Vive La France! The country that brought us Parisienne bistro classics and lesser-known regional dishes from the sunny Provençe through Spanish-influenced Basque and the Germanic Alsace. Here are some of my favourite French recipes.
Sauce Gribiche Like this recipe? You’ll love my online French cooking class! I love this deliciously easy variation on tartare sauce, made using cooked egg yolk instead of the usual raw egg. Parsley is traditional but you can add other herbs – I take inspiration from Matt Moran who uses chervil in his sauce gribiche; […]
Black Truffle Ice Cream Like this recipe? You’ll love my online French cooking class! One of the best ice creams I’ve ever tasted was made by Tim Pak Poy at Claude’s in Woollahra in the early 2000s when Australia’s first truffles were harvested. It was flavoured with violets and black truffle. Inspired by the memory […]
Rouille (Spicy Mayonnaise) Like this recipe? You’ll love my online French cooking class featuring the food of Provence! The more I research rouille the more confused I become. Even the most respected experts seem to disagree on what should go into this classic Provençal sauce that’s traditionally served with bouillabaisse. The only thing I can […]
Pistou (Provençal Pesto) Like this recipe? You’ll love my online French cooking class featuring the food of Provence! Pistou is the Provençal cousin of Liguria’s pesto, though it doesn’t contain any cheese or nuts and – unlike a classic pesto alla Genovese – the garlic in pistou packs a real punch. On its own as […]
Crème Anglaise (Vanilla Custard) Master Kitchen Basics & Explore New Cuisines & Ingredients with My Online Cooking Classes Crème Anglaise (a.k.a. vanilla custard) is a versatile pouring custard that’s typically served with fruit desserts, such as crumbles and pies, and often poured into sweet soufflés at the table. As the name suggests, French speakers consider […]
How To Make Croutons Master Kitchen Basics & Explore New Cuisines & Ingredients with My Online Cooking Classes Croutons (croûtons in French) are a good way to use up stale bread and are great with dips, soups or tossed through salads. The name crouton is a diminutive of the French croûte, meaning crust. Originally crisped […]
How to Fix Broken Mayonnaise or Aïoli Master Kitchen Basics & Explore New Cuisines & Ingredients with My Online Cooking Classes If you’re making mayonnaise or aïoli and it breaks or splits it will look curdled with the oil separating from the mixture. But all is not lost, you can almost always rescue a runny […]
Whole Egg Mayonnaise Master Kitchen Basics & Explore New Cuisines & Ingredients with My Online Cooking Classes Mayonnaise, a simple emulsion of egg yolk and oil, is the base for many delicious sauces and dips, as well as being a great spread for sandwiches – and it’s so easy to make! Salt plus acid, in […]
Tarte Flambée Forestière Like this recipe? You’ll love my online French cooking class inspired by Damien Pignolet! While restaurants in France and abroad add all sorts of toppings to tarte flambée (flammekueche) these days, the traditional toppings I’ve always seen in Alsace are crème fraîche and onion with either speck or mushrooms (or both). So […]
Basque-style Octopus Braise This Basque-style octopus braise is inspired by a veal dish from the town of Espelette, famous for its dried mild red peppers. I wanted to create a pescatarian-friendly version, but it’s challenging finding seafood that can stand up to a long braise; so few aquatic species lend themselves to that style of […]
