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Cream and Crèmes on French Menus. Crèmes in French Cuisine. The Lexicon you Need.

2026-09-26T09:01:00.000-07:00

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

www.flickr.com/photos/katrinaalana/1519379320

Crème on the menu can be very confusing.

When visiting France for the first time, it’s all too easy to read crème as cream and expect all cocktails or other drinks with crème in the name to have cream in all of them. However, there are fine lines drawn between a Crème de Pêche - an alcoholic peach liquor made without cream and a Crème d’Avocat, an avocado soup, sauce, or even a dessert made with cream. Much depends on how and where the word Crème appears on the menu.

Alcohol-Free Crèmes.

Soups, sauces, main dishes, and desserts that include cream, but no alcohol are often marked …. à la Crème and have been cooked in or with cream.

Choux a la Crème

Cream puffs with matcha custard cream and crème mousseline

with halved strawberries.

Photograph courtesy of bittle

www.flickr.com/photos/bittlesugarart/3965284400/

Crèmes with Alcohol That Contain no Cream

To be an alcoholic crème a liquor must contain between 15% -55% of fruit or vegetable-based alcohol and at least 250 grams (9 grams) of sugar per liter. No milk or cream is included in an alcoholic crème, and their production process will take a minimum of 6 months with many taking longer. The fruit or vegetable on the label is fermented (but not distilled); it is macerated with the alcohol; that and the sugar in the liquor makes the result creamy, more viscous, more syrupy, denser, and (obviously) sweeter without containing any milk products. Imported products like Baileys Irish Cream are sold in France with their English names. Permitting Bailey’s to be called a crème would be considered a case of Lese Majesté by the French alcoholic crème producers. The bureaucrats in Brussels spent years putting all the rules together.

Liqueurs – Liquors

Any alcoholic liquor to be called in France a ”liqueur” must have at least 100 grams of sugar per liter, and the bottle label or tag must clearly say liqueur, not crème. The step up to Crème is clear as they must have at least 250 grams of sugar per liter.

There are, obviously, more regulations.

More regulations include the type of alcohol, but and how they receive their AOP gongs., but all those closely typed pages might give you indigestion at the dinner table, so I’ve left them out. In any case, I suggest that instead of memorizing all the regulations that may take up valuable time on a business trip or vacation, I suggest that you start discussing the next morning’s breakfast in France. That, or read about what happened when I ordered two fried eggs for breakfast, my personal trials and tribulations,

Crème de Cassis de Dijon

Crème de Cassis de Dijon (a black currant cordial) is even more regulated than other Crème liqueurs as it must have a minimum of 400g of sugar per liter. It must also contain at least 25% of the Noir de Bourgogne blackcurrants. (Compare that to the non-alcoholic black-currant UK cordial Ribena© that is supposed to be really healthy for kids. I loved it and still like it, but it only contains 7% blackberries.

Cocktails with Alcoholic Crèmes

When you are using Crèmes in cocktails or other recipes, you should use less of a Crème Liqueur compared to a traditional liqueur. I love a Kir Royale and make them when they are a suitable aperitif and they are still in the top ten cocktails in France even if their glow has dimmed in the UK and North America. I learned long ago that Crème de Cassis de Dijon with a wonderful sparkling dry Crémant makes a wonderful aperitif; but not if you put more than a teaspoon and a half of the Crème de Cassis in the Champagne flute or coupe. Too much and it will be undrinkable. You have been warned, you can always add more, but carefully.

Kir Royale

Made with Crème de Cassis

Photograph courtesy of Hilary Perkins

www.flickr.com/photos/cowbite/3282171953/

Crème on your menu:

…. à la Crème - Dishes cooked in or with, or served with a cream sauce.

Crème Brulée à la Vanilla – Crème Brulée flavored with vanilla.

Épinards à la Crème – Creamed spinach.

Filet de Sole à la Crème de Girolles – Sole filet served with a Chanterelle wild mushroom sauce.

Souris d’Agneau Confite, Jus au Thym, Gratin de Pommes de Terre à la Crème Fraîche..- Lambs hank confit prepared with a thyme sauce (made from the natural cooking juices and the herb), browned potatoes prepared with crème fraîche,

Épinards à la Crème – Creamed spinach

Photograph courtesy of Maison Thiriet 1982

Crème à Papet - A custard made with milk, flour, egg yolks, sugar, and cornflower orange-flavored custard that originated in the Franche-Comte part of the super region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté.

Crème Aigre or Crème Acide - Sour cream. Surprisingly, sour cream has only been generally available in French supermarkets in the last fifteen years, until then Crème Fraiche was used for imported dishes whose recipes included sour cream. In the French-speaking part of Canada, Crème Sure is the name used for sour cream.

Saumon Fumé, Blinis, Crème Aigre – Smoked salmon, blinis and sour cream.
Crème Anglaise - English cream or English custard; luckily, this is nothing like the real English custard and if it is, you shouldn't be eating it in France. Crème Anglaise is a creamy vanilla-flavored custard sauce much used in pastries and also served with cakes or fruits.
Crème au Beurre - A butter-based filling made in many flavors for cakes and icing.
Crème Brulée - A chilled creamy custard, served beneath a caramelized crust. The original version was taken by the French chef Alain Sailhac’ from a similar Catalan/Spanish dish called Crème Catalan. Originally flavored with vanilla today’s crème brulée will come with many many flavors.
Crème Caramel or Crème Renversée – Cream caramel, a custard baked in a caramel-coated mold. Before serving, the custard will be chilled and then turned out of the mold onto a plate so that the caramel glaze will be on top.

Saffron flavored Crème Caramel

Photograph courtesy of Danielle Tsi

www.flickr.com/photos/istelleinad/3994098438/

Crème Caramel–The dish that influenced the creation of its godchild crème brûlée. Crème Catalan is richer than crème brûlée and has a thicker caramelized crust.
Crème Chantilly - Whipped fresh cream sweetened with sugar and initially flavored with vanilla. Today’s Crème Chantilly may have many other flavors and will also be seen when made with whipped vegetables or fruits.
Crème d'Ail – Garlic cream is made with garlic cloves cooked in milk and then mixed with butter or crème fraîche along with any additions the chef may have chosen. Garlic cream will be on the menu as part of any number of dishes.
Crème de….This may be soup or sauce with added cream, a milk-based dessert, or an alcoholic liquor made from fruit. The soup will be alcohol-free as are most main dishes. However, it is here that the use of the word crème creates the most confusion. French cream soups or sauces are not always fruit or vegetable soups that have been through an atomizer; many French crèmes will contain pieces of the meat, fish, or vegetables they are made with. Alcoholic Crèmes are the result of maceration with an alcohol base and the fruits or vegetables they are made with. They may have anywhere from 15 –55 percent alcohol and require a minimum of 250 grams of sugar per liter, some require 400 grams.

Crème d’Asperge - Cream of asparagus soup.
Crème de Céleri - Cream of celery soup.
Crème de Lentilles Vertes du Puy AOC - A cream soup made with the AOC green lentils of Puy. (See Lentilles).

Crème de Potimarron

Cream of Pumpkin Soup

Public Domain

www.flickr.com/photos/137131236@N08/32150080013/

Crème de Marron - A chestnut purée, often made with a vanilla accent.

Crème de Framboise – A raspberry liquor.

Crème de Framboise de Bourgogne – A liquor made with raspberries from Burgundy.

Crème de Cassis - The black currant liquor used to give that unique taste to France's most the aperitifs, Kir and Kir Royal.

Crème de Noyaux – A nut liquor, a sweet alcoholic liquor made from the pits of various fruits, with an almond flavor; similar but not the same as the Italian Amaretto. Noyaux is French for pits, a fruit's stone, or seed.

Crème de Cassis

The Crème de Cassis AOP is unique in requiring 400 grams of sugar per liter. It is often used in sauces and is behind the success of the aperitifs Kir and Kir Royale and the dish:

Magret de Canard à la Crème de Cassis - Duck breast prepared with Crème de Cassis.

Photograph courtesy of Dominic Lockyer

www.flickr.com/photos/farehamwine/14863776881/

Crème de Lait - A simple, traditional dessert made with milk, flour, egg yolks, and sugar and flavored with lemon or vanilla, or as the chef chooses. It may also be on the menu as part of a sauce.
Crème Double – Double cream. (See Crème Épaisse).
Crème Chiboust also called Crème Saint-Honoré - A patisserie cream created in 1846 by a Parisian pastry chef, surprisingly enough called Chiboust. The basic recipe that Chiboust left for us has changed little over time apart from the original vanilla flavoring that is often changed. The traditional crème Chiboust will still include milk, vanilla, or other flavoring, egg yolks, and sugar. These ingredients will be used to create a crémé pâtissière and a meringue Italien.
Crème Du Barry or Crème Dubarry – Cream of cauliflower soup named after the famous, or rather infamous, mistress of Louis XV, the Countess du Barry. (See Du Barry).
Crème Épaisse – A pasteurized cream with 30% fat, épaisse means thick in French. Crème épaisse should not be confused with crème fraîche épaisse.

Thick Cream - Crème Épaisse

Photograph courtesy of Carnation®

Crème Fleurette or Crème Liquide - Fresh cream.
Crème Fouettée – Whipped cream, mostly the same as Crème Chantilly, but usually without the vanilla flavoring.
Crème Fermier – Fresh cream from the farm. Another way a restaurant may try to show their connection to nature.
Crème Fraîche – There is no English translation for crème fraîche as it is a uniquely French creation and so crème fraîche it remains in English. Crème fraîche’s taste is somewhere between sour cream and fresh cream with a slight tang; it is pasteurized and contains 30% plus fat and is only made with cow’s milk. Crème fraîche is the ingredient that produces much of that important, je ne sais quoi; that inexplicable, different taste in French cream sauces, cream soups, and other recipes.
Crème Fraîche Épaisse – A Crème Fraîche with over 36% fat.
Crème Fraîche Légère – A lighter form of crème fraîche; less than 30% fat, as little as 18%! That’s low? Each producer may decide how much fat their below 30% light crème fraiche will contain. Read the details on the carton or bottle; the percentage next to the word grasse is the fat content.

Creme Fraiche Mousse cake.

Madeleine bisquit, blood orange gelee, pomegranate mousse,

creme fraiche mousse.

Photograph courtesy of Chris Chen 陳依勤

www.flickr.com/photos/cchen/2269712006/

Crème Frangipane – An almond-based custard filling, and also a type of pastry. The name is attributed to a 13th Century Italian nobleman Muzio Frangipani who created a perfume for scenting leather using a bitter almond base. Then, some 300 years later, French pastry cooks who liked the scent made almond custard with a similar scent and named it after Senor Frangipani. Frangipane is also the name of a family of North American tropical shrubs with fragrant, multi-colored flowers; Hawaii is the primary grower of Frangipane flowers today, and the name is also given to perfumes made of or with a scent similar to those flowers.
Crème Glacée - A dessert cream with a milk base; this is not ice cream. It is made with milk, egg whites, sugar, and usually a vanilla flavoring and frozen before serving. This dessert is often served with fruit or as part of another dish.
Crème Légère – A light cream. Light has many meanings in the world of French cuisine, so look at the contents. One dairy may produce a light cream with 12% fat and another with 30%.

Elle & Vire Crème Légère

12% fat.

Photograph courtesy of French Deli and Gourmet Shop

Crème Liquide – Fresh cream, usually 35% fat, read the labels of the various offerings.
Crème Montée – A light form of whipping cream. Regular whipping cream is crème fouettée in French, but this is a light cream similar to a single cream in the UK; it may be added directly to a dish or whipped first. (See Crème Fouettée).
Crème Pâtissière - A thick pastry cream, usually vanilla flavored. Crème pâtissière may be made of milk, butter, eggs, sugar, and flour. As the name pâtissière implies, it is much used by confectioners.
Crème Plombières - A custard filled with fresh fruits and egg whites. Plombières-Les-Bains is a small town in the department of Vosges in the Lorraine part of the region of the Grand Est that since Roman times has been recognized for the curative powers of its mineral waters. Today these are modern baths with a beautiful setting and fifteen minutes from the ski slopes in winter. Add the small casino and some excellent local restaurants and the baths bring visitors to the town all year round. Napoleon I's first wife Joséphine and many of her friends were frequent visitors to the baths. Great chefs came to this town with their employers to prepare grand dinners for their famous guests. Many dishes were named after the town and two are still popular enough for Crème Plombières and a dessert called Glacé Plombières or Délice Glacé de Plombières to be on menus two hundred years later.
Crème Pralinée - Praline cream. A crème pâtissière flavored with praline powder and used to fill pastries. (See Crème Pâtissière and Praline).

Gateau Paris-Brest - Crème Mousseline Praliné

The Paris-Brest cake is named after the world's first long-distance bicycle race. The Paris-Brest Gateaux will still be on quite a few menus at the end of August, the race is held once every four years, and the cake is made to resemble a bicycle tire. It is made with puff pastry with a praline buttercream inside, and almond paste is traditionally used for the wheel. Still, different chefs have different traditions. The race was first run in 1891 and preceded the Tour de France, which began in 1903. Since 1931 the PBP, the Paris-Brest-Paris race, all 1,200 km (746 miles) of it, has become a once every four-year endurance race held in August. The race is not a speed race; rather, it is a race of endurance and a spectacle with thousands of participants and tens of thousands of spectators. The minimum requirement is the completion of the course within 90 hours. This is a race for all men and women, and the rules are the same. This race is for you if you are an excellent randonneur, a proven amateur long-distance cyclist, as professional riders cannot enter. All you have to do to have the glory of having your name entered in the "Great Book," the winners' book, is to finish the race in less than 90 hours. The time allotted includes pit stops, sleep, and food; if you're not back on time, you lost.

Photograph courtesy of CICIYA PÂTISSERIE AND CO

Crème Renversée - See Crème Caramel.
Crème de Tartre – Cream of tartar. Cream of tartar is tartaric acid. It’s a byproduct of wine production. It is unlikely to be on the menu, but combined with baking soda is used in baking.
Crèmerie or Laiterie - A shop selling milk products, these shops may also sell cheese and may, in fact, be a Fromagerie, a cheese shop.
Crémeux, Crémeuse, Crémeuses – Creamy. A descriptive term that may be used for a creamy soup, sauce or salad dressing.
Crémets - Crémets are desserts made in many parts of France usually with a fresh, white, strained, 35% fat cow’s milk cheese. There seem to be as many variations of crémets as there are towns to name them; the difference is in the flavorings and additions.
Crémeuse – see Crémeux.

--------------------------------

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com
Copyright 2010, 2019, 2023.

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Dining in Normandy.

2026-09-26T07:02:00.000-07:00

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Normandy in France.
Map courtesy of OnTheWorldM

Enjoying French cuisine on its home ground is a significant reason for visiting France; another reason is to see places of unique interest or great art and architecture that cannot be found elsewhere. Normandy can satisfy both pursuits and many others.

Apart from great food, castles, art, and architecture, Normandy is blessed with 640 km (398 miles) of coastline, providing wonderful sandy beaches. There are also many inland rivers, canals, and lakes, including the River Seine that flows through Paris and into the Atlantic near Honfleur in Normandy.

Normandy also has a great deal of European history, most importantly connecting Normandy to the English throne. In 1066 Guillaume, a Norman-French Duke, William in English, a descendant of a Viking King, conquered England. William was crowned King of England and is a direct relative to the present Queen Elizabeth II. William, better known as William the conqueror, was crowned in Westminster Abbey like all his descendants through to the reigning queen. William the conqueror's granting land to his Norman Barons had a significant effect on the English kitchen, with many French food names becoming part of the English language. Below are just a few examples:

French - English

Bacon - Bacon
Bœuf - Beef
Jambon – Ham
Mouton – Mutton
Porc – Pork
Poulet – Pullet or chicken
Saucisse- Sausage

Documents, mostly in Latin, called the Vikings 'Nortmanni,' which means "men of the North". Nor-man-di means the Northman's land and so that part of France became Normandie, in English Normandy.

Traditional dishes on the menu in Normandy:

Pommeau de Normandie AOP - This traditional Norman apéritif is a light 16 -18% alcohol made with apple juice and a young Calvados, apple brandy. Pommeaus are drunk cold and made in much the same way as Pineaux de Charente in Cognac country and Floc de Gascogne in Armagnac country.

L'Andouillette d’Alençon Grillée à la Crème de Camembert – Andouillette Alençon sausages grilled and served with a cream of Camembert cheese sauce. Andouillettes are mostly made with the intestines and tripe of pigs but the Alençon Andouillette Alençon comes from calves' intestines and tripe. The sausage casing used is entirely natural, so the final sausage has no fixed diameter. Along with all the tubing comes salt, pepper, spices, and a strong smell. Andouillettes are on many menus, but visitors should know that they are an acquired taste.

An andouillette served in a Camembert sauce.
Photograph courtesy of Kent Wang
https://www.flickr.com/photos/kentwang/20545992021/

Gigot de Pré-salé du Mont-Saint-Michel Rôti au Romarin - Roasted leg of lamb with rosemary from the lambs raised on the salt meadows close to the island of Mont-Saint-Michel on the Atlantic coast and the border between Normandy and Brittany. These lambs are raised on the salt meadows; some are salt marshes on France's Atlantic coast. Pré-salé lambs go to market when they are 5-9 months old, and before then, they will have been raised by their mothers for at least 60-90 days, and when weaned, they will spend at least another 75 days grazing in the salt meadows on France's Atlantic shores. The sea air and the sea salt flavor the grasses on which the lambs feed; that creates a uniquely tasting lamb without even the slightest trace of salt. Remember that the French prefer their lamb pink, rosé and unlike steaks, you will not usually be asked how you like your lamb. So advise your waiter if you prefer your lamb well done.

The Pré-salé lambs near Mont-Saint-Michel
Photograph courtesy of Côte à l'Os

Filet Mignon au Camembert de Normandie au Lait Cru - A pork filet mignon prepared with Normandy's famous cheese, the Camembert de Normandie AOP is made with unpasteurized cow's milk. This menu offering is a perfect example of what a Filet Mignon really means. While in the USA, a Filet Mignon indicates a thick cut from a beef filet, the tenderloin, In France, a beef filet mignon is the thin end part of the tenderloin. However, on a French menu, when beef is not noted, Filet Mignon is whole pork tenderloin, the pork filet as it is on this menu listing. The Camembert will have been prepared and melted with crème fraiche, and Normandy's Pommeau with the slices of the pork filet mignon will be served on top of the melted cheese.

Escalope de Veau IGP à la Normande - A Label Rouge IGP veal scallop prepared with button mushrooms, dry cider, and créme fraîche. Some variations may use Calvados, Normandy's famous apple brandy, instead of Cider. France produces some of the country's best veal, and this is its signature dish made with the best veal that Normandy offers. It's not surprising that Normandy has excellent veal. With so much milk, butter, and cream coming from Normandy's cows, there is a surfeit of young males who will not grow up to provide milk.

Crème fraiche has a creamy texture, and while it is not like sour cream or yogurt, neither is it a sweet cream. Crème fraîche is a pasteurized and naturally thickened cow's milk, with most offerings having 30% or more fat. The unique taste of crème fraiche comes from the added milk bacteria. There is no English translation for crème fraîche; it is a uniquely French creation, so crème fraiche it remains in English. Button mushrooms were the first mushrooms to be successfully farmed in any quantity, and that happened in Paris; hence the French name: Champignons de Paris. (A veal escalope is lean veal that has been to flattened both to increase the surface size and to tenderize the meat).

A veal escalope
Photograph courtesy of Images Alight
https://www.flickr.com/photos/alan-light/5765780914/

Marmite Dieppoise – Marmite in the manner of the port and fishing center of Dieppe on the Atlantic coast of Normandy. The name marmite is a traditional name for saltwater and seafood soups and stews and has nothing to do with the much-loved British vegetarian paste called Marmite. The Marmite Dieppoise is a stew, and since this is a saltwater fish stew and Dieppe is also an open sea fishing port, the fish available may change daily. The fish may include turbot, sole, mackerel, and red mullet, with the seafood including some of Normandy's plentiful shrimps and mussels. Essential to the flavor is Norman cider, with vegetables, onions, celery, leeks, parsley, thyme, chervil, bay leaves, and garlic. Petit marmites are smaller cooking pots and are often used for serving the soups or stews they contain.

Marmite Dieppoise
Photograph courtesy of Marie Claire

Poulet de la Vallée d'Auge - Chicken in the manner of the Auge Valley is one of Normandy's most popular chicken dishes and includes apples, button mushrooms, fresh cream, dry cider, and Calvados. While not noted on this menu listing Normany has its own Label Rouge, red label, chickens the Poulet Fermier Normand, IGP, which is farmed in the Vallée d'Auge. The whole of the Vallée d'Auge is famed for its agriculture, its dairy produce, and it's also the home of Camembert cheese as well as its apples, and of course, its Cidre de Pays d'Auge AOP and Calvados. The Vallée d'Auge includes most of the departments of Calvados and Orne and a corner of the department of Eure.

Moules Frites à la Normande - Mussels and French fries in the Norman manner. The broth for this dish will include créme fraîche, dry cider, apples and shallots.

Moules Frites à la Normande
Photograph courtesy of Yummy foods by Nancy.

Trou Normand - The custom of the Trou Normand Calvados offered during the meal. Calvados is usually served as a digestif replacing Cognac or Armagnac. However, the Trou Normand is taken as a shot of Calvados, particularly following seafood dishes, to prevent indigestion. The True Normand is now seen on menus when served as a Calvados sorbet; the sorbet version is supposed to awaken the digestive juices.

Sole à la Normande - Filets of lemon sole in the manner of Normandy, with pink shrimps (the common prawn), button mushrooms, fresh cream, white wine, shallots, and dill; a few locally farmed mussels may be added. You may be surprised to see wine in this Norman dish, and while Normandy is not famous for its wine, there are some excellent white Norman wines, and I have seen a local pinot noir red on a wine list.

Fish and seafood will overflow from the tables in Normandy with Dover Sole, often on the menu as Sole Français, lemon sole, sea bream, European sea bass, mackerel, sea trout, and more. On local menus, the shellfish include the langouste, the clawless spiny lobster or rock lobster, the owner of the lobster tail, shrimp, king scallops, homard, the European two-clawed lobster, and more. Local sea farms produce oysters and mussels, and freshwater farms rainbow trout. Normandy contains a vast network of streams, ponds, canals, lakes, and marshlands that are home to pike, zander or pike-perch, freshwater perch, European eels, and much more.

Boudin Noir à la Normande - Black pudding in the manner of Normandy served with Normandy's apples. French boudins noir are usually smaller than the black pudding sausages in the UK, with the most popular just large enough for an individual serving. In France, a boudin noir will often be served with a variety of apple preparations which are the traditional French accompaniment. If you like black puddings, then visit the town of Mortagne-au-Perche, in Normandy. You will begin to realize that the boudin noir is not a sausage for the French, British, and the Irish alone; this is a sausage of importance to all humanity. In the spring, usually on the third Friday, Saturday, and Sunday in March, sausage lovers come to the Mortagne-au-Perche sausage fair from all over the world. The fair is for all sausage lovers though the competition is only open to those who produce the black pudding sausages. The Tourist Information Office for Mortagne-au-Perche will supply information on the following year's fair a few months before.

Boudin Noir à la Normande
Photograph courtesy of La Radio du Goût

Tarte Normande - A Norman apple tart with a Pâte Sablée, a sweet crust pastry Pâte Sablée has the same ingredients as pâte sucrée, but the butter is creamed with the sugar and the eggs before the flour is folded in. This method mixes the butter more evenly, making the dough less puffy and creating a less crumbly texture. Normandy has tens of different apples for its ciders. Every different cider and every Calvados has its favorite combination of apples. One of those apples may in this apple tart, but the Granny Smith apple is one of France's favorites where apple tarts or pies are concerned.

Tarte Normande
Photograph courtesy of Merle ja Joonas
https://www.flickr.com/photos/merlejajoonas/7463109160/

Cheese from Normandy

While France's most famous cheese is Camembert, only a tiny part of the Camembert produced in Normandy can be labeled Camembert de Normandie AOP. However, most locally produced Camemberts are better than the copies made in other countries. Also from Normandy comes three other famous AOP cheeses, Livarot AOP, Pont-l'Évêque AOP, and Neufchâtel AOP. These cheeses and many others come from milk provided by the descendants of the cows that William's Viking ancestors brought with them.

Maturing Livarot cheese
Photograph courtesy of Debbi Baron
https://www.flickr.com/photos/131579145@N07/16445271767/

Butter and Crème Fraîche In Normandy

One of France's top three butters comes from Normandy, the Beurre d'Isigny AOP. Also France's only Crème Fraîche with an AOP also comes from Normandy, the Crème Fraîche d’Isigny AOP. Even without an AOP, butter, cream, or Crème Fraîche from Normandy always carries a premium. The consumers know that the Norman cows, the descendants of those brought by the original Viking settlers, and the fabulous grasses produce many of the best milk products in France. With Norman milk so highly rated, it's not surprising that 15% of the milk bears the AB sign for Agriculture-Biologique, Organic Farming.

Beurre d'Isigny AOP
Photograph courtesy of Carrefour

Cider and Perry

Cidre de Pays d'Auge - One of France's two apple ciders that hold an AOP. In Normandy and Brittany, the local sparkling ciders are served in bottles similar to those used for champagne. While Normandy does have a small number of vineyards sparkling cider often replaces Champagne, Crémant, or another sparkling wine at celebrations. Drive through the Norman Route du Cidre, their cider road, a drive of approximately 40 km (25 miles); that will take you through many beautiful villages, with plenty of restaurants along the way. Cambremer in the department of Calvados is the largest village on the route and has a Fête des AOP de Normandie usually at the end of April and beginning of May. The fete celebrates all of Normandy's ciders, Calvados, and Pommeau and its wonderful butter, cheeses, and crème fraiche.

Cidre de Poiré and Poiré Domfront AOP - Pear ciders or perries. The best of these is the Poiré Domfront AOP that comes from the area around the small and attractive town of Domfront, in the department of Orne is very close to Brittany. Domfront is in the western part of the Park Naturel Normandie-Maine, the Normandie-Maine Regional Nature Park.

Cidre de Pays d'Auge
Photograph courtesy of Pierre Huit

Calvados

Calvados AOP - The most famous apple brandy in the world, and it comes from Normandy in three varieties. Calvados AOP - Holds 70% of the market and comes from apples grown all over Normandy.

Calvados Pays d'Auge AOP - This is made in the old Normandy region of Pays d'Auge that includes parts of the departments of Calvados, Orne, and Eure. Calvados Pays d'Auge is the only Calvados that must be double-distilled.

Calvados Domfrontais AOP - This is the third Calvados and is the last one to be awarded an AOP. This Calvados has a unique and distinctive taste being an apple brandy made with at least 30% pear cider, a perry. The pear eau-de-vie provides a very different taste. Calvados Domfrontais is mainly produced in Orne, Manche, and Mayenne. Even the youngest Domfrontais is aged for a minimum of three years in oak barrels.

Calvados Pays d'Auge AOP
Photograph courtesy of Famille Dupont

The age on the bottle indicates the age when the apples were picked. The brandy would not have been in the barrel for much more than twenty years at the most, usually less. After maturing in the barrel the Calvados will be bottled and like Cognac and Armagnac does not mature in the bottle

The ages of Calvados on the labels.

Fine - Fine Calvados, Trois Étoiles - Three Stars ***, and Trois Pommes, the pictures of three apples - These indicate the youngest Calvados in a blend. They will have been matured for at least two years in oak barrels.

Vieux, Old, or Réserve, Reserved - These names on the label indicate brandies that have been barrel-aged for at least three years.

V.O. Very Old, Vieille Réserve, Old Réserve, V.S.O.P. Very Superior Old Pale - These brandies will have been barrel aged for at least four years.

Extra, Napoléon, XO, Extra Old, Hors d'Age, To old to determine or Age Inconnu, Age unknown – These Calvadoses are at least six years old but are often sold with descriptions that indicate they are older. There is no official standard for Calvados over six years old. Markings that suggest they are 20 years old etc. have no legal meaning. The producer's interest in protecting their reputation is considered enough of a guarantee.

Four of the many many places to visit in Normandy.

Monet's Garden in Giverny - Giverny is famous for the home and garden of Monet, the painter. Claude Monet was one of the founders of the impressionist movement. Monet was born in Normandy in the town of Le Havre on the Atlantic coast in the department of Seine-Maritime. Giverny is just 50 minutes from Paris, but for the visitor, it is a world away; it is in Normandie, in the department of Eure.

A path in Monet's garden
Photograph courtesy of Tom Hilton
https://www.flickr.com/photos/tomhilton/19269996201

The Bayeux Tapestry - Preserved and displayed in the museum in the town of Bayeux, a medieval town in the department of Calvados, The tapestry, really an embroidery 70 meters (230') long, represents figures and pictures showing William the Conqueror's conquest of England .'The Bayeux Tapestry was probably commissioned in the 1070s by Bishop Odo of Bayeux, half-brother of William the Conqueror.

Every year, on the first weekend in July, the Bayeux Medieval Festival is a landmark event in the town. Bayeux was miraculously spared by bombing in June 1944. It was the first city in mainland France to be liberated and home to the largest British war cemetery from WWII in Normandy.

Le Palais Bénédictine, the Benedictine Palace - Le Palais Bénédictine is not the home of royalty, it is the factory that produces the Bénédictine D.O.M. liqueur, a sweet, orange, and honey flavored, 40% proof liqueur. It is named after the Bénédictine monks who purportedly created it. This liqueur is only made in the pretty Atlantic coastal town of Fecamp in the department of Seine-Maritime in Normandy, France. That palace looks more like a freaked-out French version of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry than a palace. Nevertheless, here Bénédictine D.O.M is made and it makes an interesting place to visit.

Rouen and its Cathédrale Notre-Dame - Rouen, the Norman-French city, dates back to the Gauls. Rouen is set on the River Seine and is the capital of Normandy. Rouen would become important to the Romans as an inland port from the Atlantic connecting to Paris, originally a village called Lutetia. After the Romans came the Vikings, and it was that group of Vikings who metamorphosed into the Norman-French over hundreds of years. Ever since Rouen became the Norman French capital in the 11th Century, Rouen has always been the Prefecture, the regional capital.

The inhabitants of Rouen call themselves Rouennais, and your menu will offer dishes á la Rouennais; in the manner of Rouen. Dishes á la Rouennais are not a unified cooking style but rather the local version of a particular dish; Rouen is the capital of Normandie, so it is Norman cuisine that most restaurants will be serving. During the 100 years of war between England and France, Rouen was claimed for England by King Henry V, and later it was here that Joan of Arc was burned at the stake in 1431. Rouen once again became part of France in 1449 when the English were expelled.

Rouen is famous for its Gothic Cathedral; the main structure was built in the 13th century, but the building was not completed until the 18th century. It is considered one of France's most significant examples of Gothic architecture. Now wholly reconstructed from WWII's damage and renowned for Claude Monet's impressionist paintings of the cathedral. Monet, over two years from 1892, made over 30 paintings that show the cathedral at the very time of day and in every season. When I visited Rouen, there was only one of those paintings on show in the City's museum, though there were at least a number of reproductions of the others.

Rouen is not just a Cathedral and a place to enjoy Norman cuisine. Rouen is the cultural center of Haute Normandie and had its own opera house in the 18th century; that opera house was destroyed in WWII, and a new Théâtre des Arts opened in 1962, the permanent home of L'Opéra de Rouen, Haute Normandie.

Rouen is also an industrial city with a very active inland seaport set on the River Seine; it is set nearly midway between Paris and the sea. The port is called Rotomagus, the name the Romans gave to the city.

A Famous Recipe that may not be on your menu today.

Canard de Rouen - The Rouen duckling will be part of many menus though its most famous recipe Canard à la Pressé or Canard à la Rouennaise is too expensive to be on many modern menus. The Canard de Rouen is a farm-raised cross with the mallard duck that, together with the recipe, originated in the capital of Normandy, the city of Rouen. To read more about Canard à la Pressé click here.

A famous chefs from Normandy's history

Guillaume Tirel, best known as Taillevent (1310-1395) - The first cook to be officially appointed Chef to a King of France. Taillevent served the French King Charles V and later his son King Charles VI. Taillevent was born in the town of Pont-Audemer, now part of the department of Eure in Normandy. He is accepted as the author of the first published French cookbook, Le Viander. The book was published about 100 years after his death in various versions, and some of the contributions are disputed. From time to time, reprints, including English translations, are still being printed; the last English reprint I saw was published in 2002. A copy of the original book may also be downloaded free of charge via Project Gutenberg.

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Copyright 2010, 2022, 2023.

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Coeur de Romsteck and Pavé de Rumsteck – Rump Steaks. French Cuts That Make for Some of the Tastiest Steaks.

2026-09-26T06:21:00.000-07:00

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Pavé de Rumsteck, Sauce Béarnaise, Frites,
A thick-cut of rump steak served with sauce Bearnaise and fries

Romsteck and Rumsteck in French cuisine.

The French terms Romsteak and Rumsteck often confuse English-speaking visitors, which isn't too surprising given that North American and UK butchers can't even agree on what a rump steak is. French rump steaks, for example, include parts of what the UK calls Rump, Silverside, and Topside cuts. In the USA, those same French cuts are part of what's known as sirloin and round. (It's worth noting that the UK sirloin and the USA sirloin are also different cuts altogether.) Oscar Wilde and George Bernard Shaw acknowledged long ago that Britain and the United States are “two countries separated by a common language.”

The French, USA and UK cuts

France

UK USA

French chefs require their butchers to carefully prepare their cuts of beef and veal. France has no grades similar to the USA Prime or Choice, and so French chefs learn in school how to grade, choose, and prepare every kind of meat. That promises rump steaks, cut so that if they are not the tenderest steak on the menu, they will be among the tastiest. Two cuts on French menus include the word romsteak or rumsteck and in butcher's shops and recipes, you will find a third.

The three cuts from the Romsteak or Rumsteck:

Coeur de Romsteak
The (Coeur de Romsteak), which translates as the heart of the romsteak, is the least expensive of the French rump steak cuts despite using the name "heart". Coeur de Romsteaks are good, but nearly always served with a sauce.

Pavé de Rumsteck
These are usually thick steaks. The term pavé means "paving stone," and refers to its shape. It's considered one of the tastiest steak options. While the Pavé de Rumsteck is not as marbled as ribeye (entrecôte), it's a tender cut with great flavor.
(Pavé means a paving stone in French, and the word will be seen in the names of certain thick French cheeses and in the setting of diamonds or other stones set like paving stones into gold or platinum).
Some Pavés de Rumsteck are carved from the larger Coeur de Romsteak, which is generally considered the cheapest cut from the rump. From there, it's divided into the thick, delicious steaks known as Pavé de Romsteck. The meat is marbled and rich, and it cooks into a tender steak that will be reminiscent of your favorite tenderloin (fillet).

The Filet de Rumsteck (Fillet of Rump Steak)
The Filet de Rumsteck is a cylindrical column of beef, about a foot long, which resembles a small tenderloin (fillet) in both appearance and texture.
The Filet de Rumsteck is lean yet flavorful and is sometimes cut and served as Pavé de Rumsteck, as this cut produces some of the best rump steaks on French menus. N.B. All the Rumsteck cuts are at their best served medium-rare to medium.
I read an article where a French butcher, after visiting the USA, accused US butchers of selling a thick cut from the USA top sirloin as a Chateaubriand. If correct, the cut used would be similar to the French Filet de Rumsteck. Despite that accusation of Lèse-majesté, the French are themselves not sure of the original cut used for a Chateaubriand. In any case, since a Filet de Romsteck will provide a delicious steak, an American diner will have little to grumble about

Cœur de Romsteck on French menus:

Cœur de Romsteak, Beurre Maître d’Hôtel – The cœur de romsteak served with Maître d’Hôtel Butter.

Beurre Maître d’Hôtel: This is a compound butter flavored with lemon juice and parsley and placed on a steak, roast or fish just before serving so that it adds flavor as it melts.

Cœur de Romsteak
Photograph courtesy of Trip Advisor
Bistro Régent, Aubiere France

(Aubiere is about 4 kms (2.5 miles) from the city of Clermont-Ferrand, the headquarters the Michelin tire company who also publish the red and green Michelin guides.

Cœur de Rumsteck Grillé, Sauce au Bleu et aux Baies de “Sansho” - A grilled Cœur de Rumsteck served with a sauce made with blue cheese and sansho berries.

Sansho : The Sancho berry originated in Japan (where it’s called the Kona- Zansho). It looks somewhat like Szechuan pepper but it’s much milder and comes from a spiny shrub where its lemon tang gives away its origins as a member of the citrus family, though it has a slightly numbing effect if eaten in quantity. The Shansho (Kona-zanshō) berry is used in many Japanese dishes, including the Shichimi Togarashi spice group.

Cœur de Rumsteck en Carpaccio - A Carpaccio made from the heart of the rump steak.

Carpaccio: An original Italian creation that has made France a second home. The steak is paper thin, marinated, uncooked beef, and here it’s taken from the rump. The traditional recipe calls for the beef to be marinated and when served drizzled with a white sauce made from fresh mayonnaise, Worcester sauce, and lemon juice. To that may be added copeaux, shavings or flakes, of Parmesan cheese.

Coeur de Rumsteck Sauce au Poivre et Pommes Sautées - A cœur de rumsteck pepper steak. with a green peppercorn sauce and sautéed potatoes."

Pepper steaks: Unless otherwise noted French pepper steaks are made with green peppercorns. When black peppercorns are used, it is difficult to control the peppers’ heat, and green pepper adds a light herbal accent. Green peppercorns are picked before they ripen; then, they are pickled in brine and dried but are not fermented. The result is a pepper with a light herbal flavor, much less pungent than black or white peppercorns.

Tataki de Cœur de Rumsteak - Tataki from the heart of the rump steak.

Tataki: Tataki is a Japanese cooking method for beef and fish. It's a dish that's often served as an appetizer in Japan wheren it’s known for its contrast in textures and flavors; outside Japan Tataki is often served as a main course.

To prepare the steak it is briefly seared over very high heat, creating a browned crust on the outside while leaving the inside very rare, almost raw. The goal is to cook the outer layer without letting the heat penetrate too deeply.

After searing, the steak is rested and then thinly sliced. This thin slicing is crucial for achieving the dish's delicate and tender texture.

The thinly sliced beef is, in Japan, typically served with a citrusy and savory sauce, often a ponzu sauce (a Japanese sauce made with soy sauce and citrus juice). The sauce complements the rich flavor of the beef. French chefs have experimented and changed the flavors enriching the options.

The term tataki includes two different techniques. In the case of beef or fish tataki, it’s the method of lightly searing meat or fish and then slicing it thin. The other technique that is often used with bonito tuna involves pounding the fish with aromatics. (The word tataki means “pounded” or “hit”).

Tataki de Cœur de Rumsteak
Tataki of beef from the heart of a rumpsteak.
Photograph and recipe courtesy of Atelier des chefs

Cœur de Rumsteck, Ratatouille et Pommes Boulangère – Cœur de rumsteck served with the classic Ratatouille from Nice on the Côte d'Azur and Pommes Boulangère.

Ratatouille: A classic recipe from Nice, with eggplants (aubergines in the UK), zucchinis (courgettes in the UK), onions, tomatoes, sweet peppers, garlic, herbs, and olive oil. Seasonal variations are accepted, and to the ingredients, chefs may add champignons, button mushrooms, lardons, which are fried or smoked bacon bits, and occasionally eggs. Many chefs present their Ratatouille with gruyère cheese browned on top (gratiné) or grated and placed on the side for the diners to add to their taste.

While in this listing, the Ratatouille will be served hot, it may be served hot or cold, and that was always part of the dish's history. Ratatouille began as a main dish and only later gained popularity as a side dish, as it is in this listing. Now, in a return to its origins, Ratatouille is again often offered as a main dish accompanied by rice or pasta.

Pommes Boulangère: The baker's potatoes. Pommes Boulangère is a traditional dish of sliced potatoes baked in a vegetable or meat broth and allowed to simmer until all the broth has been absorbed or evaporated. Its name gives away its origins. In villages and towns, people without ovens would bring their potatoes in their own dishes to cook in the baker's oven as it cooled after making the day's bread.

Pavé de Rumsteck on French menus:

Cœur De Rumsteck De Charolais 180 G - A 180 gram (6 oz) Cœur De Rumsteck steak from France’s famed Bœuf Charolais du Bourbonnais AOP.

The Charolais herds are free range for seven months a year and feed on grasses, wildflowers, and herbs all year. All Charolais calves are raised by their mothers, and their beef is antibiotic and growth-hormone free.

Pavé De Rumsteck
Photograph courtesy of Trip Advisor
Beef & Co, Metz, France.

Pavé de Rumsteck Grillé, Crème de Camembert - A grilled pavé steak served with a cream of camembert cheese sauce.

Camembert: Camembert is a soft, 22% fat, cow's milk cheese, and when perfectly ripe, has a fresh mushroomy smell and is creamy and spreadable, but not runny. (This menu listing is for a cream of Camembert sauce).

Among the French Camemberts, those made with unpasteurized milk are considered the very best, though from my experience, there are plenty of excellent French Camembert cheeses made with pasteurized milk. Only real cheese addicts can tell the difference when two well-aged cheeses meet in a blind tasting. Camembert's rind is natural (and edible) with a white to light brown color. When choosing Camembert from a restaurant's cheese tray or trolley, the center should be soft, just beginning to bulge, but not running. (Any cheese that looks hard and doesn't smell like Camembert should be left for the mice.) Camembert is the most famous of all French cheeses. However, the tiny village of Camembert in Normandy (population 200) never got around to registering its name. So, the outside of the European Union Camembert cheese may be made anywhere in the world. Among French Camembert cheeses, the very best can be identified if you look for the yellow AOP label on the box. The wording will also be precise: "Camembert de Normandie" with the giveaway yellow AOP label (in English, the same label would read PDO).

Pavé de Rumsteck aux Échalotes, Purée Mousseline, Légumes Grillés - A pavé steak prepared with shallots and served with very fine mashed potatoes and grilled vegetables.

Mousseline: A very fine mousse. The name originates from the use of muslin fabric to sieve vegetables for a mousse. In the past, before the availability of the thinnest metal sieves, mousses and the finest mashed potatoes (or other vegetables) were sieved through the material muslin. The results would become a mousse or a purée mousseline if they were finely sieved.

Pavé de Rumsteck Mariné à l'Ail des Ours, Sauce Pinot Noir – A pavé steak marinated with wild garlic served with a sauce made from the mild red Pinot noir wine.

Ail des Ours: Wild garlic grows all over Europe, the UK, and North America. There are other young wild plants that do look somewhat similar, especially wild onions and leeks. Despite the similarity in looks, worry not, wild garlic's clearly different smell makes it hard to make a mistake. French market gardeners also grow wild garlic for restaurants, and wild garlic can be replanted in private vegetable patches.

Wild garlic leaves may be used raw in salads and cooked in other recipes; the wild garlic bulb itself is very small and generally imparts a lighter garlic taste and odor than the cultivated varieties. Despite that, you should still be careful when cooking with wild garlic; I have had a dish where the wild garlic plants involved had not read my comments.

Pinot Noir: Pinot Noir in France is most famously associated with the Burgundy region, where it is the most important red grape. It is also very important in Champagne, Alsace, and the Loire Valley. For a sauce, Pinot Noir is often used to deglaze the natural cooking juices, and as the wine reduces, it will concentrate the flavors and make a sauce that is perfect for steak.

Searching for words, names or phrases

on French Menus?

Just add the word, words, or phrase you are searching for to the phrase "Behind the French Menu" enclosed in inverted commas (quotation marks) and search using Google, Bing, or another search engine. Behind the French Menu's links include hundreds of words, names, and phrases commonly seen on French menus. There are over 450 posts featuring more than 4,000 French dishes, all accompanied by English translations and explanations.

Connected Posts:

Ail - Garlic. Garlic in French Cuisine.

Beurre - Butter. Butter in French Cuisine.

Camembert Cheese; France's most Famous Cow's Milk Cheese.

Carpaccio on French Menus.

Charolais AOP – One of France’s Tastiest Goat’s Cheeses. Charolais Cheese from Burgundy on French Menus.

Chateaubriand Steak and Chateaubriand the Man. Ordering a Chateaubriand steak in France.

Citron – The lemon; the fruit behind many of France’s culinary successes. Also the Citron Vert - Lime, the Cedrat – the Citron, the Combava – the kaffir lime and the Chadec - the Pomelo.

Copeaux on a French Menu? Copeaux means shavings or slivers.

Crepes, Galettes, Gauffres, Mille Crepes, Pannequets and more. All on French Menus

Dining in Nice on 'La Côte d'Azur'. The Cuisine of Nice, Cuisine Niçoise.

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French Olive Oils. Enjoying France's Best Olive Oils.

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Ratatouille, the essence of Provencal cuisine and Ratatouille’s Ancestor, the Bohémienne de Légumes.

Vinegar, Vinaigrette and Verjus in French Cuisine.

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
Copyright 2010, 2017, 2023. 2025
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Saumon – Salmon. Salmon in French Cuisine.

2026-09-26T04:37:00.000-07:00

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

The Atlantic Salmon

Photograph by courtesy of the Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk, USA

Saumon – Salmon. Saumon Atlantique – Atlantic Salmon

The only salmon that calls Europe its real home is the Atlantic Salmon, and it is France's best-selling fish, just ahead of cod. It will be on the menu marinated, fried, poached, grilled, and smoked. Salmon is also number two in the French fish restaurant popularity stakes just after fresh cod.

The Atlantic Salmon's French names include: Saumon; Saumon Atlantique; Tacon Atlantique; Saumon Baltic; Saumon Écossais; Saumon Norvégien or Saumon Sauvage. The English names for the Atlantic Salmon include Salmon, Atlantic Salmon, Black Salmon, Baltic Salmon, Sea Salmon, Silver salmon, Irish Salmon, Scotch Salmon, Norwegian Salmon, and Wild Salmon.

All these names and more indicate the Atlantic Salmon, the only salmon found in Europe.

Atlantic Salmon on French menus:

Carpaccio de Saumon, (Huile d'Olive, Toasts) – Salmon Carpaccio flavored with olive oil and served with toast on the side.

Carpaccio de Saumon

Photograph courtesy of Manoel Petry

www.flickr.com/photos/manoelpetry/5264945056/

Dos de Saumon en Croute d'Herbes, Sauce Paloise - A thick cut from the back of a salmon, baked in a crust of herbs, and served with a Sauce Paloise, a granddaughter, or perhaps a grandson of one of France’s mother sauces, Sauce Hollandaise. (Sauce Paloise is a minty version of Sauce Bearnaise, itself developed from Sauce Hollandaise).

Grilled salmon with teriyaki sauce.

Photograph courtesy of Prayitno

www.flickr.com/photos/prayitnophotography/16802375986/

Hure de Saumon – Translated without any good reason as salmon head cheese, or the nearly as bad, salmon pate since this dish is neither. Hure de saumon is a fillet of salmon and parsley; steamed or braised and then prepared for display with a gelatin coating, nothing to do with a salmon’s head, any type of cheese or pate. A hure de saumon will be served cold with fresh mayonnaise and is often part of a buffet offering.

Millefeuille de Saumon Fumé, Sorbet Citron Vert – Layers of smoked salmon interleaved with a vegetable, and served with lime sorbet. With salmon, in season, the vegetable that most often makes the millefeuille in this dish will be thin slices of avocado. (N.B. Smoking, both hot and cold, is an important tool in French cuisines).

Pavé de Saumon Norvégien à la Provençale – A thick cut of Norwegian farm-raised Atlantic salmon prepared with a traditional Provençale recipe. The dish will include lots of tomatoes, and the Provençale flavor will be coming from the herb group called the Herbes de Provence, along with shallots and a small amount of garlic, local black olives and parsley. Additions such as cream or crème fraiche and white wine are at the chef’s discretion; however, they were not part of the traditional recipe. (This menu listing highlights Norwegian Salmon, but Norwegian Salmon is the same Atlantic Salmon farmed elsewhere in Europe).

Dos de Saumon Sauce à l'Aneth

A thick cut of salmon with a dill sauce.

Photograph courtesy of patrick janicek

www.flickr.com/photos/marsupilami92/6927644262/

Saumoneau de Fontaine Sauce Suprème aux Cèpes - Young salmon (smolt) from the river served with a sauce supreme and cepes, the French porcini mushrooms. Sauce Supreme is a white sauce made with veal or chicken stock, butter and crème fraiche; here the stock may be a fumet, a fish stock.

Saumon Ecossaise Label Rouge

Certain Scottish farms hold the French Label Rouge, red label, for their salmons' consistent quality and canimal husbandry.

Label Rouge – The red label of quality

RSPCA label of Freedom food

Scottish farmed salmon was the first non-French product to be awarded the French Label Rouge, the red label for high-quality food products. The Scottish Label Rouge salmon also comes with the British RSPCA label of Freedom food. The RSPCA, Freedom Food Rating is the highest standard for farmed fish in the world. The RSPCA inspects cleanliness, type of food, and overcrowding, as well as ensuring the absolute minimum of discomfort when the fish are brought in.

This Scottish salmon is so flavorful and is farmed under such uniquely clean and controlled conditions that only four companies, Marine Harvest, Loch Duart, Scottish Seafarms and Sea Products of Scotland have been awarded the French Red Label of excellence.

Filet de Saumon Écossais Label Rouge à l'Unilatérale, Pommes Sautées au Persil – A filet of Scottish label rouge salmon lightly fried through from the skin side of the filet, and served with boiled potatoes flavored with parsley. Cooking fish à l'unilatérale is considered the best way to fry a filet of fish; by cooking only on the skin side of the filet, the flavor of the fish is not affected by the cooking oil as it would be if cooked on both sides.

Blanquette de Saumon Écossais Label Rouge aux Girolles, Marrons et Graines de Moutarde - A stew of red label Scottish salmon served with girolle chanterelle mushrooms, chestnuts and flavored with mustard grains. The recipes for blanquette stews almost always include mushrooms and a cream sauce; many recipes include white wine. France has many chestnut forests, and the recipes that include chestnuts are endless.

Salade de jambon cru et saumon Francaise fumé

A salad of cured ham and French smoked salmon

Two different tastes and textures that go so well together

Photograph courtesy of ayako

www.flickr.com/photos/ayk/6960839/

Saumon Fumé – Smoked Salmon.

Many French chefs smoke their own salmon. When you see, on a French menu, Fumé Maison, home-smoked, then the chef is in charge of the smoking; that will be smoked salmon made with love; it will not have come from a commercial smoker.

Salade d’Asperges Vertes, Saumon Fumé et Son Œuf Poché – A salad of green asparagus served with smoked salmon and a poached egg.

Saumon Fumé Maison et Ses Toasts – Home smoked salmon served with warm toast.

Saumon Cru or Saumon Mariné

Marinated salmon or cured salmon.

Saumon Cru or Saumon Mariné is sometimes mistranslated as raw salmon. Sashimi is raw salmon, saumon cru is not, it will have been marinated. I have had fabulous meals that included marinated salmon. Twice, once in Paris, and once in Lyon, I enjoyed the nearest thing to the “absolute” saumon mariné.

Saumon Mariné à l'Aneth – Salmon marinated in dill. Dill is the most popular herb, in France, for use in marinating salmon, and it is applied with a light touch. The result maybe some of the best-marinated salmon you will ever encounter. When saumon mariné à l'aneth is on the menu, do not pass it by.

Marinated salmon

Photograph courtesy of mari

www.flickr.com/photos/birdies-perch/1794151133/

Saumon Mariné au Citron Vert et Aneth - Salmon marinated in lime juice and dill. When thinly sliced I think that French marinated salmon is the only salmon that comes close to the texture of the very best and thinly sliced smoked salmon.

Saumon Gravlax, Gravadlax or Gravad Lax

Gravlax is a dish of Scandinavian origin; it is the Scandinavian take on marinated salmon, and it preceded the French recipe. Gravlax has a different texture and taste; it is made with whole filets of salmon, cured in a nearly, but not quite, freezing, mixture of salt, sugar, pepper, and dill. The diner will be served thin slices, though not as thin as the French marinated salmon.

Gravlax

Photograph courtesy of ethorson

www.flickr.com/photos/ethorson/3148591844/

During a visit to Sweden, I was told that the name gravlax comes from the Swedish be-grava meaning “to bury” and the word lax, means “salmon.” The name indicates that the recipe preceded refrigerators when it would have been wild, not farmed salmon that was buried and marinated under the snow for two or three days during the long winter. With snow expected nine months a year in many parts of Sweden that was probably close to the home, almost certainly close to the kitchen door.

Saumon Sauvage de l'Adour Mariné Façon Gravlax, Tomates Confites, Câpres et Fleur d'Ail - Wild salmon from the Adour River, prepared as Gravlax and served with a thick jam, a confit, of tomatoes and flavored with capers and garlic flowers. The Adour is one of France’s shorter rivers; it rises in the Pyrenees and flows in an arc for nearly 330 km before reaching the sea below the city of Bayonne. Despite the Ardour's short length, it is famous for its wild salmon; the difference in texture and taste to farmed salmon will be evident.

Tartare de Saumon – Salmon Tartar.

Tartare – The Tatars are the tribes who, under Genghis Khan overran much of Asia and parts of Europe. In the French kitchen, the Tartars are now best remembered for the beef dish created by a French chef in their memory: Steak Tartare, Steak Tartar. Following that success, another French chef begat Tartare de Saumon, salmon Tartar; that was followed by another chef who begat Tartare de Tomates, tomato Tartar. From then on, like the real Tartars, there was no stopping them; one after another chefs begat and begot numerous new creations all named after the Tartars.

Tartare de Saumon - Salmon tartar. Diced, marinated, fresh uncooked salmon prepared together with diced onions, chives, eggs, capers, parsley, olive oil, pepper, and lemon juice. The spiciness the French chef will have added will come from Tobasco or horseradish or Worcester Sauce. Tartare de Saumon will be served as an entrée, the French first course.

Tartare de Saumon Pamplemousse

Salmon and grapefruit Tatar.

Photograph courtesy of the Magazine Advantages

Tartare de Saumon Baltic Fumé à l'Aneth et au Citron Vert – Baltic salmon, smoked with dill and flavored with lime. The usage of the name Baltic salmon is just menuise (the language of menus) as the Baltic salmon is the same fish as the Atlantic Salmon. The fish offered here came from a Baltic Sea salmon farm, and so they will not be too different to Norwegian-farmed salmon as they will be fed the same food. Despite my caveat, there are the wild salmon that inhabit the Baltic Sea, as well as rivers, and fiords of the countries around the sea. The brackish water of the Baltic provides different food supplies for the wild salmon who live there, and that certainly provides a different taste. The Baltic Sea does connect to the North Sea and so from there into the Atlantic. Look at a map of the Baltic Sea and you will see that it is virtually surrounded by Sweden, Finland, the Danish Islands, Germany, Poland, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, and Russia.

Over 98% of fresh or chilled salmon on sale in French fish markets and on restaurant menus will be the Atlantic salmon; it will have been farm-raised in Norway, Ireland, Scotland and a few other European countries. The other 2% of Atlantic Salmon will be saumon sauvage, wild Atlantic salmon, from the Atlantic or the North Sea, Scottish rivers or France’s own rivers. A small amount of wild salmon, mostly saumon rouge, sockeye salmon, also called red salmon, is imported, frozen, from North America. I have heard that some wild saumon rose, humpback salmon, may come from Russia or the North of Sweden where it has migrated. If these humpback salmon migrate any further south, we may see a new member of the salmon family claiming a European Union passport

Lunchtime

Photograph courtesy of the Dawna Raven sky Zimbalist

www.flickr.com/photos/35363841@N04/4935996595/

The Atlantic Salmon in the languages of France’s neighbors:
(Dutch – zalm), (German – Atlantischer lachs, lachs), (Italian –salmone atlantico), (Spanish – salmón), (Latin - salmo salar).

Below are the French names for other salmon species; many countries have excellent French restaurants and excellent French chefs, and they may be serving a salmon other than Atlantic salmon.

The other salmon

Rarely, if ever on a European menu.

Saumon Argenté or Saumon Coho - Coho salmon.

(Latin - oncorhynchus kisutch).

Saumon Chinook or Saumon Royale – Chinook or King salmon.

(Latin - oncorhynchus tshawytscha).

Saumon Keta or Saumon du Pacifique - Chum Salmon or Keta salmon.

(Latin - oncorhynchus keta)

Saumon Rose or Saumon Rose à Bosse – Pink salmon or Humpback salmon.

(Latin - oncorhynchus gorbuscha).

Saumon Rouge - Sockeye salmon or Red salmon.

(Latin - oncorhynchus nerka).

Saumon de Fontaine – This is not a salmon; rather this is the brook trout, a tasty member of the trout/salmon family. They are freshwater fish and an excellent menu choice; however, they are not salmon.

Brook Trout

Photograph courtesy of the Biodiversity Heritage Library

------------------------------------------

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
Copyright 2010, 2013, 2019, 2023

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

--------------------------------

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Just add the word, words, or phrase that you are searching for to the words "Behind the French Menu" (best when including the inverted commas), and search with Google, Bing, or DuckDuckGO. Behind the French Menu’s links, include hundreds of words, names, and phrases that are seen on French menus. There are over 470 posts that include over 4,000 French dishes with English translations and explanations.

Connected Posts:

Ail - Garlic. Garlic in French Cuisine.

Asperges en La Cuisine Française – Asparagus in French cuisine. The Artists who Painted Asparagus or Lived Near Argenteuil.

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Millefeuilles, Mille-feuilles, Feuilles, Feuilleté and Feuillantine on French Menus.

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Œufs – Eggs. A Short Introduction to Eggs on French Menus, and Buying Eggs in French Markets and Supermarkets.

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Truite - Trout, the Fish. Trout in French Cuisine.

French Bread - Crust & Culture: Enjoying French Bread

2026-06-09T07:15:00.000-07:00

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

A boulangerie (baker’s shop) in France.
Photograph courtesy of Kimon Berlin
https://www.flickr.com/photos/kimon/16095492470/

Bread in French is Spelled Pain and Pronounced Pan.

Bread may be the most basic of all foods, but, in France, choosing bread is also an institution. The French care more about bread and the types of bread available than any other nation. So, when you visit France, look for an opportunity to try breads other than the obligatory baguette.

Baguettes straight out of the oven.
Photograph courtesy of Bob Hall
https://www.flickr.com/photos/houseofhall/8422489736/

Beginning on page four is a glossary for buying French bread with all the French you need to know.

First-time visitors to France are often surprised by the number of independent boulangeries, bakeries, which still operate in the cities and towns, and even in some villages. Nevertheless, the number of bakeries is a quarter of that from 10 or 15 years ago.

Stohrer, the oldest patisserie and boulangerie in Paris
(Founded in 1730).
51 Rue Montorgueil, Paris 75002.

Today, more French families choose to buy their bread in the evening for their next day's breakfast. Now, either buy your bread, with preservatives, the day before or prepare to begin your day with a one-and-a-half-kilometer (0.90 miles) walk to the nearest boulangerie. (Remember that that's the same distance back).

Buying French bread.

Gone are the days when the average French person could enjoy bread without any additives. Baguettes without additives must be eaten, at the most, within five or six hours. Even an ordinary supermarket baguette made with preservatives will not be fresh from one morning to the next; the family will either buy a supermarket baguette the night before or buy a pain boule (pronounced pan bool), a traditional round loaf of bread. A pain boule may be used for two to three days and continue as toast.

Bakeries are required to post the weight and price of each type of bread category they sell, and the weight must be accurate within a narrow range. As long as each bakery displays the weight of its products, apart from La Baguette de Tradition, the traditional baguette, they may use their own standards and names.

The A – Z for ordering coffee in France click here.

Buying cheese in France and taking it home click here.

All the French you need for breakfast in France click here.

The different flours used in French cuisine click here.

The croissant’s history and the different types click here.

A glossary of French bread.

Pain – Bread is the most basic of all foods. Of course, if you are like Marie Antoinette, you can get along with cake alone. (Pain is pronounced pan, with the n being light, almost indiscernible). I cannot list all the different types of bread available in France, as that would require a separate book, possibly three or four. However, I have noted the most popular types of bread seen in the boulangeries, bakeries; supermarkets, supermarchés, hotel breakfast menus, and restaurants. I have included a few others where I liked their names or their history:

Croissant - A croissant is not bread; it is a pastry and will be seen in most French homes only on the weekend. A croissant needs to be eaten fresh, as the best croissants have no preservatives; they will be bought fresh on weekend mornings. However, all cafes and hotels offer croissants for breakfast, and you will see weekday lunch sandwiches made with large croissants. For the croissant’s history and the different types, click here

A croissant at lunchtime.

Photograph courtesy of Marco Verch

www.flickr.com/photos/30478819@N08/28554316752/

Pain à l'ail – Garlic bread. In France, this may be any bread flavored with garlic and then toasted.

Pain au Blé Noir or Pain au Sarrasin – Buckwheat flour bread.

Pain au Chocolat – A chocolate croissant. Why a chocolate-filled croissant is not called a chocolat croissant is lost in the history of French pâtisseries.

Pain au Froment - Bread made from 100% wheat flour. Pain au froment with a percentage mark after the name indicates mixed flours. An example may be froment 75%; the other flour used for the remaining 25% will usually be displayed.

Pain au froment.
Bread made with 100% wheat flour.
Photograph courtesy of Emily Carlin
https://www.flickr.com/photos/emiline220/4273700153/

Pain au Levain - Sourdough bread. Sourdough bread may be made from wheat or rye flour, and ingredients such as honey may be added. Before any additions, sourdough bread is flour, water, salt, and a culture of yeast and lactic acid bacteria. The taste of sourdough bread is slightly acidic, and there are different aromas that the acid and yeast create.

Pain au Son - Bran Bread. Bran bread has the bran added to refined wheat flour (from which it was initially removed). Bran comes from the hard outer layers of the grain. There is 20% to 30% bran in pain au son. Pain au son is a bread recommended to improve your digestion.

Pain aux Noix - Walnut bread; made with whole wheat flour and walnuts. Walnuts are France's most highly rated nut. The French name for a walnut is "noix," and that word just translates as "nut." All other nuts have unique French names added to the word noix, while the walnut is "the nut."

Pain au Noix

Walnut Bread.
Photograph courtesy of Bart Everson.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/editor/8562384993/

Pain aux Raisins - The name for a Viennoiserie made with raisins. Viennoiseries are the name the French have given to their local equivalent of Danish pastries. The pastry used is mostly a puff pastry, somewhat similar to that used for croissants. The name links back to France's love for Viennese pastries.

Pain Azymes, Pain sans Levain or Pain Juif – See Pain sans Levain.

Pain Baguette - The most well-known of French breads. A standard baguette is thin and almost 70 cm (28") long and weighs 250 grams (9 ounces). NB: French breads do not have legal weights or sizes that cover every producer; every boulangerie and supermarket must clearly mark the weight of each type of bread they sell.

In many French homes, breakfast is not breakfast without a baguette. However, despite their popularity, baguettes are considered a Parisian or big city bread, and outside the cities, other breads may be preferred. An important reason for choosing another bread is the short shelf life of a baguette. NB: The word baguette also means a wand and a baton. Thinner and lighter baguettes are called ficelles, and larger ones are called flûtes. (See Pain Ficelle and Pain Flûte below).

The two schools of thought when it comes to buying a baguette:

Crisp baguettes: To order a baguette with a crisp and crunchy crust, use the term for a well-done steak, bien cuite (pronounced bien kweet). Just say un baguette bien kwee sil voo play. (There is a very slight 'T' in the pronunciation of cuit, but you'll rarely hear it.)

Soft crust baguettes: Just say pas trop cuite, not well done (pronounced pah trop kweet). Just say un baguette pa trop kweet sil voo play, and you will be offered a baguette with a soft crust. (The sil voo play is written as " s'il vous plaît and means please).

The history of the baguette and the flûte, written by a knowledgeable French correspondent:

The distinction between a flûte and a baguette is more cultural than anything else. In the 19th century, the term flûte covered all types of long and thin loaves of bread, with the moniker baguette only appearing in the early 20th century (about a hundred years ago). In the beginning, a baguette was only seen in Paris and a few other cities. Only in the 1970s was the word baguette commonly used nationwide. Some countryside bakeries will still sell flûtes, especially when they're made with a specialty flour, but today, very few bakeries sell both flûtes and baguettes, since the latter has mostly taken over.

The early morning baguette

Photograph courtesy of Joe Shlabotnik
https://www.flickr.com/photos/joeshlabotnik/479221077/

Pain Baguette à l'Ail - Garlic bread made with a toasted baguette.

Pain Baguette au Levain or a Baguette Paresseuse - Sourdough Baguettes. There is some history to the second name, paresseuse, in most French-English dictionaries used to be translated as a 'lazy girl.' (Google Translate has since become politically correct and changed the translation of une paresseuse to 'a lazy person'). While no one I asked knew the origin of the name, no one seemed to object to its continued usage.

Pain Baguette de Tradition (La) –The traditional baguette, the original baguette that dates back to the 1920s, when it was made without any preservatives. The visual differences between traditional baguettes and today's mass-produced baguettes are not easily discerned, though many hand-made traditional baguettes do have a giveaway when they have pointed ends. Search out a boulangerie (bakery) that makes a "baguette de tradition" and experience the different taste and texture. Baguettes a have become such a prominent part of the French psyche that I have prepared a separate post for those who look for the traditional baguette. The traditional baguette contains no chemical preservatives at all; it will be fresh for just two or three hours, and after five hours, forget about it. For the post on La Baguette de Tradition, click here.

Pain Bâtard – A bastard; the name used in boulangeries that make their own bread for any loaf that comes out of the oven in an odd shape.

Pain Beignets – French for a donut and many forms of deep-fried dough. At breakfast, a French beignet, pronounced bay-nyay, will be sprinkled with Sucre Pâtissier, powdered sugar. A pain beignet will be on many French café menus, with some filled with apples or other fruits.

Donuts with a hole in the center are called Beignets Américains, American Donuts, and they are available nearly everywhere.

Pain beignets and cafe au lait for breakfast.
Photograph courtesy of thotfulspot
www.flickr.com/photos/thotfulspot/3812527313/

Pain Beurrée or Tartine Beurrée – A sliced baguette or other French bread; served in French homes with butter alongside the morning's café au lait, a milky coffee. In a French café, this tartine beurrée would be noted on the breakfast menu and offered with marmalade or jam on the side. N.B. The word tartine also indicates a sandwich, usually an open sandwich.

Pain Bis - Brown bread made with rye flour.

Pains Biologiques, Pain Bio – Organic breads. Organic bread, marked with the government-regulated and respected A.B. marking. Organic bread begins with organic agriculture and the organic flour produced. Any organic flour may be used, but all additives must be 95% organic. Within the limitations of these less than 100% organic additives, the French and E.U. regulations are much stricter than those in the USA or Canada.

Pain Blanc – Standard white bread. The shapes are different from those at home.

Pain Boule or Boule de Pain – A round loaf made from a ball of dough. Before the baguette became famous in the 1920s, the boule was considered to be the "French bread." Then and now, many families still place a large boule on the French breakfast table rather than a baguette. Unlike thinner breads, a pain boule will stay fresh for two or three days. The term boule translates to a “ball”, and gave its name to the word Boulanger, the baker of round-shaped bread.

Pain de Boule.

Photograph courtesy of Traaf

https://www.flickr.com/photos/traaf/8062413002/in/dateposted/

Pain Boulot – Another name for pain boule; a round loaf.

Pain Brié - A traditional wheat-based bread from Normandy. The bread is made with butter, which gives it a decidedly different taste. It has no connection to Brie, the cheese. The dough is shaped into long, narrow loaves with tapered ends and then scored with diagonal slashes to create a distinctive striped pattern on the crust. The bread is baked at a high temperature, which creates a crispy, golden crust.

The name Brié (with the accute accent over the é) comes from the Old Norman verb brier, which means "to pound" or "to beat," referring to the long, vigorous kneading and pounding of the dough that gives the bread its tight crumb and heavy texture.

Pain Brié.

Photograph courtesy of Frédéric Bisson.

https::/www.flickr.com/photos/zigazou76/4626256502/

Pain Brioché – Brioché is bread made with added eggs, butter, and a little sugar; the shape will vary with local traditions, as does the exact recipe. A brioché will often be the bread of choice when a recipe calls for bread stuffed with pâtés or meats. Pâtés or other products cooked inside bread will be on the menu with the words en croute as part of the name; for example, Pâté en Croûte. Toasted brioché is the bread most often served alongside foie gras, fattened goose, or duck liver.

Recipes for brioché vary considerably, and a brioché branded with the name of a particular area will be a local point of pride. Brioché is also the bread considered closest in taste and appearance to one of the loaves of bread baked for the Jewish Sabbath and called a "challah" or "egg challah."

A Rectangular Brioché

Photograph courtesy of We Like Sharing

https://www.flickr.com/photos/welikesharing/54456199169/

A few types of brioché:

Pain Brioché de Vendée, Label Rouge - A traditional braided brioché from the department of Vendée in the region of the Pays-de-Loire. The inclusion of crème fraîche and orange zest gives this brioché its distinctive taste. This brioché began as an unusually large brioché, often over five kilos. Then it was made at home or in a bakery and served at Easter. Even larger briochés would be and often still are served at family celebrations. Today, the authentic Briochés de Vendée, those awarded the Label Rouge, the red label, are baked by professionals. The importance of the quality of this brioché is seen in the named and inspected bakeries that bake this unique Pain Brioché de Vendée. This brioché is the only French bread I know of to have been awarded the French Label Rouge, the Red Label, for consistent and unmatched quality. (Gâche was the original name of the Pain Brioché de Vendée).

Brioché Craquelin – These briochés, of which there are many types, developed from a Dutch or Belgian brioché-type bread called suikerbrood that has sucre perlé, pearl sugar lumps inside the dough and on top. The Brioché Craquelin, with its hard sugared top, and some with sugar lumps inside, came later; these have a hard top covered with sugar that gives it its French name, as it "cracks" as you cut or bite into it. (In French patisserie, craquelin evolved into a crunchy topping used on éclairs, profiteroles, etc, made with choux pastry (pâte à choux). Despite the many variations, all craquelins share the crunchy crackle of sugar.

Brioché de Nanterre - A rectangular brioché from Nanterre. Nanterre is a commune in the Hauts-de-Seine department, in the western suburbs of Paris.

Brioché Parisienne –The Parisian brioché. This brioché is made by forming the base in a fluted mold with a smaller half-round ball of dough set on top.

Brioché Parisienne

Brioché Tressée de Metz - This braided brioché is associated with the city of Metz, the prefecture of the department of Moselle. Metz was the capital of the region of Lorraine in North-Eastern France that, on 1-1-2016, became part of the new administrative region of the Grand Est. The capital of the Grand Est is Strasbourg.

Pogne - A brioché-type cake flavored with orange and lemon zest. See Pogne or Pogne de Romans below.

Pain Campagrain – Under this name are sold several different high fiber breads; campagrain bread uses two to five grains or more. The grains used include wheat, malted corn, rye, oats, barley, etc. Some bakers may include sunflower, sesame, and flax seeds; usually, all the grains used are marked along with the percentages. The shapes of Campagrain bread vary considerably, and you may find campagrain baguettes.

Pain Complet - This is a whole wheat bread that contains the germ and bran from the wheat that is removed when refined white flour is produced. The bran contributes to the bread's high fiber content, and whole wheat bread contains wheat germ. The wheat germ contains many nutrients, including vitamin E and folate, essential for a healthy heart. Vitamin E also promotes healthy skin and hair.

Pain Couronne – A ring-shaped loaf of bread with a hole in the middle; the French name translates as a crown. Couronnes have a loyal following because they keep well, as do other round loaves, but this one is easier to slice. There are two popular sizes, a petit (small) and a grande (large), and every bakery must display its loaves' weights. Like baguettes, some patrons prefer a regular crust, and some like theirs croustillant, with a crispy crust.

Pain Corounne

Pain Cramique – A bread similar to pain brioché but including raisins.

Pain Croûte à Potage or Potage son sous Béret - A bread crust used to cover soups, and a béret is a beret, the head covering, in English. This bread covering may appear on the menu under various names, not only as béret.

A soup or stew covered with a bread covering may also surprise you when it appears on your table without any indication on the menu. NB: These coverings are not always designed to be eaten.

Pain d'Épice - Gingerbread seems to be more appreciated in France than in any other country and many of its producers are considered artists. It is made with wheat, rye, or mixed flours flavored with ginger and sweetened with honey. Depending on the recipe, other spices including fleur de muscade, nutmeg; clous de girofle, cloves, and cannelle, cinnamon, may be added. French gingerbread will often be studded with candied fruits, or served with warm chocolate and or ice cream. Gingerbread is also used to create imaginative window displays and unique birthday cakes. One of the most famous types of French gingerbread is the Pain d'Épices de Dijon, the gingerbread of Dijon. Dijon may be renowned for its mustard, but its gingerbread is second to none among the cognoscenti.

A gingerbread house.
Too good to eat?
Photograph courtesy of Kermitfrog ;-)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/muriel67/3089351975/

Pain de Campagne or Pain Miche - Country bread. A bread with many recipes and shapes; the flour used may be standard wheat flour, whole wheat flour, or mixed flours with real Pain de Campagne made with natural leavening, not commercial yeast. The taste is mild and somewhat similar to American sourdough bread, making for an enjoyably chewy bread and crust.

Pain de Campagne
Photograph and recipe courtesy of maPatisserie.fr

Pain de Gênes – An almond paste cake.

Pain de Mais - Cornbread.

Pain de Mie or Pain Carré - Pain de Mie directly translates to soft bread, and Pain Carré means square bread. The French will use this square, soft bread for sandwiches, as it is often sold sliced; it will also be used for toast. For those used to sliced British sandwich bread, this is the nearest you'll find to it in France. Pain de Mie is also sold without a crust.

Pain de Siegel or Pain Noir - Rye bread. Rye bread is made with different percentages from the flours made with rye grain. It is higher in fiber than white bread, darker in color, and more robust in flavor.

Pain Déjeunette – A shorter-than-usual baguette; about one-half the length of a full-sized baguette: the name déjeunette implies that it is enough for a petit déjeuner (for breakfast). The sandwiches offered in a French sandwicherie will often be made with a déjeunette.

Déjeunette
Photograph courtesy of Vandemoortele

Pain Doré - Golden bread; one of the names for French toast. (See Pain Perdu).

Pain Ficelle – The word ficelle translates as a string, and a ficelle is shorter and thinner than a baguette. A ficelle weighs around 125 grams (4.50 grams); you will want to eat it the same day, as it will be stale by morning. Outside of bakeries and supermarket bakery departments, the word ficelle may be on your menu with meanings unrelated to bread:

Bœuf en Ficelle - Beef tied by a string and cooked while suspended above and in a boiling broth.

Ficelle Picardie - A crêpe stuffed with mushrooms, ham, and poultry. The finished crêpe is baked in a béchamel sauce with Gruyère cheese and served gratinée.

Pain Flûte – A longer and thicker version of a baguette. Flûtes were around for at least 50 years before baguettes were officially recognized in 1919. While there are no legal definitions for a flute, most will weigh about 400 grams (14 oz); compare that with the average baguette that weighs about 250 grams (9 oz).

Pain Forgeron – A farmhouse-type bread with added sunflower, sesame seeds, and flax seeds.

Pain Fougasse and Fougassette – A traditional bread that originated in the City of Nice and the surrounding villages in Provence. The fougasse was originally just a crusty bread made of baguette dough brushed with olive oil and flavored with orange zest. That is still the tradition, but many fougasse versions have changed beyond recognition. Without a change of name, the fougasse and fougassette now come with a wide variety of shapes, recipes, and flavors spread all over Provence and beyond. The provenance of this bread is claimed by the Italians, who point to their focaccia bread. Nevertheless, in Provence, no recipe is set in stone, and most of today's fougasse breads have limited connections to any Italian ancestors.

Pain Fougasse

Photograph courtesy of Ben Demey

https://www.flickr.com/photos/fritobandito/376110873/

Pain Grillé or Toast – Toasted bread; toast. The French word toster came to England from France with the Norman invasion in 1066, where it meant grilled or to grill. The French took home the Anglicized word “toast” and now use it with its modern English meaning. Today, the word toast is just as popular in France as the correct French name for toasted bread, pain grille. The French connection created many changes in the English kitchen.

Gros Pain - A large bread sold in various shapes and sizes and traditionally sold by weight.

Pain Maison – Homemade bread.

Pain Miche - See Pain de Campagne.

Pain Nordique – See Pain Polaire.

Pain Parisien – Another name for a standard baguette; however, the name may also be used for bread shaped like a baguette but with different lengths and weights. (See Pain Baguette).

Pain Perdu - French toast. The translation of pain perdu is “lost bread”, indicating bread considered too stale to use. Despite the name, one of the few things you can do with stale bread is to make French toast. The original French version of French toast is bread soaked in milk with added sugar and vanilla or another flavoring. The bread will then be dipped in eggs and fried in butter until golden brown. Pain perdu is popular at breakfast or as a light evening snack in private homes.

Pain Polaire, also called Pain Suédois and Pain Nordique - Polar bread, Swedish bread, or Nordic bread; this is the traditional a rye-flour-based flatbread with dimples.

Pain Rassis – Stale bread; this could become pain perdu.

Pain sans Levain, Pain Azymes, or Pain Juif – Unleavened bread and the French name for the traditional Jewish matzo eaten during the Jewish Feast of Passover.

Pains Spéciaux – Specialty breads; this may be on a sign in a specialty baker's shop. The offering can include bread made with seeds from Épeautre or Petit Épeautre, Spelt or Dinkel Wheat, or Small Spelt or Einkorn, whose seeds come from the ancestors of modern wheat. Specialty breads may also be made with unique mixtures of grains and seeds, added fats, sweeteners, and dairy products; most will be marked with short explanations.

Pain Tresse – Braided bread; usually a brioché.

Petit Pains - Bread rolls; there are different names for each shape and recipe used for the traditional bread rolls offered in a restaurant or sold in a supermarket. However, the only name you will need for a bread roll is petite pain. Unless you are dining in a place with many tourists, your bread rolls will be served without butter on the side. When the French eat bread in a restaurant before lunch or dinner they really ask for butter. Still, you are paying the piper, so just say "du beurre s'il vous plaît" (pronounced doo bur si voo play), and butter will appear. N.B.: That's usually lightly salted butter.

Pogne or Pogne de Romans - A brioche-type cake flavored with orange and lemon zest; traditional in the area of the Rhône-Alpes. The modern variations often include rum or another eau-de-vie accent. As you travel in the Rhône-Alpes and look at local menus, you will find towns and villages that have created variations with slight changes in the recipe and the name. You may be told that the name is linked to the Romans, but that's unlikely as it's probably a medieval recipe, and the word Romans used here came from the Occitan language.

Tartine - At breakfast, a tartine beurrée means bread and butter. However, tartine is also the French word for an open sandwich, and the word tartine will often be used interchangeably with the English word sandwich. While most tartines are open sandwiches, that is by no means a rule set in stone; the ingredients in or on a tartine vary with the area, the season, and the sandwich's creator.

Tartine with avocado, smoked salmon,

and fresh goat’s cheese.
Photograph and recipe courtesy of Fourchette & Bikini

Tartine Beurrée or Pain Beurrée - Bread and butter.

Tartine Italienne – The French take on the Italian bruschetta. Slices of toasted bread, sometimes toasted garlic bread; served with hot or cold cooked vegetables, chicken livers, or pate.

Who bakes the best bread?

Excellence in baking bread is an essential requirement for any would-be French chef. No chef will receive a full graduation diploma from any serious French cooking school if their bread-making does not make the grade. In the better French restaurants, you will be offered three or more different, home-made petite pains, bread rolls. French diners will judge a restaurant's offering of bread rolls with the same discerning eye that they use to assess its other offerings. In many towns, restaurant chefs take part, with independent boulangeries (bakeries) in good-natured, local, bread-making competitions. Some excellent restaurants in France bring in bread and bread rolls from famous bakers and promote their links to one of France's Meilleurs Boulangers, master bakers. Good bread is very important in France!

The breads in this post.

I could not include all the breads available in France in this post; that would require a book, possibly two books. Included are the popular breads seen in most bakeries, supermarkets, on hotel breakfast menus, and in restaurants. Excluded, unfortunately, are many fun and interesting types of bread that are typical of specific regions. When you encounter one of these different breads on your travels, taste and enjoy; fifty kilometers (30 miles) away, there may be different traditions and recipes.

Many cities have competitions built around baguettes and other breads made in the traditional manner without preservatives. For more on those competitions and how to find the winning bakeries, see the post: Searching for the perfect baguette?

Finally, a picnic in France.

A picnic in France is an opportunity to rendezvous with different breads of your own choosing; including the option of a lunchtime picnic in a city park. Buy two or three different breads and be careful about buying too much cheese or pâté; I have made that mistake more than once.

If your picnic includes 2 or 3 kinds of cheese and a pâté, then 25 grams (3.5 oz) per person of each cheese and pâté is more than enough. If locals were organizing the same picnic they would recommend 20 grams (2.50 oz) of cheese and pâté per person. To that, add half a bottle of the wine per person that nearly everyone believes they will consume. If you add any of those incredible croissants and the amazing chocolate eclairs that you saw in the shop, cut the other quantities in half. But, don’t forget the different breads.

Bon appetite!

Bread in the language of France's neighbors:

(Catalan - pa), (Dutch - brood), (German - brot), (Italian - pane), (Spanish – pan).

Searching for the meaning of words, names or phrases

French menus?

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--------------------------------

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
Copyright 2010, 2013, 2019, 2024, 2025.

bryangnewman@gmail.com

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Cream and Crèmes on French Menus. Crèmes in French Cuisine. The Lexicon you Need.

fromBehind the French MenubyBryan G. Newmanbehindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Behind the French MenubyBryan G. Newman behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.comCopyright 2010, 2019, 2023.

Dining in Normandy.

fromBehind the French MenubyBryan G. Newmanbehindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Normandy in France.Map courtesy of OnTheWorldM

Bacon - BaconBœuf - BeefJambon – HamMouton – MuttonPorc – PorkPoulet – Pullet or chickenSaucisse- Sausage

An andouillette served in a Camembert sauce.Photograph courtesy of Kent Wanghttps://www.flickr.com/photos/kentwang/20545992021/

The Pré-salé lambs near Mont-Saint-MichelPhotograph courtesy of Côte à l'Os

A veal escalopePhotograph courtesy of Images Alighthttps://www.flickr.com/photos/alan-light/5765780914/

Marmite DieppoisePhotograph courtesy of Marie Claire

Moules Frites à la NormandePhotograph courtesy of Yummy foods by Nancy.

Boudin Noir à la NormandePhotograph courtesy of La Radio du Goût

Tarte NormandePhotograph courtesy of Merle ja Joonashttps://www.flickr.com/photos/merlejajoonas/7463109160/

Maturing Livarot cheesePhotograph courtesy of Debbi Baronhttps://www.flickr.com/photos/131579145@N07/16445271767/

Beurre d'Isigny AOPPhotograph courtesy of Carrefour

Cidre de Pays d'AugePhotograph courtesy of Pierre Huit

Calvados Pays d'Auge AOPPhotograph courtesy of Famille Dupont

A path in Monet's gardenPhotograph courtesy of Tom Hiltonhttps://www.flickr.com/photos/tomhilton/19269996201

Behind the French MenubyBryan G. Newmanbehindthefrenchmenu@gmail.comCopyright 2010, 2022, 2023.

Cremants Are the Best Value in French Sparkling Wines.

Persil - Parsley. Parsley in French Cuisine.

Coeur de Romsteck and Pavé de Rumsteck – Rump Steaks. French Cuts That Make for Some of the Tastiest Steaks.

from Behind the French Menu by Bryan G. Newman behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Pavé de Rumsteck, Sauce Béarnaise, Frites,A thick-cut of rump steak served with sauce Bearnaise and fries

Coeur de RomsteakThe (Coeur de Romsteak), which translates as the heart of the romsteak, is the least expensive of the French rump steak cuts despite using the name "heart". Coeur de Romsteaks are good, but nearly always served with a sauce.

Cœur de RomsteakPhotograph courtesy of Trip AdvisorBistro Régent, Aubiere France

Tataki de Cœur de RumsteakTataki of beef from the heart of a rumpsteak.Photograph and recipe courtesy of Atelier des chefs

Pavé De RumsteckPhotograph courtesy of Trip AdvisorBeef & Co, Metz, France.

Saumon – Salmon. Salmon in French Cuisine.

fromBehind the French MenubyBryan G. Newmanbehindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Behind the French MenubyBryan G. Newman Copyright 2010, 2013, 2019, 2023 behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

French Bread - Crust & Culture: Enjoying French Bread

A boulangerie (baker’s shop) in France.Photograph courtesy of Kimon Berlinhttps://www.flickr.com/photos/kimon/16095492470/

Baguettes straight out of the oven.Photograph courtesy of Bob Hallhttps://www.flickr.com/photos/houseofhall/8422489736/

Stohrer, the oldest patisserie and boulangerie in Paris (Founded in 1730). 51 Rue Montorgueil, Paris 75002.

Pain beignets and cafe au lait for breakfast. Photograph courtesy of thotfulspotwww.flickr.com/photos/thotfulspot/3812527313/

A gingerbread house.Too good to eat? Photograph courtesy of Kermitfrog ;-)https://www.flickr.com/photos/muriel67/3089351975/

DéjeunettePhotograph courtesy of Vandemoortele

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com
Copyright 2010, 2019, 2023.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Normandy in France.
Map courtesy of OnTheWorldM

Bacon - Bacon
Bœuf - Beef
Jambon – Ham
Mouton – Mutton
Porc – Pork
Poulet – Pullet or chicken
Saucisse- Sausage

An andouillette served in a Camembert sauce.
Photograph courtesy of Kent Wang
https://www.flickr.com/photos/kentwang/20545992021/

The Pré-salé lambs near Mont-Saint-Michel
Photograph courtesy of Côte à l'Os

A veal escalope
Photograph courtesy of Images Alight
https://www.flickr.com/photos/alan-light/5765780914/

Marmite Dieppoise
Photograph courtesy of Marie Claire

Moules Frites à la Normande
Photograph courtesy of Yummy foods by Nancy.

Boudin Noir à la Normande
Photograph courtesy of La Radio du Goût

Tarte Normande
Photograph courtesy of Merle ja Joonas
https://www.flickr.com/photos/merlejajoonas/7463109160/

Maturing Livarot cheese
Photograph courtesy of Debbi Baron
https://www.flickr.com/photos/131579145@N07/16445271767/

Beurre d'Isigny AOP
Photograph courtesy of Carrefour

Cidre de Pays d'Auge
Photograph courtesy of Pierre Huit

Calvados Pays d'Auge AOP
Photograph courtesy of Famille Dupont

A path in Monet's garden
Photograph courtesy of Tom Hilton
https://www.flickr.com/photos/tomhilton/19269996201

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com
Copyright 2010, 2022, 2023.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Pavé de Rumsteck, Sauce Béarnaise, Frites,
A thick-cut of rump steak served with sauce Bearnaise and fries

Coeur de Romsteak
The (Coeur de Romsteak), which translates as the heart of the romsteak, is the least expensive of the French rump steak cuts despite using the name "heart". Coeur de Romsteaks are good, but nearly always served with a sauce.

Cœur de Romsteak
Photograph courtesy of Trip Advisor
Bistro Régent, Aubiere France

Tataki de Cœur de Rumsteak
Tataki of beef from the heart of a rumpsteak.
Photograph and recipe courtesy of Atelier des chefs

Pavé De Rumsteck
Photograph courtesy of Trip Advisor
Beef & Co, Metz, France.

from
Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

Behind the French Menu
by
Bryan G. Newman
Copyright 2010, 2013, 2019, 2023

behindthefrenchmenu@gmail.com

A boulangerie (baker’s shop) in France.
Photograph courtesy of Kimon Berlin
https://www.flickr.com/photos/kimon/16095492470/

Baguettes straight out of the oven.
Photograph courtesy of Bob Hall
https://www.flickr.com/photos/houseofhall/8422489736/

Stohrer, the oldest patisserie and boulangerie in Paris
(Founded in 1730).
51 Rue Montorgueil, Paris 75002.

Pain beignets and cafe au lait for breakfast.
Photograph courtesy of thotfulspot
www.flickr.com/photos/thotfulspot/3812527313/

A gingerbread house.
Too good to eat?
Photograph courtesy of Kermitfrog ;-)
https://www.flickr.com/photos/muriel67/3089351975/

Déjeunette
Photograph courtesy of Vandemoortele