SC - re: meat
Philippa Alderton
phlip at bright.net
Mon Dec 7 21:31:28 PST 1998
Anyone else heard of it?
I'm currently reading "The Norman Table" subtitled 'The Traditional
Cooking of Normandy' by Claude Guermont. Chapter 1 is Basic Stocks and
Sauces. The first item discussed is "Graisse Normande":
"Before proceeding to the recipes, it is worth taking a close look at
some of the more fundamental elements of Norman cooking. Cream and
butter, for instance, are used so lavishly in the recipes of the
province, that many assume they have always been a cornerstone of the
cuisine. Actually, it has only been in the past few decaades that
butter has really been able to stake an uncontested claim to that
position. Before the chief cooking medium was a preparation called
graisse normande.
This rich mixture of fats and vegetables essences is one of the great
characteristic flavores of the province. In Normandy it was once held in
the same esteem as goose fat is today in southwestern France. Although
it is used rarely now, graisse normande was at one time considered the
signature of the finer cooks of the region, with the proportions and
types of fat varying from town to town and farm to farm. Many dishes
would have tasted incomplete without it, and in the Manche region of the
province, a soup was even created called Soupe a la Graisse."
His introduction to the buerre manie recipe does say that it is
"classically based" and not really necessary to provincial cooking.
That he doesn't make this point about the graisse normande indicates
something I'm not going to run into in "classical" cooking. Something I
might run into if I could read french recipes of the period?
The recipe will follow in another post. Basically, a blend of beef &
pork fat, slowly rendered and then simmered wth carrot, turnip, parsnip,
leek, bouquet garni, salt and pepper. Strained well, preserves for
several months covered and chilled. Haven't got to the recipes, so don't
know what he uses it in yet.
Lady Bonne
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