from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com
All the French you
need to order a perfectly cooked steak.
Steak and French
fries (chips).
www.flickr.com/photos/dongkwan/2943140653/
The short version
for ordering a steak in
France.
Very,
very rare – Bleu
(Pronounced ble).
Rare - Saignant
(Pronounced say-nyon,
do not pronounce the T).
Medium Rare
with the accent on the rare - À Point
(Pronounced ah
pwa).
À Point
Medium-rare.with the accent on the rare.
www.flickr.com/photos/bokchoi-snowpea/4454588117/
Medium rare, closer to
medium - Entre à Point et
Bien Cuit.
(Pronounced awntr
a pwan ay bien kwee).
Medium to
well done -
Bien Cuit
(Pronounced bien
kwee).
Well
done - Très
Bien Cuit
(Pronounced tray
bien kwee).
N.B. An exceptionally well-done steak;
however, “très bien cuit” is not in any French chef’s dictionary though
it will be clearly understood. Be careful when ordering!, Do not order France's popular steak frites
very well-done; you will be served cooked cardboard or leather, that is if the server agrees to take
your order.
For an in-depth answer
on ordering steak in France click on this post:
More detail in this post.
To begin with there
is no direct translation
for medium or medium-rare.
Read on.
Read on.
North American and UK steakhouse terms
such as medium, medium-rare, or well-done do NOT translate, conceptually, into
traditional restaurant French. Your English-French travel dictionary may offer
the word Moyen as the translation of the word medium, and that is correct.
Unfortunately, in French Moyen is not used as a cooking term.
Ordering a steak requires little French.
It does not matter whether you order a steak in English, or in perfect or
poorly accented French. Every French
waiter understands an order for a steak. Problems only appear when the
waiter asks: Quelle cuisson, votre steak? How would you like
your steak cooked?
Check these pictures.
A lexicon of French
terms for ordering a steak or cuts of beef
Bleu – Bleu is also the French word for the
color blue, and for a steak, it means very, very rare; leaking onto the plate when
cut. When you feel the need for an
almost raw steak, then a steak bleu will fill that need. A steak bleu indicates
that the chef will have allowed the steak to take a quick peek at the grill or
frying pan, in passing, on its way to your plate. A steak bleu is just sealed
on the outside; when cut that steak will leak copiously onto your plate; it
will have been cooked, maybe, for one to two minutes on each side. (Bleu
is pronounced ble).
Saignant – French for a rare steak. The direct translation into
English of the word saignant would be bloody, or bleeding; despite that, a
steak saignant will have been cooked a little more than a steak bleu. A steak
saignant will also leak, when you cut into it, though less copiously than a
steak bleu. In North America and the UK, a steak saignant will
still be considered a rare steak. (Pronounced say-nyon, do not pronounce the T).
Saignant
A rare steak.
www.flickr.com/photos/bhamsandwich/5520541126/
À point - Perfectly cooked,
just ready or just right. À point is the term used, in France, for all
perfectly cooked foods, and not for steaks alone. Unfortunately, many
guidebooks give the term à point as the way to order a medium-rare steak. A
perfectly cooked steak, for most French men and women, is NOT medium-rare; rather, it is a rare-to-medium-rare, a lot closer to rare than the US or UK
medium. (Pronounced ah pwa).
À point
Medium-rare.with the accent on the rare.
I prefer my steaks cooked à point, (medium-rare with the
accent on the rare), but that is my choice. French servers with experience with
English-speaking tourists will agree, generally with a smile, to take your à
point steak back into the kitchen for a few more minutes on the grill, or the
frying pan when à point is too rare for your tastes.
When English speaking
diners, in France, wish to order their steaks medium-rare, I suggest they order
steaks cooked entre à point et bien cuit. That translates as “between well cooked and à
point” the result will be a US or UK medium-rare steak, closer to medium than
rare. For a medium-rare steak just ask for your steak entre à point et bien
cuit. See the following paragraph.
Entre à Point et Bien Cuit – In France, entre à point et bien
cuit has worked well for me when ordering a steak cooked to medium for friends. All French servers will understand it. A
French diner sitting near you, and observing you order a steak cooked entre
à point et bien cuit may consider your steak as overcooked; however, you
are paying the piper. (Pronounced awntr a pwan ay bien kwee).
Entre à Point et Bien Cuit - Medium
www.flickr.com/photos/140547216@N04/42441238032/
Moyen – Average or
the middle. In the French kitchen, the word moyen has nothing to do with steaks. Look
to the two previous paragraphs and the terms À point or Entre à
Point et Bien Cuit to order a medium-rare or medium steak.
Bien Cuit – Bien cuit translates into English as well done; however,
an order for a steak bien cuit, in France, generally produces a
medium-to-well-done steak. A steak bien cuit will not run at all;
however, its center will still be slightly rosé, pink. (Pronounced bien kwee).
Bien Cuit
Very slightly rose
in the center.
www.flickr.com/photos/suburbanadventure/6855666864/
Très Bien Cuit – Very well cooked; an extremely well-done
steak. Unfortunately, très bien cuit is not used for steaks in French
kitchens; I made it up. Despite that, all servers with some experience
with overseas visitors will understand the request. For the French très bien
cuit means a very overcooked steak, and the server may ask you to repeat
that instruction. If you have ordered steak
frites, an experienced server may advise you re-consider, or order
something else. The cuts used for France’s relatively inexpensive steak
frites are usually flank steaks or hanger steaks, and a well-done flank or hanger steak will be tough and tasteless, practically inedible. For an enjoyable meal
with a well-done steak, I suggest that you look through the menu again.
Consider ordering a more expensive entrecôte, or change your request for your
steak très bien cuit to just bien cuit. (Pronounced tray bien kwee for very, very well-done).
The French view of a steak cooked très bien cuit, very well done.
------------------------------------------
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com
Copyright 2010, 2012, 2013, 2018, 2019.
-----------------------
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Steaks and cuts of beef on French menus:
When ordering your steak remember the French
Steak de Hampe - A Flavorful French Cut of Beef With no
Corresponding USA or UK Cut to Compare With.
Photograph by MonkeyBusiness/YayMicro.com
