11 French Dishes You Should Absolutely Try
When you go to visit France, there are 11 dishes you should absolutely try. If that doesn’t make you want to go there, I don’t know what will. If good food is important for you, this is the place to go. Here are 11 French dishes you should absolutely try if you ever visit France.
1. Tartiflette
A tartiflette is a potato gratin with melted reblochon cheese, lardons and onions. It’s originally from the Savoy region, in the Alps. This is the perfect dish to eat after a long day of skiing. The tartiflette will warm your heart and your body.
2. Choucroute
Choucroute is a traditional dish from the Alsacian region. It’s basically composed of minced cabbage with salty meats like sausages and ham, and sometimes potatoes.
3. Quiche Lorraine
You might have heard of this one. This dish is quite popular abroad. A quiche is a salty tart, made with cheese and bacon. Over the years, there are been hundreds of variation of this dish with spinach, salmon or tomatoes.
4. Coq Au Vin
When you think of emblematic French dishes, coq au vin is one of the first that comes to people’s mind. It’s one of the classics of French cuisine. It’s basically composed of braised chicken in red wine. You can substitute red wine with white wine.
5. Hachis Parmentier
This one is my childhood. Hachis parmentier is a staple of French cuisine. This dish is made with diced beef mixed with carrots and onions topped with mashed potatoes. You do NOT want to buy this dish at the supermarket or it will taste horrible!
6. Gratin Dauphinois
And another dish made with potatoes! French people love potatoes! The gratin dauphinois is from the Dauphiné region, in southeastern France. This dish quite similar to the tartiflette. It’s composed of sliced potatoes baked in the oven in milk or cream.
7. Blanquette de Veau
A blanquette de veau is a veal ragout stew in water with aromatic flavouring, carrots, leeks, mushrooms, aromatic herbs, cream and butter. It’s exquisite with a glass of wine. The veal can be replaced by any other type of white meat.
8. Bœuf Bourguignon
The bœuf bourguignon is similar to the coq au vin. It’s a slow-braised beef stewed in red wine and flavoured with carrots, onions, garlic and a mix of herbs. It’s generally served with boiled potatoes and rice or noodles.
9. Bouillabaisse
This one is a gift from our southern cousins. Bouillabaisse is a French seafood stew that’s laced with tomato and saffron. This recipe mostly uses fish and shrimps, but feel free to use whatever type of seafood you want. Mussels, clams, langoustines This recipe is customizable according to your taste.
10. Tarte Flambée or Flammekueche
Tarte flambée is a traditional recipe from the Alsace region, the Lorraine region (northern France) and Baden-Württemberg and Rheinland-Pfalz (south Germany).
It’s a thin crust pizza topped with a creamy soft cheese sauce, onions and crisp bacon. It will taste like heaven in your mouth. There are several variants of this recipe. The most popular ones are:
- Gratiné with gruyère cheese
- Forestière with mushrooms
- Munster with Munster cheese
- A sweet version with apples and cinnamon, blueberries, or a sweet liquor
11. Cassoulet
Cassoulet is a specialty from Languedoc, a region situated in the south of France. It’s basically a beans stew with chicken, sausages or another type of meat. It’s delicious, the beans melt in your mouth.
