French Cuisine (Part 1)
Wednesday, October 10th, 2007 by The Cooking Guy Subscribe To Our Feed
Whether you are touring the intoxicating wine country of Bordeaux, dining in a romantic Parisian restaurant, or creating your own flan or crepe masterpiece at home, there are many ways to enjoy French cuisine.
The French simply know how to enjoy their meals, and they usually take plenty of time to enjoy them. A lunch will often last 2-3 hours….in the middle of the week! On Sundays meals with friends and family will last even longer. There are many different plates served and beautiful colors, smells, and textures served along with them. Mealtime is an opportunity to discuss a variety of topics while enjoying the taste bud splendors that different foods have to offer.
So what is so different about a French meal? How do they enjoy so many different plates in one meal? It’s all about the serving size. French meals will typically begin with a drink and an appetizer. A champagne or wine is usually served as the drink. For the appetizer, you will usually have some kind of vegetable based recipe. Serving cut raw vegetables with a dipping sauce is common. Sausages, cheese, or spreads to top bread are also common appetizers.
After some relaxed conversation and finishing off the appetizer, l’entrée, or the starter plate is served. This plate is usually a little heavier than the appetizer in that it is a full salad. It could also involve light meats or pâtés. The salad will of course be served with a vinaigrette of some kind. A light salad dressing is necessary so as not to get too full too early! After some more conversation and enjoyment, and before the entrée is completely finished (you wouldn’t want your guests or family members to be sitting there with no food on their plates!), the bread and cheese is served.
Bread is usually in the form of a baguette or some sort of sliced bread. At least three different kinds of cheese are served along with the bread. A very mild cheese such as brie or camembert is served along with a little stronger cheese such as Roquefort. Brie and camembert are both very soft cheeses that are best left out for a couple of hours before serving. Brie has a white crusty outer mold that can be eaten, but does not have much of a taste.
Camembert becomes runnier as it ages, making it easy to eat with bread or meat. Its outer mold is also white and usually discarded. The brie is the firmer of the two, so if a softer mild cheese is your choice, go with the camembert. The bread and cheese are foods that can be enjoyed throughout the meal. Going back to them between bites of the main course or salad or fruit is very appropriate as well as a delicious way to enjoy variety at lunch or dinner.
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