The French have long seen food as high art. They were perhaps the first to adopt the notion that a dish could, like a painting or a novel, be a masterpiece in its own right. And while the rest of Europe has gradually come round to such ideas, haute cuisine is still championed and most classically executed by our Gallic neighbours. But the wonderful thing about French food is that, for all its pomp and circumstance, Michelin-star culture is by no means the only thing that matters. The French take great pride in their food at every level of production and consumption, with some of the most distinguished raw materials in the world. From rustic paté to crusty, soft, white bread, perhaps dunked in a vibrant pot-au-feu (a casserole of boiled beef cuts and vegetables, dubbed ‘soul food for socialists’ by Anthony Bourdain); or boeuf bourguignon (the Burgundy stew of beef and vegetables in a sauce of bay leaves, juniper and Pinot Noir), French food culture is one that celebrates great ingredients as much as their plated results. Look at a good road map of France and it will quickly dawn on you just how many of the world’s celebrated ingredients are French. Numerous towns and villages that have shared their names with a local food product pepper the roads, running like veins through the body of France: Dijon, Camembert, Pithiviers, Cognac and etc.
What Is It Called Cuisine?
