The Temptations Of Cuisine In The South Of France

2024 Author: Jasmine Walkman | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 08:29

The cuisine of southern France is quite diverse. For example, in Gascony, an area that occupies part of the Atlantic coast and borders Spain, there are many specialties - ham from London, which is eaten raw, oysters from Captain Breton, goose liver stewed in a pot, various pâtés and the famous Basque dish - piperad.

Kitchen of contrasts

Languedoc is to the east, its specialties are goose liver pate, truffles, oysters and stews, such as roe deer. Influences in this area came from the Romans and the Arabs, and later Catalan fishermen imported special fish dishes, which are still very popular today.

Fragrant hills

Provencal cuisine makes extensive use of green spices that grow wild; main products are green olives, olive oil, tomatoes, garlic, saffron and hot peppers - ingredients that give a specific taste. The difference between Provencal cuisine and that of other provinces is that in Provence it is cooked with olive oil, not goose fat.

Products

The region grows some of the best vegetables in the country - zucchini and squash (even flowers are cooked), tomatoes, celery, peppers and potatoes. In some forests there are truffles - a delicacy that grows under special conditions, as well as wild mushrooms.

Olives are not actually vegetables, but they play an important role in regional cuisine - they are used in the form of olive oil or in their natural form in salads and savory dishes, as well as canned along with lemon, hot peppers or garlic.

Fruits and wines

The ecologically clean region of the Languedoc produces many fruits - apricots, cherries, fresh figs, peaches, plums and melons in abundance. The Roussillon region grows most of the fruit consumed in other areas in France. The vineyards are all over Lagendok, and the Hérault region produces one-fifth of all French wines - quite a bit for such a small region. Armagnac is a brandy from Gascon, widely used in cooking.

Anchovies

Salted anchovies are a traditional addition to dishes. It is often added to meat, such as lamb or beef. In Provencal cuisine, anchovies are first soaked, then filleted, rinsed and dried, and then either baked or mashed into a thick paste. The cooking meat is rubbed with it, or it can be spread on a slice of bread and baked in a hot oven. Another specialty is anchovies - a thick vinaigrette of anchovies and garlic, which is served as a sauce for melting.

Conf

This is fatty meat - goose, duck or pork, which is salted, boiled and canned in its own fat. Gascon and Lagendok confit are famous - "conf de duc" (from pork), "confid'oa" (from goose) and "conf de du canar" (from duck). Goose meat confit is one of the main products for the preparation of the traditional French dish casserole.

Specialties

Aioli

This is a thick mayonnaise, heavily seasoned with fresh garlic. This sauce is served with many dishes, such as melting sauce for raw, finely chopped vegetables or snails. The name comes from the traditional Provence dish - gran aioli. It consists of boiled salted cod, boiled potatoes, carrots, hard-boiled eggs and selected local vegetables such as anginari, beets, asparagus, cauliflower, chickpeas, goat's beard and all kinds of beans; all this is served with garlic mayonnaise. Iyad is another type of Provencal garlic mayonnaise that contains crushed walnuts and hazelnuts.

Roquefort cheese

Many consider Roquefort to be the best blue cheese in the world. It has a pronounced creamy, slightly salty taste, which distinguishes it from other blue cheeses. Roquefort comes from a small town of the same name located on the northern hills of the Languedoc. The cheese is made from sheep's milk. The curd is alternated with layers of breadcrumbs and sprinkled with the bacterium Penicillumroqueforti and salt. The cheese is stored in the local cellars of Kombalu, where there is the necessary humidity, temperature and conditions for the bacterium to grow. After three months, it is ripe, but it takes a whole year to develop its unique taste. When buying Roquefort, make sure the cheese has a creamy-golden color and is evenly colored.

Its taste is very strong, so it is used in small quantities. It can be put in salted oils for fish and meat or as a main product in salad dressings.

Rui

This is the traditional emulsified sauce served with fish soups and stews, such as the famous bouillabaisse dish. To make the rui, boil two red peppers with one hot pepper for 10 minutes. Drain and dry well, then crush them into a paste in a mortar with 4 cloves of garlic. Gradually add 5-6 tbsp. olive oil and 2 tbsp. breadcrumbs for thickening. The faster method is to mix the cooked peppers with the other products in a food processor. Serve the sauce in a separate bowl so that everyone can add flavor to it in the soup. Although it is a fish sauce, if you mix it with mayonnaise, it makes a good sauce for melting raw vegetables.

Buyabes

This saffron-flavored fish dish is one of the most famous specialties in Provence. There are many recipes and theories about the products in it and how they are prepared, about what can and what can not be done in cooking the famous fish dish. Buyabes is not exactly a soup, but it needs a good broth to moisten the pieces of bread at the bottom of the plate.

It is prepared from any available fish, such as St. Peter's fish, eel, monk fish, mullet, trigly fish, as well as lobster, shrimp, black mussels, crabs and other seafood. Add onion, tomato, garlic, fennel, parsley, thyme, bay leaf, dried peeled orange peel and saffron, add olive oil and water. The products are cooked for only 15 minutes. The dish is served with fish placed on slices of dry bread, and the broth is poured on top.

Kasule

One of the largest specialties of Languedoc is called kasule and is actually stewed white beans prepared with pork, mutton, canned goose or duck meat (confit). It is boiled in a special ceramic vessel called kasolo, hence the name kasule.

There is much controversy about the origin of this dish. It is believed to have been influenced by the Arabs, who popularized white beans in France in the 7th century and brought with them stewed mutton with beans, from which the dish kasule was later obtained.

Its simplest version consists of beans and sausages. But nothing can compare to the enjoyment of a real dish, which is really a feast for the appetite.