Aiguillette on French Menus. Aiguillettes are Slices and the Word Describes How a Dish is Served.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

   

Aiguillettes de Bœuf

Photograph courtesy of Michael Johnson

https://www.flickr.com/photos/thebusybrain/2885879361/

                                                          

Aiguillette was originally used for slices of beef, but now will be on menus for slices of chicken, duck and even fish.  In any case, read the menu carefully as there is also a cut for roast beef with the name aiguillette.

  

Aiguillette de Boeuf on your menu will usually indicate slices from a rump steak.  N.B. The North American and UK rump steaks do not come from the same cut.  In France, a rump steak will be barded while cooking; meaning that it will be tied around with fat to prevent it drying out as naturally this cut has little fat.  The result is that French cuts from the rump, when roasted or served as steaks, will usually be tastier than similar cuts at home. The cut used for an aiguillette de bœuf is also the preferred cut for the chopped or ground beef used for a steak tartare.

Aiguillettes on French Menus:
   

Aiguillettes de Bœuf aux Girolles – Slices of beef served with wild chanterelle mushrooms.

   

Aiguillettes de Salers Braisée  – Braised slices of beef from the Salers breed of cattle. The cows from the Salers breed produce the milk for the famous Cantal and Salers AOC cheeses from the Auvergne. Despite the cow’s fame for their milk, historically they have always been bred both for their milk and their beef. 

   

Sliced duck in red wine, grapes, and thyme

served with asparagus and potatoes.

Photograph courtesy of Alpha.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/avlxyz/4729783387 FF

   

Aiguillettes (L’) de Rumsteck en Croûte d’Herbes Fraîches –The rumsteck here is covered in herbes and then roasted. You will be served slices.  When finding a dish on the menu like this ask more about it Those who do not ask may well be missing out on an excellent meal.

            

Aiguillettes de Canard – Slices of duck, usually slices of duck breast. Duck breast in French is Magret de Canard.

  

Aiguillettes de Canard, Sauce Montmorency – Slices of duck breast served with Sauce Montmorency. The sauce is made with Montmorency (sour) cherries made with orange juice, sweet berries, and kirsch. The area of Montmorency, once famous for its cherry orchards,  has given its name to a type of sour cherry. Montmorency itself is now a bedroom suburb just 14 kms (9 miles)  from the center of Paris.

     

Aiguillettes de Canard.

Photograph courtesy of Digital Wallpapers

https://www.flickr.com/photos/digitalwallpapers/7490021798/   FF

  

Aiguillette de Saint-Pierre et Crumble de Noisettes, Topinambour Jus de Volaille Acidulé -  A fillet of John Dory, the fish, served with a crumble made with hazelnuts, Jerusalem artichokes, and a slightly acidic veal sauce.

     

Aiguillette de Saumon – Slices of salmon.

Photograph courtesy of Alpha

https://www.flickr.com/photos/avlxyz/4354980706/   FF

     

Brochette d'Aiguillettes de Volaille Marinées à l'Huile d'Olive and Citron Vert – Skewers of slices of chicken breast marinated in olive oil and lime.

    

Ris de Veau, Aiguillettes de Poulet, Champignons, Crème, Porto  – Veal sweetbreads served with slices of chicken and button mushrooms; accompanied by a cream sauce flavored with Port Wine.

    

Salade d'Aiguillettes de Canard au Sésame Déglacées au Vinaigre Balsamique de Modène -  A salad of slices of duck breast with a sauce made with sesame oil deglazed with Balsamic Vinegar from Modena.

   

Connected Posts:

  

Button Mushrooms - The Champignon de Paris. The Mushrooms of France I.

   

         Cantal and Salers; Two of the Best Cheeses From the Auvergne, France.

               

Chanterelle Mushrooms, the Most Famous Four. Chanterelle Girolle Mushrooms on French Menus.

    

Citron – The lemon; the fruit behind many of France’s culinary successes. Also the Citron Vert - Lime, the Cedrat – the Citron, the Combava – the kaffir lime and the Chadec - the Pomelo.

   

Duck Breast- Magret de Canard or Lou Magret.

   

En Croûte on French Menus.

   

French Olive Oils. Enjoying France's Best Olive Oils.

  

Montmorency Cherries on French Menus. Camille Pissarro and Jean-Jacques Rousseau who made the village of Montmorency internationally famous.

   

Saint-Pierre, that unique fish. John Dory in French Cuisine.

  

Sweetbreads in French cuisine, Ris de Veau (d'Agneau) on French Menus.

    

Vinegar, Vinaigrette and Verjus in French Cuisine.

   

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

 

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

Copyright 2010, 2016.

Fourme d'Ambert AOP - One of France's Finest Mild Blue Cheeses. The Fourme d'Ambert in French Cuisine.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

                      
Fourme d’Ambert
Photograph courtesy of the La Société Laitière de Laqueuille
(The Société Laitière de Laqueuille also produces its own blue cheese called La Bleu de Laqueuille).

The Fourme d’Ambert is a 28% fat, pasteurized, cow’s milk cheese, with a blue mold.  Despite being a blue-veined cheese, it is smooth and relatively mild.  The cheese is allowed to age and develop its taste and texture for four to eight weeks in humid cellars. Even when matured for the full eight weeks this cheese is still far milder than many other blue cheeses.

   The cheese’s documented history going back over four-hundred years but was undoubtedly produced even earlier.  The producers claim that its history goes back to the Druids worshipping in the Forez Mountains, which are divided between the departments of the Loire and Puy-de-Dôme.

 

A view of the Forez mountains around Ambert
Photograph courtesy of Jeanne Menjoulet
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jmenj/15506887602/ 

The town of Ambert that gave this cheese its name is a small town of under 7,000 in the department of Puy-de-Dôme in the region of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes.   The word fourme, which is part of this and other French cheeses' names, has nothing to do with the type of cheese; fourme refers to the form, the shape of the cheese, and the container into which the cheese is poured.  The regulation shape of a whole Fourme d'Ambert is a cylinder 11 cm (4.3 “) in diameter by 22 cm (8.7 “) high. A whole cheese weighs approximately 1.5 kg (3.3 lbs).

Fourme d’Ambert AOP AB
AB is the European label for products following the rules of the EU Organic Farming. 
See Organic Food and Wine in France.
Photograph courtesy of BBG Bio.bon

When buying this cheese to take home, you’ll see that the Fourme d'Ambert, like most blue cheeses, does not have a rind and keeps very well without one.   Have a round cut, wrapped well in plastic wrap (only for blue cheeses without rind) and then vacuum-packed, which will travel well for one or two days. At home, keep the cheese in the refrigerator, never the freezer, and in plastic wrap; it will keep well for a month or more. For more about buying cheese in France and taking it home, click here.

 

Ambert on Thursday Market day.
Open from 8:00 t0 12:30.
Ambert’s round town hall  is in the background.
Photograph courtesy of Livradois-Forez National Park

The Fourme d’Ambert on French Menus:

Asperges Blanches à la Fourme d'Ambert, Jambon de Vendee – White asparagus served with a Fourme d’Ambert sauce and the Vendée ham. Asparagus and ham are often paired, and here, hot white asparagus has a Fourme d’Ambert sauce.

Entrecôte Charolaise (Environ 300 G) à la Fourme d'Ambert. – A grilled or fried entrecote from the highly rated Charolais beef (approximately 300 grams (11 oz )) prepared with Fourme d’Ambert cheese.

Magret d'Oie Grille à la Fourme d'Ambert  - Grilled goose breast prepared with Fourme d’Ambert cheese.

Salade Auvergnate: Salade, Croutons, Fourme d’Ambert, Tomate, Jambon Cru, Noix – Those who live in the Auvergne are called Auvergnates, and so are their local recipes. An Auvergnate salad is prepared with mixed salad greens, croutons, Fourme d”Ambert cheese, tomatoes, cured ham, and walnuts.

Truffade à la Fourme d’Ambert avec Jambon Sec, Saucisson et Salade – The truffade is a traditional Auvergnate thick potato pancake made from thinly sliced potatoes fried in goose fat. Here, it is made with the Forme d’Ambert and served with cured ham, sausage and a salad.

An open sandwich with fruit and Fourme de Ambert
Tartine de Fruits et Fourme d’Ambert
Photograph courtesy of Bordeaux Sweet and Dessert Wines

 

 In the town is  the House of the Fourme d'Ambert and the other four Auvergne AOP cheeses. Check their website's opening times as these can change; entrance in 2023 costs less than six euros per person.  If you are a French speaker, call them on 04-7382-4923. Their French language website is Maison de la Fourme d’Ambert et de Fromages d’Auvergne AOP,  it is easily understood using the Bing or Google translate apps.

 

A view of the town
Photograph courtesy of Jérôme Decq
https://www.flickr.com/photos/lesphotosdejerome/6141038669/

 

The Auvergne has a Route des Fromages AOP d'Auvergne, an Auvergne cheese road with plenty of dairies to visit and appreciate their wares. Their website is also in English: 

       https://www.fromages-aop-auvergne.com/route-fromages/ 

     The route runs near to many vineyards, restaurants, and other places of interest. You may follow the map:  https://www.fromages-aop-auvergne.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/LIVRET-RDF-portrait-V2.pdf. The map is also in French but easily understood and you can join at any point, just use the Bing and Google translate apps.

The Fourme d’Ambert and the Fourme de Montbrison cheeses.  Linked forever to Ambert and its cheese is a town called Montbrison and their cheese, the Fourme de Montbrison AOP.  Ambert is in the department of Puy-de-Dôme and as the crow flies  Montbrison in the department of Loire is just 30 km (19 miles) away from Ambert, about 40 km (25 miles) by road.  The Fourme de Montbrison AOP is a very similar cheese to the Fourme d’Ambert AOP.  It is a long story, too long for this post, but one cheese, now with slight differences has ended up with two names; each with its own right to an AOP label.            

Other Auvergne-Rhône-Alps AOP cheeses:

Abondance AOP -  A hard, yellow cow’s milk cheeses.

Beaufort AOP - A hard, yellow cow’s milk cheese.

Bleu d’Auvergne – A blue cow’s milk cheese.

Bleu du Vercors-Sassenage AOP  - A mild, pasteurized, cow’s milk, blue cheese.

Cantal AOP and Salers AOP – Semi-hard, yellow cow’s milk cheeses.

Chevrotin AOP - A  soft, goat's milk cheese.

Fourme de Montbrison AOP - A mild cow’s milk blue cheese,

Picodon AOP or  Picadon de l'Ardèche AOP-  The first goat's milk cheese to be awarded an AOC.

Reblochon AOP -  A soft, cow’s milk cheese.

Rigotte AOP or Rigotte de Condrieu AOP -  A soft, goat’s milk cheese.

Saint-Nectaire AOP - A creamy and nutty, semi-firm, cow’s milk cheese.

Tome des Bauges AOP -  A semi-hard, cow’s milk cheese.

--------------

Searching for the meaning of words, names or phrases
on
French menus?

Just add the word, words, or phrase that you are searching for to the words "Behind the French Menu" and search with Google. Behind the French Menu’s links include hundreds of words, names, and phrases that are seen on French menus. There are over 470 posts that include over 4,000 French dishes with English translations and explanations.

------------

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Copyright © 2010, 2018, 2023

Connected Posts:

A Short Introduction to France’s World of Sausages.

Asparagus in French cuisine.

Charolais Beef; the Very Best Beef in France.

Dining in the Auvergne. Auvergnat dishes on French Menus.

Entrecôte. Ordering a Perfect Entrecote Steak in France.

Jambon Cru- Ham. The Ten Most Popular Air-Cured Hams on French Menus.

Magret de Canard or Lou Magret. - Duck Breast in French Cuisine.

Noix – The Walnut. France’s Beloved Nut. 

Salades - Salads. Forty of the Most Popular French Salads.

Tomato. France’s Greatest Tomato, the Tomate de Marmande AOP. The Tomato in French Cuisine.