French Cuisine

[Smithy]

Just wondering how many other Loungers enjoy and love French cuisine.

I love all French cooking and food from haute cuisine to French provincial and bistro cooking, from foie gras (although you can't get it here - sometimes I miss Europe) to tarte au citron, from boeuf bourguignon to sole meuniere.

Tonight we had coq au vin which was beautiful. Big free range chook, dry cured bacon, shallots, garlic, carrot, celery, mushrooms. Threw in a bottle of Yarra Valley (Australian) Pinot Noir, a good glug of cognac, some chook stock, a handful of thyme and a couple of bay leaves. Bloody fantastic!

Any other cuisine francophiles here?

 

[Puzzicato]

Any other cuisine francophiles here?

Yes indeed! It's been one of the amazing things about moving to the UK - such easy access to wonderful French food!

I think Elizabeth David's French Provincial was one of the first books I actually read by myself which has given me an intense interest in French food.

Your coq au vin sounds delicious!

Are you sure you can't get foie gras? You used to be able to get it in Sydney at Simon Johnston and the DJs food hall. At a terrible price, but you could get it!

 

[Kishtu]

Yup, Him Indoors also loves Elizabeth David's books.

He recently bought her Italian one too offtopic: ) and was somewhat disappointed because he already uses all the recipes in that book, shame!

His reference bible is definitely Larousse, though.

 

[Tomasso]

I love their fries................

 

[Smithy]

Are you sure you can't get foie gras? You used to be able to get it in Sydney at Simon Johnston and the DJs food hall. At a terrible price, but you could get it!

I think they've put the kibosh on it here now Puzzicato so it's one of those banned thingies. I'll admit it's not the most humane way to produce a delicacy but by golly it tastes good! Our local supermarket in Norway always had it and it was a huge fight of will power to go past without throwing some in the old shopping trolley. Needless to say most of the time we lost the fight!

Kishtu,

I have a rather well worn old copy of Larousse Gastronomique. It is an incredible reference, should be on the shelves of anybody with an interest in good food.

 

[Adcurium]

Just wondering how many other Loungers enjoy and love French cuisine.

I love all French cooking and food from haute cuisine to French provincial and bistro cooking, from foie gras (although you can't get it here - sometimes I miss Europe) to tarte au citron, from boeuf bourguignon to sole meuniere.

Tonight we had coq au vin which was beautiful. Big free range chook, dry cured bacon, shallots, garlic, carrot, celery, mushrooms. Threw in a bottle of Yarra Valley (Australian) Pinot Noir, a good glug of cognac, some chook stock, a handful of thyme and a couple of bay leaves. Bloody fantastic!

Any other cuisine francophiles here?

I love French cooking and French Coffee. France is one of my favorite places on earth.

 

[Kishtu]

Most of our recipe books are so well-thumbed that Dan reckons we could use them as stock cubes if we ever run short lol just dip 'em in boiling water and away you go....

 

[rumblefish]

Count me as a Fan!

Foie Gras to start; I've had it many different ways, but never prepared it myself. I had it once with scallops and cherries, which seem like an unlikely combo. Boy was that good! My favorite, for sure, will always be with pear however. The pears unique sweetness was made for Foie Gras!
This post is just the beginning; francaise, au poivre, confit, meat or fish tartare, terrines and pates, all the wonderful sauces... Not to mention French cooking applied to game.
Graham Kerr, Julia Child, and Jacques Pepin happen to be my culinary idols.

 

[John in Covina]

For some reason when it comes to dining out French seems to slip off the radar screen for me. In the 1970's I went with friends to some place on Long Island and had an exquisit meal. I recall the servings seemed rather small, but the images of the food were beautiful. My main impression is when I had escargo in a garlicy buttery sauce that was heavenly and they brought extra bread to soak up the sauce. Seems like it's time to go again.

 

[Jack Scorpion]

I love

(1) Ham and Cheese sandwiches
(2) Pate sandwiches

and all variations. I enjoy other types of French food, too, but I think I will always return to butter and meat on a baguette.

 

[lolly_loisides]

I think Elizabeth David's French Provincial was one of the first books I actually read by myself which has given me an intense interest in French food.

Elizabeth David is my favourite cookery writer, not only are her recipes fabulous, but her prose is wonderful

"Provence is a country to which I am always returning, next week, next year, any day now as soon as I can get on the train. Here in London it is an effort to of will to believe in the existence of such a place at all. But now and again the vision of golden tiles on a round southern roof, or of some warm, stony, herb scented hillside will rise out of my kitchen pots with the smell of a piece of orange peel scenting a beef stew"

 

[BinkieBaumont]

"La Cascade" ( at the Little Paris end of Stirling Highway) here in the Swan River Colony is one of my favourite Restaurants, It has an immense Menu!, French Restaurants seem rather out of favour, just at present, Chez Pierre, further down the street is Having a special Bastille Day Luncheon on 14th July , which looks good"


http://chezpierre.com.au/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1

 

[rumblefish]

Duck Confit

Every fall I roast a domestic goose for my family, and save all the goose-grease. It stays in the refrigerator until the first of the seasons wild duck come home on my lanyard. After the ducks are quartered and marinated in red wine & red vinegar (homemade), fresh thyme, onion, garlic, bayleaf, black pepper & salt for two days, they cook in the goose-grease at around 180 degrees for about 3 hours- and we have Confit. I take what ever juice that is left behind from the bottom with a turkey basting syringe; 1) to store the goose-grease again as pure as possible 2) to serve over the the duck and grains. One of the ways I do "French" at home.

 

[Chainsaw]

Everything French is good!

French fries

French toast

French Kiss

Bon,bon, bon!

 

[Smithy]

Every fall I roast a domestic goose for my family, and save all the goose-grease. It stays in the refrigerator until the first of the seasons wild duck come home on my lanyard. After the ducks are quartered and marinated in red wine & red vinegar (homemade), fresh thyme, onion, garlic, bayleaf, black pepper & salt for two days, they cook in the goose-grease at around 180 degrees for about 3 hours- and we have Confit. I take what ever juice that is left behind from the bottom with a turkey basting syringe; 1) to store the goose-grease again as pure as possible 2) to serve over the the duck and grains. One of the ways I do "French" at home.

Chris we do simple duck confit over winter. Just the tinned confit, and always do potatoes in the fat. Very moreish

And Jack Scorpion, it's hard to go past a good baguette slathered in butter and good pâté.

 

[Puzzicato]

Elizabeth David is my favourite cookery writer, not only are her recipes fabulous, but her prose is wonderful

"Provence is a country to which I am always returning, next week, next year, any day now as soon as I can get on the train. Here in London it is an effort to of will to believe in the existence of such a place at all. But now and again the vision of golden tiles on a round southern roof, or of some warm, stony, herb scented hillside will rise out of my kitchen pots with the smell of a piece of orange peel scenting a beef stew"

lol I read that passage this morning!

She is wonderful - so evocative. I love when she tells you to serve something "with nothing else whatever". Didactic but because she knows.

 

[Smithy]

I'll have to keep an eye out for her books as I don't have one.

Perhaps not particularly french in the end result but I sieved the left over sauce from the coq au vin the other night, reheated it and thickened it with cream as a gravy for bangers and mash. Was rather tasty.

Anybody else like lapin à la moutarde? The local butcher has some nice rabbit in and as the weather is cold at the moment, thought I might cook this up over the weekend.

 

[lolly_loisides]

Anybody else like lapin à la moutarde? The local butcher has some nice rabbit in and as the weather is cold at the moment, thought I might cook this up over the weekend.

I made that last week!

 

[LordBest]

I can't get enough of French cuisine, haute and otherwise. I cook it as much as time and energy allow. In fact, last night I cooked Cotelletes d'Agneau a la minute for the family, served with pomme frittes.
Foie gras is problematic. I love the stuff, but all I can find in shops in Melbourne is industrial stuff like Rougie at outrageous prices. There is a black market of Australian foie gras production out there, introductions strictly word of mouth and thus far I haven't been able to find anyone who knows someone to put me in touch with someone else for whom an unforeseen concatenation of circmstances led to him overfeeding his pet geese and accidentally harvesting their livers.
For those who don't or can't cook, I recommend Boire, the Brasserie at Crown and Bistro Vue in Melbourne for good, traditional French cuisine.
Oh, apparently the common garden snail in temperate Australia is the type commonly eaten in France. I haven't quite worked up the courage to harvest some from the garden and prepare them for the pot, though I happily order them at a restaurant.
I recommend Le Guide Culinaire by Escoffier. The recipes are not in modern format and good knowledge of basic techniques is assumed, but you can't get more authentic haute cuisine.

 

[Smithy]

I recommend Le Guide Culinaire by Escoffier. The recipes are not in modern format and good knowledge of basic techniques is assumed, but you can't get more authentic haute cuisine.

A great book LordBest. I grew up with it as my mother had a copy and it has some tremendous recipes in it.