French Gourmet Food

French Gourmet Food: Very elegant and delicious

Many people consider French gourmet food as some of the most distinguished and elegant food in the world. The techniques in French cooking have greatly influenced almost all Western styles of cooking. In fact, Western culinary schools have French cooking in their curriculum as a foundation to all other forms of Western cooking.

Like Italian cuisine, French gourmet food has a lot of diversity. For example, cuisine from northwest France uses a lot of butter, cream and apples. Gourmet food from southwest France is characterized by duck fat, foei gras, porcini mushrooms and gizzards. Cuisine in southeast France which shows a lot of Spanish influence features olive oil, herbs and tomatoes. Flemish influence of food preparation is evident in Northern France, as evident in their use of potatoes, pork and endives. Finally, Southern France boasts of its culinary masterpieces using lard, sausages and sauerkraut, which shows German influence.

However, the regions also have few things in common. For example, all places in France locally grow vegetables such as potatoes, aubergines, courgetti and shallots. These vegetables are present in many French dishes, regardless of regions. Common fruits include tangerines, peaches and plums.

French gourmet food is also seasonal, much like their Italian counterpart. During summer, vegetable and fruit salads are preferred because this is the time that most fruits and vegetables are in season. When summer is over, French gourmet food that centers on mushrooms take precedence since mushrooms sprout during this time.

September to February is hunting season. Therefore, their meat dishes are prevalent. The meat dishes are elaborately prepared, which signifies the celebration of a successful hunt.

During winter and spring, French gourmet food that feature crayfish, shellfish and oysters become dominant. The technology of deep freezing somewhat allowed crustacean based dishes to be served within any time of the year. However, this is not always the case. Crayfish, for example, has a very short season and do not freeze well.

It is quite surprising that there are not a lot of average French who eat their own cuisine. That's because French gourmet food is often highly priced. Those who eat them regularly are quite well off or wealthy. Most of the French, especially younger people, eat in restaurants or regions where cheaper foreign cuisine is served.

For the French, wines and cheeses always accompany a meal. They have a wide range of wines and cheeses to choose from.

Truly, French gourmet food is world class. It promises not only a delicious meal but a sense of romance and nostalgia.