Behind the French Menu: food in France

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Clam Chowder

Chowder was created in France, not Boston and then it was a fisherman's and fisherwoman's stew made with any unsold or unpopular shellfish; unsold sea fish would usually be taken home for the family. At the end of a 12 hour plus work day, this would have been the fishermen’s and fisherwomen’s’ first meal. Today chowder, in a French seafood restaurant will be made with the very best seafood and or sea fish.

A shrimp and corn chowder

Leszek Leszczynski

Chaudrée or Chaudière - Fish and seafood chowders are rich, velvety soups or thick stews. Nearly all French chowders include white wine, garlic, potatoes, and herbs, and many include crème fraîche and or butter.

Chowder on the French menus:

Chaudrée de Moules au Vin Blanc et Fleur d'Ail – A mussel chowder made with white wine and flavored with the crushed stems and buds of garlic flowers. (Garlic flowers are, as a rule, much lighter tasting than regular garlic; but I was warned that while the wild garlic flower is beautiful do not bring them into the house for decoration!).

Chaudrée de Palourdes et Croûtons à l'Ail. – Clam chowder with garlic flavored croutons. When clam chowder is on the menu, it is rare that you will see the name of a particular clam, and most modern French clam chowders also include mussels. French clam chowders may also include the North American Quahog, called the Cherry Stone Clam in the USA. The original American Indian name for the Cherry Stone Clam was quahogs, and these clams were introduced accidentally into Europe some 80 years ago from the USA. This clam is added for its texture with other clams providing the taste. The cherry stone clam in France is called the Palourde Américaine or Palourde Quahog Nordique, or Le Clam. This is a relatively large clam, from 5 -10 cm (2" - 4") across.

Cherry Stone Clams

Photograph by courtesy of joo0ey.

Chaudrée de Pétoncles au Maïs Rôti - Scallop chowder prepared with roast corn, that’s roast maize in the USA.

Chaudrée de Poissons - Fish Chowder. When this is all the information on the menu it is time to ask which fish is in the chowder!

Chaudrée de Poissons et Fruits de Mer, Pommes de Terre Salardaises. A fish and seafood chowder served with a side dish of Pommes de Terre Salardaise. Pommes de Terre Salardaise are potatoes baked in duck fat and flavored with garlic and parsley; a traditional recipe from the Dordogne.

A seafood chowder.

Photograph courtesy of Quinn Dombrowski

Chaudrée de Saumon et de Crevettes aux Pommes De Terre – A salmon and shrimp chowder served with potatoes.

Chaudrée Vendéenne - A traditional fish and seafood chowder from the department of Vendée in the region of the Pays de la Loire; in fact, this is really a stew. A Chaudrée Vendéenne will include anguille, eel; congre, conger eel; seiche, cuttlefish; white wine, butter, onions, shallots, garlic, and fennel.

Chowder served in a bread bowl.

A classic and attractive way to serve a chowder.

Photograph courtesy of Marvin Lee.

It is easy to see how the French word Chaudrée, became chowder in English; with the 1066 invasion of England by William the Conqueror, many French words entered the English kitchen. Another French word occasionally used for chowder is Choudiere; a Choudiere was the pot or cauldron in which the fisherman would cook their chowder at the end of a long work day. Today’s chefs do not fish for a living and they will be using far better fish and seafood than those who originally cooked with a Choudiere.

With a few notable exceptions, most of the mainland French clam offerings are only seen on the French side of the Atlantic and in the Mediterranean. On a seafood restaurant menu, quite a number of words may be used to indicate clams; the most usual and correct name is Palourde; however, the menu may also use traditional names including, but not only: Clam, Praires, Venus, Vernis, and Clovis. With a few exceptions, the clams from North America's Atlantic coast are not seen in Europe.

Abalone, the Ormeau or Oreille-de-Mer.

In clam chowders, in France as elsewhere around the world, chefs may include the meat of the abalone, also called the sea ear; and that despite the abalone not being a clam. Nevertheless, clams and abalones are closely related with similar textures. The abalone is large to very large sea snail with good meat and a slightly sweet taste and a texture that blends in well. While the abalone may be found in many French restaurant kitchens, it will rarely be noted by name on the menu. Nevertheless, Abalone meat is often part of shellfish salads; in French, the abalone is the Ormeau or Oreille-de-mer.

The shell of an Abalone.

Abalone shells have attractive colors and are often used in jewelry.

Photograph courtesy of artolog.

Connected Posts:

Ail - Garlic. Garlic in French Cuisine.

Beurre - Butter in French. French Butter in French Cuisine.

Anguille, Anguille d'Europe - Freshwater Eels in French Cuisine.

Congre - Conger Eels. The Conger Eel in French Cuisine.

Coquilles Saint-Jacques and the Vanneaux or Pétoncle. The King Scallop and the Queen Scallop. The Coquilles Saint-Jacques, and the Vanneaux or Pétoncle in French Cuisine.

Crème Fraîche - Creme Fraiche. What is Crème Fraîche? Why is Crème Fraîche Part of so Many of France’s Famous Sauces.

Crevettes - Shrimps and Prawns. Some of the Many Tasty Crustaceans on French Menus.

Cuisine à la Périgourdine - Dining in the Four Colors of the Dordogne-Perigord.

Échalotes - Shallots. One of the Most Important Herbs in the French Kitchen

Fenouil - Fennel, the Herb, and the Vegetable. Fennel on French Menus.

Moules. Mussels in French. Moules Frites and Much More. Moules on French Menus.

Persil - Parsley in French Cuisine. Parsley on French menus.

Saumon - Salmon. Atlantic Salmon is Salmon on French Menus

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

The St George's Mushroom.

Photograph courtesy of Andrew

Mousseron, Mousseron de la St Georges, Mousseron de Provence or Tricholome de la St-Georges – The St George's Mushroom. These mushrooms can grow quite large but those I have seen in the markets are rarely over 6 or 7 cm across; nevertheless, they decorate and flavor with equal success.

France has many wild mushrooms and the Mousseron, the St George's mushroom, is a particularly tasty example; when it is on the menu do not pass on it. Many restaurants have long-term agreements with professional ramasseurs, foragers, and gatherers, who know the different seasons when the various wild mushrooms, herbs, fruits, and vegetables become available. These professionals bring restaurants wild garlic, wild onions, wild asparagus, and wild fruits along with the season’s wild mushrooms.

St George’s mushroom may be found all over Europe and France, in most parts, from late March through June. According to those who know, they say they can find them earlier in the South of France and then sometimes they can be found again in the autumn. If you want to try them at home and cannot find them fresh then try the dried version which when re-hydrated is not too bad. The fresh mushrooms are only found in the wild; however, attempts to cultivate them continue.

St George’s mushrooms on French Menus:

Crème de Mousseron – A cream of St George's mushroom soup.

Filet de Canette Rôti à la Réglisse, Poêlée de Mousseron - Breast of duckling roasted with licorice, and served with lightly fried St. George’s Mushrooms.

Foie Gras de Canard Mi-Cuit, Panais et Pickles de Mousseron – Very lightly fried fattened duck's liver served with parsnips and pickled St George’s mushrooms

St Georges' mushrooms in the market.

Photograph courtesy of Le Coeur au Ventre

Fricassée d'Asperges Vertes et de Mousserons de la Saint-Georges. – Stewed green asparagus prepared together with St Georges’ mushrooms.

Risotto de Petit Épeautre aux Mousserons- A risotto made with Small Spelt and St Georges mushrooms From the use of Small Spelt, also called Einkorn, this is, of course, a dish that only could have originated in Provence. Only a few places, outside Provence, grow Spelt and or Small Spelt commercially. Those that do include Germany, who make a beer with Spelt. Spelt, is the ancestor of modern wheat, and the Small Spelt used in this dish is another ancestor, but this ancestor never went on to become a smooth grain that would become a staple.

Small Spelt has a slight course texture, but it is tasty. In Provence, Spelt and Small Spelt were traditionally, and sometimes still are, used instead of rice; certainly seeing Small Spelt on a menu offers a change from regular risotto rice. This is a chance to enjoy a different taste that you will be unlikely to find at home.

Sole de Ligne, en Tronçon Épais, Girolles et Mousserons au suc de vin jaune – A wide cut from sole, the fish, prepared with Girolle/Chanterelle and St Georges’ mushrooms and a sauce made with the natural cooking juice and the yellow wine from the Jura.

The results of one morning's mushroom collecting.

Photograph by courtesy of Marek Isalski,

The best Steak à la Bordelaise that I ever had in France, and I have had a few! Came with fresh mousseron mushrooms; the mousseron mushrooms were the only garnish and the only decoration, apart from some excellent French fries. The mushrooms, the steak à la Bordelaise and the restaurant’s local Bordeaux house wine were a very successful combination.

A fairy ring of St George’s mushrooms.

Photograph courtesy of Wikimonde.com

A word of warning

A word of warning. Do not cook or eat any mushrooms that have not been checked by an expert. Many mushrooms look alike and some are poisonous. Every French town and villages have mushrooms experts and any local pharmacy will be able to give you directions. The volunteer experts will check your mushrooms without charge.

(Catalan - moixeró o bolet de Sant Jordi), (Dutch - voorjaarspronkridder ), (German – maipilz) (Italian - funghi di san giorgio). (Spanish - seta de San Jorge), (Latin - calocybe gambosaor tricholoma georgi).