfish on French menus:

Blanquette de Joues de Lotte, Soufflé de Légumes de Saison et Riz - A stew made with the cheeks of the monkfish served with a soufflé made with the season’s vegetables and rice.

A blanquette is a stew originally created for white meats, that is: rabbit, lamb, pork and veal; today a blanquette will often be seen with fish. Blanquette recipes usually include mushrooms and white wine in a cream or crème fraiche sauce. Now that the cheeks of the monkfish have begun to be enjoyed outside of Provence, they may be on your menu; they taste somewhat similar to scallops with a different texture. The renewed popularity of monkfish cheeks in the north of France where they were initially ignored has sent the prices up. Additionally, the popularity of monkfish cheeks has brought the cheeks of many other fish into contention. Other menus show that French chefs are experimenting with cod cheeks, tuna cheeks, and more.

Pan roasted monkfish.

Photograph courtesy of Naotake Murayama.

www.flickr.com/photos/naotakem/3676846367/

Bourride de Baudroie - Provence’s most popular and famous monkfish stew, often flavored with saffron; monkfish is the only fish in the bourride de baudroie. The Bourride de Baudroie is traditionally a large stew a so you may pass on any hors d’ oeuvres or entrees unless you are really very hungry. The only fish in this stew is the monkfish; the rest of the stew is vegetables and, of course, plenty of garlic flavor and aïoli a garlicky mayonnaise. Depending on the chef, this stew will be accompanied by potatoes, and usually, additional aïoli or a rouille sauce with garlic toast will be on the side.

Monkfish in safaron.

Photograph by courtesy of horax zeigt hier

Lotte de Quiberon Rôtie, Risotto Carnaroli aux Cèpes Français Roasted monkfish from the area of Quiberon in Brittany, accompanied by a risotto made with the Italian carnaroli rice and French porcini mushrooms.

When I saw this menu item I wished that I had been able to order it right there and then; all the parts of the offered dish are special, and when offered with a carnaroli rice risotto they become unique. Monkfish are also one of the few fish that really can be roasted and that alone would make this dish special.

The fish and seafood from Bretagne are considered among the very best in France and so their origin will be noted on many menus; however, here the chef is indicating a specific place and for the cognoscenti, Quiberon is a very special source for monkfish. Quiberon is a peninsula on the southern coast of the département of Morbihan and apart from its fishing industry and oyster and mussel farms Quiberon is a very popular summer holiday vacation spot for the French. In July and August do not even think about looking for a free hotel room; the hotels are often booked up to one year in advance. The carnaroli rice used for the risotto is the rice that 99% of all Italian and French chefs will agree is unbeatable where risotto is concerned. The Arborio and Baldo rices may be better known, but carnaroli rice which comes from the same part of Italy as the Arborio and Baldo is even better. Here the risotto is made with those very tasty French porcini mushrooms; what could be better. French porcini mushrooms are equally tasty family members of the better known Italian porcini mushrooms.

Grilled monkfish on lentils,

Photograph by courtesy of Kake.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/kake_pugh/4410146450/

Lotte Rôtie, Bouillon de Homard aux Herbes Fraîches, Rattes Safranées et Brunoise de Légumes. A roasted cut of monkfish served in a lobster bouillon accompanied by saffron flavored ratte potatoes and vegetables cut in the brunoise manner.

Ratte potatoes are one of France’s favorite potatoes and their name actually does mean a rat a or a mouse; however, that is nothing to do with their taste. Their name indicates that some can be considered a modern art version of a rat or a mouse when they are as yet uncut and uncooked. Brunoise is one of the ten or more special French cuts used for the shapes and sizes of vegetables and some fruits; a vegetable cut brunoise denotes a cut about 2mm thick.

Smoked Monkfish

Photograph by courtesy of boo_licious

Ragoût de Queue de Lotte aux Légumes de Saison et sa Crème aux Huîtres - A stew of monkfish tail prepared with the season’s vegetables in a cream of oyster sauce.

Médaillon de Lotte Cuit dans sa Bisque de Crustacés, Légumes Automnales, Etuvée de Blancs de Poireaux au Lard – A round cut from a monkfish tail cooked in its own shellfish bisque, served with autumn vegetables, and steamed leek whites cooked with bacon. (The crustaceans in the bisque will be mainly shrimps).

Lotte, Lotte de Mer, Diable de Mer, Baudroie: The Anglerfish, or Monkfish, is one of the tastiest of all saltwater fish, with succulent, very firm, and very white meat, placing it as number four or five in the top ten fish popularity stakes in France. (If you see a whole monkfish in a fishmonger's, you quickly understand why one of its French names is Diable de Mer, the devil of the sea; it is an extremely ugly fish. You will also see that there is no meat whatsoever in its hollow body, and even when a 1-meter (3.3') fish is caught, all the meat is in the last third, which is its tail. A large fish may weigh 20 kg (44 lbs), of which 12 kg (26 lbs) is the very tasty tail.

Beyond the meaty tail, the monkfish's cheeks and liver have always been considered a delicacy in Provence and Japan. The monkfish's cheeks are also gaining popularity in the rest of France, and they will be featured on the menu as Joues de Lotte or Joues de Baudroie. (Baudroie is the Occitan and Provençal term for monkfish, so expect to see it on menus near the Mediterranean.)

Bisques: Began as rich fish soups, changing with the years to pureed shellfish soups that will include white wine, fresh cream, or crème fraîche. Shellfish bisques can be distinguished by their texture and fish and vegetable bisques, including bisque sauces, need the right textures to be added to the menu.

Lard and Bacon, and their meanings in English and French: These two words have created more than a few problems for English speakers in France. First-time visitors to France, trying to read French menus, may easily become confused by the French usage of bacon and lard. The confusion began in 1066 when William the Conqueror invaded England from Normandy, France, and conquered it. The Norman-French cooks introduced significant changes to the English kitchen.

The French word "bacon" meant then what it still means today: smoked, salted, or dried meat from the back, sides, or belly of a pig. The French word lard also meant pig fat, and it still means pig fat in English, but in France, it's an alternative word for bacon. Pig fat in modern French is saindoux.

Médaillon de Lotte Rôtie aux Zestes de Yuzu Confits, Brisures de Blé Noir et ses Légumes de Saison - A cut across the tail of a monkfish with candied strips of yuzu peel (the zest is in the peel), along with toasted buckwheat, and seasonal vegetables

Brisures de Blé Noir: Cracked buckwheat has a slightly chewy texture and adds a mild, earthy, nutty flavor to dishes. It's gluten-free and pairs beautifully with mushrooms, root vegetables, or creamy sauces. The darker color comes from the seed's coating. The French name for buckwheat ble noir or "black wheat" comes from the crusades. Then the French first met the dark-skinned Saracen warriors and were introduced to their dark buckwheat flour. The French took the wheat home, and among its various names is the name of their Saracen foes; blé de sarrasin." Today, that would not be politically correct, but the name is still used.

The Yuzu is a member of the citrus family and originated, like all other citrus fruits, in China. The Yuzu has a taste somewhere between that of a grapefruit and an orange. In the Japanese kitchen, its rind is popular as it adds a lot of flavor, and so French chefs also include Yuzu in many recipes. In this menu listing, the flavor is taken from a Yuzu confit. The word confit indicates that the fruit was slowly cooked with wine, wine vinegar or balsamic vinegar, and brown sugar will have been added, and that would have produced candied strips of Yuzu ( which includes the zest).

A whole monkfish.

Photograph by courtesy of alistairas.

Only rarely will you see a whole monkfish in a fish market as there is no meat on the body and its head is quite ugly; apart from its tail, cheeks and liver there is nothing to sell to most customers; the fishmonger will sell the head and body for those who are making fish stock.

Monkfish tails.

The meaty tails mostly weigh over one kilo, (2.2 lbs), and will be sold skinned; the cheeks and liver will both be sold separately and that is often to restaurants. Monkfish livers may, however, may not be on too many menus as their price has risen very year, over the last few years; the demand from Japan has created a very active export market.

(Catalan - rap), (Dutch - hozemond), (German - seeteufel or angelfisch), (Italian - coda di rospo, rana perscatrice or diavolo di mare), (Spanish – lophius or rape).(latin - lophius piscatorius),

Don't Confuse Lotte with Lotte?

While the names can be confusing, be aware that some French menus might feature a different freshwater fish called lotte or lotte de rivière. This fish is the burbot in English, and though it can't quite compete with monkfish, burbot is a meaty fish, typically weighing 1.5 – 3.5 kg (3-8 lbs) and caught in France's lakes and rivers. Burbots somewhat resemble a catfish, but they are actually the only freshwater member of the cod family. If a menu isn't clear, ask!

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