Top 10 French Recipes

Top 10 French Recipes Top 10 Best French Dishes ChaptersDauphinoise PotatoesPot Au FeuCoq Au VinQuiche LorraineSteak TartareCassouletBeef BourguignonBouillabaisseMusselsBourgogne SnailsCooked by their grandmothers, these dishes are the epitome of France’s childhoods. These meals hold a special place in people’s hearts and hold memories that are hard to recreate as an adult.Of course, even though we have relied on various internet polls our Top 10 remains subjective. The list will inevitably miss thousands of variations and some regions may consider themselves underrepresented.With French gastronomy so incredibly rich the hardest thing was the limit the list to 10…it could have gone on forever!If your favourite dish is missing from our list, share it with your fellow Superprof readers in the comments below!Tartare, comes from, as the name suggests, Tatars (now Ukraine) before it reached the rest of Europe and was adopted by the French.Nowadays you’ll find beef tartare on the menu but traditionally the dish was made with hor se meat. This may sound horrible to us but it is actually very healthy, has a more distinct taste and is less prone to diseases than beef.From one chef to another the way of serving this dish varies; in small cubes, large cubes or served as a haché (like a raw patty).The real differences are found in the accompanying sides. Some serve it with a raw egg on top, with bread and salad, or some serve it with fries.Learn to make it in our cooking classes!CassouletThere has been some debate on the origins of this dish. But it seems to be the city of Castelnaudary in the south of France that has made the most convincing claim, and is now thought of as the Capital of cassoulet!The dish mixes dry beans (usually tarbais â€" a white bean) with pork rind, sausage from Toulouse or duck confit, plus lots of herbs and spices!It’s a great family meal, and accompanied with a quality red wine will warm you up on a winter’s day just before taking an afternoon nap!Beef BourguignonA staple on menus across France (Source: Pexels)Much like stew (the only difference is that the meat is marinated in alcohol before cooking and pig’s feet are often added) this dish is a firm favourite in France and in restaurants around the world.The Bourgogne region can boast about creating this speciality which transforms simple meat into a deliciously rich dish.You must, of course, choose an excellent Bourgogne wine, and don’t forget mushrooms, lard and onions.There is no set accompaniment so you have the freedom to decide what you serve with it: pasta, potatoes or vegetables!BouillabaisseNow we’re going right down to the south of France to get a taste of the Mediterranean.This dish is one of the staples of provincial French gastronomy, where seafood plays a central role.Bouillabaisse is a sort of fish soup made with whole cuts of fresh fish and potatoes and is garnished with garlic or crispy croutons.Cuts of inexpensive fish are used for this soup that we wouldn’t usually eat by themselv es.This dish is straight from fisherman’s families who concocted a recipe to use up the fish they couldn’t sell at the market, and now people can’t get enough of it!MusselsGoing back to the other end of France, to the north, we find a speciality that can also be found across the border in Belgium.‘Moules-Frites’ (mussels and fries) is a staple on menus along the coast of France and indeed across the country, but few people know that the ‘sauce marinière’ that accompanies mussels actually originates in Charentes in the south west of France.It could not be simpler but this dish is delicious, it’s made up of chopped parsley, white wine, shallots, pepper and some sort of fat â€" either olive oil or butter depending on who you ask!). Some fries on the side make it the perfect meal!Bourgogne SnailsTry the most French dish of all, snails!   (Source: divinefishandmeat.com)We return once more to Bourgogne to a dish that along with frog’s legs has become the stereotype of t he French diet for most of us non-French people!Snails are mostly eaten around Christmas time and typically the helix pomatia is the species of choice!First, they are taken out of their shell and then baked in either parsley or garlic butter (which makes them a lot more palatable!). Then they are put back into their shells to be served.Mop up the sauce with a crusty baguette and you have a delicious meal!Do you know much about the History of French cuisine?Or about the diversity of regional French cuisine?Finally, discover more about  French Gastronomy.