Maigre – Meagre, Croaker, Drum Fish or Salmon Bass on French Menus.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

    

Maigre- Meagre

Photograph courtesy of Biodiversity Heritage Library

https://www.flickr.com/photos/biodivlibrary/7949992004 

Maigre – Meagre, Croaker, Shade Fish, Drum Fish, Salmon Bass. The meagre is a tasty fish with tender and firm flesh, it is a member of the croaker and drum fish families.  Some are caught at sea, and they will be on the menu as Maigre de Ligne or Meagre sauvage, wild meagre, but many are raised on fish farms. This fish may also be on some menus as Corbine; however, there are other fish with corbine as part of their French names so read the menu carefully.

Maigre on French Menus:

   

Carpaccio de Maigre, Vinaigrette au Yuzu et Mangue Fraiche – Meagre Carpaccio served with a yuzu and fresh mango vinaigrette. Yuzu is a citrus family member with a taste somewhere between an orange and a grapefruit.

   

Sushi: Salmon and Salmon Bass.

Photograph courtesy of stu_spivack

https://www.flickr.com/photos/stuart_spivack/2669099038 

   

Dos de Maigre, Jus de Cresson, Jardin Potager, Couteaux et Amandes de Mer – A thick cut of Meagre flavored with the lightly spic juice from watercress. and served with young vegetables, razor clams, and sea almonds.

  

Dos de Maigre “Label Rouge” Cuisiné à la Basquaise – A thick cut of “Label Rouge” Meagre cooked in the Basque manner.  In the Basque manner indicates a fish cooked in piperade sauce or with the Basque Country’s much-appreciated Piment d’Espelette - Espelette Chili Pepper. The Label Rouge, red label, the mark of quality is only rarely given to farmed fish.  In this case the meagre is farmed at sea off the coast of Corsica has been the red label for its consistent quality.  Particular attention is also given to low-density farming and the fish are farmed for at least 18 months and then sold at weights between 2 and 7 kilos. 
  

Maigre, Salmon Bass, Croaker.

Photo provided by Glenda Kelly of IGFA.

Angler: Garcia Phippe. Weight: 40.75 kg

CC Fishbase.com

   

Dos De Maigre Rôti Et Légumes Croquants au Tamarin – A thick cut of roasted meagre served with crunchy vegetables flavored with tamarind. Tamarind has a sweet and sour taste. The tamarind fruit seen on French menus comes mostly from France’s Indian Ocean region of La Réunion. The tamarind is a pod-like fruit that from the outside is not very attractive, to say the least. Nevertheless, inside, apart from the seeds the pulp is appreciated as a fruit juice and is also dried and used in tisanes, fruit teas, with the commercial food industry being a very important customer. The tamarind is used in the food industry for flavor with many other food products and is one of the ingredients of Worcestershire Sauce.

    

Fried Meagre.

Photograph courtesy of Tennessee Wanderer

https://www.flickr.com/photos/tnwanderer/3976661552 

   

Le Maigre Label Rouge Filet À La Grenobloise, Pommes De Terre Fumées Et Coulis D'épinards - Sauce Grenobloise is a clarified butter sauce with lemon and capers and only served with fish,  The sauce originated in the city of Grenoble in South Eastern France. While Grenoble may be more famous for their AOP walnuts the Noix de Grenoble AOP their Sauce Grenobloise will be on many menus.

  

Maigre Fumé et Beurre Noisette – Smoked meagre, served with beurre noisette. A melted butter sauce. Noisettes are hazelnuts, and here the butter is melted until it resembles the color of hazelnuts and gains a nutty taste.

  

Menu listings in France favor meagre poached with cream and or wine sauces, but smaller fish are also grilled or pan-fried whole. The word maigre also means thin and lean in French, so make sure the waiter understands your order!

  

Meagre in the languages of France’s neighbors:

(Catalan – reig), (Dutch – meagre, ombervis), (German – adlerfisch, umberfisch),   (Italian – bocca d'oro, boccagialla, umbrina laccia), (Spanish- corbina, corvina, meager), (Latin - argyrosomus regius).

  

Meagre in other languages:

    

(Chinese (Mandarin) -鷹石首魚, 大西洋白姑魚 ), (Dutch – meagre), (Finish - Kotkakala ), (Greek – Κρανιός, kranios), (Hebrew - et-yam mazuy, mousar, מוסר  ), (Norwegian – Ørnefisk), (Russian - Горбыль серебристый). (Turkish -  granyoz baligi).

Connected Posts:
  

AOC and AOP on France's Foods and Wine labels? Why did the AOC add an AOP?

    

Amande de Mer. The Sea Almond or Dog Cockle. A Tasty Clam on French Menus.
 

Beurre - Butter. Butter in French Cuisine.

 

Carpaccio on French Menus. 

Cresson, Cresson de Fontaine - Watercress on the French Menu.
 

Noix – The Walnut. France’s Beloved Nut. The Walnut on French Menus.

Palourdes – Clams. Clams on French Menus.

 

Piment d’Espelette - Espelette Chili Pepper. The Most Popular Chili Pepper in French Cuisine.

Vinegar, Vinaigrette and Verjus in French Cuisine.

  

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Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman

 

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

 

Copyright 2010, 2016.

 

Filet de Bœuf Wellington or Bœuf Wellington

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

Beef Wellington
Photograph courtesy of Dale Cruse
https://www.flickr.com/photos/dalecruse/46448644852/

 

Filet de Bœuf Wellington 

Beef Wellington. 

The traditional Beef Wellington was named after the Iron Duke, Arthur Wellesley, the 1st Duke of Wellington (1769-1852).  The dish requires a whole fillet of beef to be covered with goose foie gras, fattened goose liver, rolled inside a puff pastry casing and baked.  The finished dish will be cut into thick slices and served; a reduced Port Wine or Madeira wine sauce will usually accompany the dish.  Today, smaller cuts from the center of the fillet are also used to create individual Beef Wellingtons. Outside of a few very special, and expensive restaurants, the goose foie will have gone.  Occasionally it will be replaced by a chicken liver pate, though more often with duxelles.

 

A Traditional Beef Wellington with Goose Pate De Foie Gras.
Accompanied by roasted carrots and parsnips, and served with mashed potatoes, creamed spinach and a reduced Port Wine sauce.

 

The vegetables that accompany the dish will often include roasted root vegetables such as carrots, parsnip and pumpkin, roasting brings out their natural sweetness and earthiness.  Newer versions may include asparagus, haricots vert (green beens) and brussels sprouts along with creamed spinach and mashed potatoes.

An individual Beef Wellington
Photograph courtesy of David Blaine
https://www.flickr.com/photos/39718079@N00/4250488734/ 

Bœuf Wellington was not created for the Iron Duke.  Most traditions agree that the French dish called Filet de Bœuf en Croute was a favorite of Arthur Wellesley and that he ordered it twice or three times a week when visiting France.   The restaurateurs who saw the famous duke regularly return for the same dish gave orders for the name change to Filet de Bœuf Wellington.

   

Duke of Wellington National Portrait Gallery.
Photograph courtesy of DAVID HOLT
https://www.flickr.com/photos/zongo/12912485334  

The Duxelles.

The duxelles that replace the fois gras in many modern versions of Beef Wellington are a nearly five-hundred-year-old recipe of finely chopped mushrooms, shallots, and herbs cooked in butter.

Duxelles has always been a versatile staple, used as a rich stuffing or an elegant garnish for everything from eggs to fish and various meat dishes. Sometimes, it's simmered with a touch of wine and served with a sauce. While the original recipe would have called for wild mushrooms—as farmed varieties didn't exist then—today's versions commonly use button mushrooms.

 

Slices of a Beef Wellingtons made with Duxelles,

served with a reduced Port Wine Sauce,,

Photograph courtesy of Tom Mascardo

https://www.flickr.com/photos/mascardo/533120584/

 

 

The chef behind this enduring classic was François Pierre de La Varenne (1618–1678), a pioneering French chef who was among the very first to publish his culinary secrets. In the manner of the time, he named his creation after his patron, the Marquis d'Duxelles. La Varenne's most famous work, Le Cuisinier François (The French Cook), is still published today with various editions available, with the last published in July 2024 and available at Amazon France. Though English versions appear to be out of print, his legacy extends beyond this one book, as he penned at least two more culinary texts.

La Varenne did not leave us with just one book; he published at least two more:

Le Pâtissier françois (1653): The French Pastry Cook

Le Parfait Confiturier (1667, sometimes republished as Le Confiturier françois): The Perfect Confectioner or The French Confectioner.

There are (of course) disputes around his ownership of all the recipes, but it is enough to say that the books allow us to look at the French kitchen in the 17th century.

The First page of: Le Cuisinier François
By La Varenne
Published 1651
Bibliothèque nationale de France (BnF)
The French national library permits reading on line without charge or downloading the whole book for a small fee,
https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k114423k.texteImage

 

The duke’s knowledge of France and French

Despite the Duke of Wellington’s defeat of Napoleon I and his part in the 25-year-long attempted restoration of the French monarchy, the dish named after him is still served and enjoyed in France. France always had a large percentage of the population who were monarchists, and some would bring back one of Emperor Napoleon’s descendants today if they could. The duke spoke French and knew many members of the French aristocracy well.  When just 17, the young Arthur Wellesley spent a year at the French Royal Academy of Equitation, the French Royal Horse-Riding school, in the city of Angers; then considered the world’s best riding school. While in Angers, the young Arthur Wellesley also improved his knowledge of the French language, enjoyed French cuisine, and met and danced with many French ladies. He also met many of the aristocrats to whom he would restore their positions after he met Napoleon I at Waterloo.  The city of Angers in Anjou was also the historical home of the Plantagenêt Kings of England. 

Wellington's French Connections

It's fascinating that the dish named after the Duke of Wellington is still widely enjoyed in France, even though he defeated Napoleon I and helped restore the French monarchy for a quarter-century. In French society, there has always been a significant number of monarchists, some of whom still dream of restoring a descendant of Emperor Napoleon today.

The duke's connection to France ran deep. He spoke French and had extensive ties to the French aristocracy. As a young man of just 17, Arthur Wellesley spent a pivotal year at the French Royal Academy of Equitation in Angers. At the time, this school was considered the world's finest horse-riding school (it is still highly rated and open today). If you are an excellent rider, you may be accepted, if you can afford the fees.  While in Angers, Arthur Wellesley not only perfected his riding but also immersed himself in the French language and its cuisine, and famously danced with many French ladies. It was here, in this very French setting, that he met many of the aristocrats whose status he would later help reinstate after his monumental victory over Napoleon at Waterloo. Adding another layer of historical intrigue, Angers, in Anjou, was also the ancestral home of England's Plantagenêt Kings.  (The Plantagenêt dynasty ruled England from 1154 to 1485, making them the longest-reigning royal house in English history.  (They were related to William the Conqueror through Empress Matilda, William's granddaughter, who married Geoffrey Plantagenêt, Count of Anjou).

The early Plantagenêt kings, beginning with Henry II of England, controlled a massive Angevin Empire that stretched across much of France and was the cause of hundreds of years of war.

The Wellington Statue (1888)
An equestrian sculpture of Wellington by Joseph Boehm was faces Apsley House, which was Wellington's London home. The figures at the corners of the pedestal representative British soldiers, a Grenadier, a Scottish Highlander, an Irish Dragoon and a Welsh Fusilier.
Photograph courtesy of George Groutas
https://www.flickr.com/photos/jorge-11/2435317521/

Pont de Verdun in Angers, France.
Photograph courtesy of Alain Rouiller
https://www.flickr.com/photos/alainrouiller/12031034934

 

Napoleon today

Arthur Wellesley, the 1st Duke of Wellington may have defeated Napoléon I in Waterloo, Belgium, but there are descendants of Napoléon who still claim the French throne.  The present pretender is Prince Napoléon, Jean-Christophe Louis Ferdinand Albéric Napoléon Bonaparte born on July 11, 1986, in Saint-Raphaël, France.  Jean-Christophe is married to Countess Olympia von und zu Arco-Zinneberg, and they have a son: Prince Louis Charles Riprand Victor Jérôme Marie Napoléon, who was born on December 7, 2022.

Jean-Christophe currently lives in London and manages his own private equity investment firm called Leon Capital.  (If Jean-Christophe became Emperor he would be known as Napoléon VII (or Napoléon VIII), depending on the Napoléon counting convention that you use).

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Connected Posts:

Anjou and Angevines – Dining in the Maine et Loire, France.

Button Mushrooms - The Champignon de Paris.

Duxelles on French Menus. Duxelles in French Cuisine.

En Croûte on French Menus.

Foie Gras in French Cuisine. Foie Gras is Fattened Goose or Duck Liver Foie. Foie Gras on French Menus.

Madeira wine, Vin de Madère and the French Menu.

 Port or Porto - Port Wine in French Cuisine.