What to try in France from food – TOP-12 dishes of the national French cuisine. What is duck confit and choucroute, bouillabaisse and niçoise, where is the best onion soup made? What street dishes is popular in France, the best Parisian fast food – in the review of good Time for Trip.
France is quite rightly considered a true trendsetter in food. And French cuisine is so diverse that if you try a new dish every day, you will be surprised to realize in a month that you haven’t studied everything.
Recipes and taste may vary depending on which region of France you try this or that dish, but the main thing is that you should enjoy it. Or, at least, get a bright and memorable taste experience.
Indeed, in France, cooking has been considered a real art for centuries. Which is hard to teach – you have to be born a cook.
At the same time, French chefs are convinced that any recipe can be slightly modified to give the dish a truly original taste and make the dish a culinary masterpiece. Maybe that’s why gastronomic tours in Paris and, in principle, in France are very popular.
No less famous than gourmet cuisine is simple home-cooked food. However, also elevated to art – ordinary Lyon taverns, bouchons, are famous no less than the elite Parisian restaurants.
Most Delicious French Dishes
The art of cooking in France has evolved over the centuries. Its traditions have been somewhat influenced by the cuisines of neighboring countries, but in general it has retained an exceptional originality.
Apparently, therefore, the taste of many dishes that you try in France will be remembered for a lifetime. Notice, we’re not talking about “haute cuisine”, all these frog legs and oysters under a collection of white burgundy – not at all!
After all, in France they are tolerant of fast food. That’s just street food in Paris and other cities it’s not only burgers and nuggets of the world’s largest chains – only local baguettes with a piece of camembert or freshly baked croissants will make you forget about “plastic” meals!
However, we’re … hungry – it’s time to talk about what dishes should try a tourist in France!
Soupe à L’oignon
That is, onion soup – it seems to be a completely simple dish. Which, however, today is the cornerstone of French cuisine.
Once, back in ancient Rome, it was considered exclusively the food of the poor. But in France, the dish has spread in a completely different way.
According to one legend, onion soup became popular after the French king Louis, hungry, decided to cook his own food. But the only ingredients in the hunting lodge were onions, butter, and champagne, from which he made soup.
This is hardly true – in those days, the monarchs definitely didn’t cook for themselves. But anyway, onion soup was once served at the Versailles court.
Later, the recipe became widespread and changed – grated cheese was added to the soup, which, when baked, formed a golden crisp. It’s quite possible to try onion soup along with sweet wines like sherry.
We assure you – such food will warm you in Paris even in rainy November!
The best onion soups, by the way, are prepared in Lyon, the unofficial culinary capital of France. And some gourmets don’t hesitate to spend a few hours to travel from Paris for their favorite delicacy to the banks of the Rhone.
Bœuf Bourguignon
or beef Burgundy – a fundamental dish of the cuisine of the French region of Burgundy. It’s beef stewed in red wine and meat broth. When cooking, onions and garlic, carrots, sometimes mushrooms and bacon, spices are added to the meat.
Once cooked in this way, beef was a favorite peasant food in Burgundy. Today, it has evolved into an exquisite and well-known dish of French cuisine.
Escargots de Bourgogne
Burgundy snails are a traditional dish of the region of the same name, and today in France as a whole. If in the coastal regions of the country it’s customary to treat guests to seafood and, in particular, oysters, in Burgundy, snails have been the “highlight of the program” for a couple of centuries.
Today, however, you can taste them in restaurants in other cities of France
They are served on the table in 6 or 12 pieces along with a sauce based on garlic, chicken broth, red wine, cumin. And, of course, with a bottle of white wine, usually locally made Chardonnay.
You shouldn’t use too refined alcohol along with escargot – garlic will easily drown out its aroma and taste.
Confit de Canard
Or duck confit, a traditional French dish originally from Gascony. Confit is a recipe according to which the meat languishes in fat or oil for a long time before frying.
In the modern tradition, confit de canard is duck legs marinated in olive oil with wine and herbs for a long time. After that, they are baked for at least 2 hours, at a temperature of 70-80 degrees Celsius. As a result, the meat becomes wery juicy, but at the same time tender.
Bouillabaisse
Provencal bouillabaisse, seafood soup, is famous all over the world. It’s believed to be invented many centuries ago by sailors from Marseille. Someone is even inclined to argue that such a dish was cooked here by the ancient Greeks, who colonized the coast.
One way or another, but bouillabaisse was once considered the “soup of the poor”, as it was prepared from the remains of fish left at the bottom of the basket at the end of the trading day.
A modern version of this popular dish of the French cuisine is made with several varieties of fresh fish, scallops or even crabs boiled in broth with white wine. Seasoned with olive oil, garlic, saffron.
Be sure to accompany bouillabaisse ruy sauce based on olive oil with garlic and saffron, tomatoes and peppers. You need to dip croutons in it and eat soup with them.
Ratatouille
Another popular dish on the menu of French restaurants, ratatouille, also comes from Provence.
It’s a vegetable stew, and therefore can be recommended primarily to vegetarians.
Classic ratatouille is made from zucchini, eggplant, peppers, tomatoes and garlic. All vegetables are cut into rings and languish in the oven for a long time. When preparing the dish, olive oil, spices and Provencal herbs are also used.
Foie Gras
A real French delicacy. Which is served not only in restaurants, but also sold in stores in the form of a pate – it’s not surprising that many people try to bring foie gras from France as a gift.
However, if you take the trouble to find out exactly how ducks are fed to get a particularly fatty liver, then you may not want to try this dish. In some countries, such as the UK or Germany, there is a ban on the production and sale of foie gras.
One way or another, but duck liver is considered a famous and very tasty dish of French cuisine.
Coq au Vin
Or rooster in wine, a distinctly French rustic dish that originated in Burgundy. It used to be made from roosters, but today restaurants serve mostly chickens or hens.
Coq au vin are poultry stewed in red wine along with mushrooms, bacon, onions, garlic, thyme and rosemary, and spices. Sometimes cognac or brandy is added during cooking.
The dish is usually served at the table with the wine the same to that in which it was prepared. Existing and exotic varieties of this food – for example, Coq au champagne.
Salad Niçoise
France owes the recipe for this dish to Nice. Although opinions about what should be added to the traditional salad Niçoise sometimes contradict each other.
So, for example, someone believes that it should consist exclusively of tomatoes, peppers, green onion olives, boiled eggs and anchovies, poured abundantly with olive oil. But other chefs confidently add potatoes to niçoise and – almost always – green string beans. As well as toasted tuna slices, lemon juice and even wine vinegar.
- One of the most popular receipt see here – bbcgoodfood.com/recipes/salade-nicoise
One way or another, but the French salad Niçoise perfectly copes with its purpose to satisfy hunger. But at the same time not to oversaturate the body in a hot weather, that is often stand in Paris in June.
First of all, it’s considered an excellent cold appetizer that precedes the main course.
Сhoucroute
Choucroute isn’t too well known, but a traditional dish of Alsatian and French cuisine. Prepared from cabbage fermented in a special way, and then boiled in wine or beer.
Choucroute is rarely used as a standalone, it’s usually served as a side dish for meat, sausages, potatoes or seafood accompanied by a glass of white wine or beer.
Raclette
France is famous for its cheeses! And it would be surprising if among the traditional French dishes there weren’t found those that are based on this amazingly tasty and satisfying product.
In fact, raclette is a variation of the famous Swiss fondue. Yes, and his homeland is Upper Savoy, which is on the border with Switzerland.
The dish is a melted fatty cheese made from cow or goat milk. Served with potatoes, pickled cucumbers and onions as a side dish.
Slightly chilled dry white wine is served on the table with raclette.
Well, what is food without sweets! You can interrupt us by saying that you yourself know about the famous Napoleon layer cake. But we decided to be more original and name the best French dessert dish.
Tarte Tatin
An upside-down apple pie that originated in the central region of Sologne. Moreover, according to legend, this would have been done by mistake – the dough, due to the forgetfulness of the cook, was put on the fruit filling at the very end.
According to the recipe, the filling can be from: apples or pears, peaches, pre-caramelized. Then it is covered with dough and baked. Before serving, the pye must be turned over so that the fruits are on top.
Tarte Tatin is usually topped with custard or ice cream.
Popular French Street Food
As elsewhere in the world, the French often snack on the go. Moreover, if tourists prefer to solve this issue by going to an international fast food establishment, then Parisians will rather prefer to satisfy their hunger with something, that has national roots.
For example, they do it with the help of thin yeast-free pancakes, crêpes, originally from Brittany. Which are spread with fruit jam or chocolate cream. In hot weather, they go well with a glass of dry apple cider.
Find great crêpes at La Crêperie Bretonne on Rue du Montparnasse in Paris.
France owes to Brittany and another popular street food, galette. These are also pancakes, only, unlike crêpe, they are made from buckwheat flour.
They are usually supplied with a much more solid filling: vegetable, eggs, cheese, meat, fish. Often ordinary sausages are put in galettes, turning them into a kind of hot dog.
Would you like to try real French galette? Then head to La Petite Bretonne at 48 Rue Mouffetard!
One of the best small chains of crêperies in France is Breizh Cafe – montagetravel.com/difference-between-crepe-galette/.
Those with a sweet tooth should definitely try in France gaufres or Belgian waffles. They are sold in almost every pastry shop, they can come with a wide variety of toppings. Jam, chocolate, whipped cream, fresh fruit – anything you can think of!
Finally, you can grab a croque-monsieur sandwich on the run. That is, in fact, an ordinary toast sandwich with ham, cheese and bechamel sauce. If you want to treat yourself more thoroughly, order a croque-madame, a sandwich that is “enhanced” with fried eggs on top, at the cafe.
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