Caille - Quail. Quail on the Menu in France.
Behind the French Menu
Lotte or Baudroie - Monkfish or Anglerfish. Monkfish on French Menus.
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.
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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).
(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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