French Steaks
 

Thought some might find this article interesting. We are headed to Paris for a week and will give one (or more) a try (though I'm really a fan of chicken w/sauces, pates and moules frites of various sorts). My grandson is a beefophile, so am sure he will try 3 or 4 and I'll sneak a taste.

http://partners.nytimes.com/library/...nch-steak.html

Glenn-

We love Paris! Have a great time. Which district are you staying in?
One of our most favorite restaurants is Le Reminet near Notre Dame.

In the NYT article, they talk about hanger steak (diaphragm). If you want the absolute, unquestionably BEST succulent juicy hanger steak you ever had, you must cook it sous vide to 130-135 degrees F (your choice for rare to medium rare) for about two hours, then grilled over a super hot pre-heated sear burner for no more than 45 seconds on each side. There are several good seasoning recipes for it on the internet. Be prepared for an orgasm in your mouth.

The Les Halles steak frites has nursed many a hangover for me, was very disappointed when it closed.

To make at home, a big and well pre-heated cast iron pan is key. I also like to take the tougher cut of the diapragm, the skirt steak, and cook similar. No sauce needed, I slice it into very thin strips and make tacos with it.

Sounds good. Skillet steak is highly under-rated. Same with fish of various ilks. Once you're happy with your technique (lots of butter & herbs) then it is tough to beat.

We did enjoy a couple of meals with the grandkids in the La Petite Périgourdine in the 5th. Hard to believe it will be a year this Thxgvg.

Ah, well. Moules frites for lunch tomorrow. Monk's Cafe on 16th. All ready thinking about which Belgium beer (Bart........ any help?).

You need to try a few Chouffe Soleil's!

I’m in Philly too, damn, always forget about Monk’s and end getting my french fix at Parc! Will def be heading over there soon for the same

Our meeting ran so long that we did not get a chance to head down to Monk's. Another meeting on 11/9 and we'll try again. Gives me some time to figure out the extensive beer list.

As much as I love paris, it's just ok for steak. Tried it multiple times, including w foodie chef friend who sourced charolais beef.

For steak, IMHO better to side trip to florence and have aged chianina bistecca grilled over grape vines.

In France, the best “steak” is not from cattle, it’s a hybrid duck/goose. Try ordering Magret de Canard...prob my fav cut of meat. It’s the breast of the bird the best foie gras comes from; just like the engorged and fatty lobe, the breast gets a similar layer of fat over the entire breast. Who needs marbling when you’ve got that amazing layer of rendered down fat ontop with every bite!

In the states, you can get a similar duck breast from D’Artagnan. Score fat in diamond pattern and heavily season with salt/pepper. Cook fat aide down over med low heat till fat is rendered down and starts to brown. Drain fat into container and let cool (save for cooking later and use in place of butter of frying fat. Lasts months in freezer). Turn up heat and sear meat side for 2 min, then crisp up fat side 1-2 min till browned but not dried out (same consistency as thick cut bacon). Let sit on board 3-4 min before slicing. Should be served medium rare (think london broil). This should be thought of as beef, not poultry. If it’s not mostly pink, you’ve overcooked it and might as well be eating peking duck.

Take 1 tsp fat and put back in pan and sweat 1 large diced shallot. Add 1/2 cup red wine and deglaze pan, reduce and add 1 tsp demi-glace (also avail from D’Artagnon), salt and pepper to taste (white pepper if you have it). Let simmer and reduce by 1/2. Spoon over duck slices on the plate.

Whip up some mashed potatoes and finish with duck fat instead of butter, or pan sear fingerling potatoes fried in the duck fat. Sear up some sugar snap peas, asparagus slices, cauliflower/broccoli rice, veggie of choice in same duck fat.

1 3-4lb breast serves 2 people. Always cook up extra as slices make the best sandwich the next day!

The best meal I've ever had in my life was beef bourguignon (burgundy) on the Champs-Élysées in Paris.

I wish I could get a meal like that around here.

I like magret...

But my favorite is a big duck leg confit deep fried in duck fat so it's crispy all over ...

also goose braised w sauerkraut, salt pork and sausages (choucroute)

or a nice roast goose

But I have fond memories of a ridiculously priced chicken (40e raw from Hugo Desnoyer boucherie) roasted in our rented apartment in the 5th.

Maybe time to go back. Drove to Narbonne from BCN last xmas. Good market, sold winter truffles also at 1k/kg. Had oysters and whelks and a nice white. Brought home a bunch of cheeses and a fantastic creme fraiche they sold from a big ceramic tub

Forgot about this thread. We had a couple of meals at the La Petite Périgourdine where the grandkids enjoyed both the beef and the 'show'. The meat was brought to one's table on the butcher block (on its own roll-around stand) and cut to one's order before prep. I'll take pic's next time.

https://www.audioaficionado.org/atta...1&d=1551142793

Aligot?

Good cheese/pizza is the hardest thing for me to say no to (i subscribe to the dairy is bad for you religion). I still eat and really like cheese (including the smelly ones) but smaller amounts less often.

Yes.......... aligot. Kids enjoyed but not something I would order. We took them to Paris for Thanksgiving week.

We spent several weeks in the south last May/June, including Carcassonne, where we stayed in the old city and enjoyed cassoulet for a couple of meals. This was the better of the two, with the required duck-leg and chorizo. It was delicious.

Headed to Nice next week and will take in the last two stages of the Paris-Nice race. Hoping for good 'watching weather'. Doubt that we will look for either steaks or cassoulet.

https://www.audioaficionado.org/atta...1&d=1551227587

Please Glenn don't forget Mirazur if you get a chance to book, it's a 3 Michelin star one and Argie chef, Mauro Colagreco really, really has his own interpretation of what deep, profound flavors are.

EfeTe - we plan to spend some time in Menton, but we shy away from anything that might be considered 'nouvelle cuisine'. Our preference is to explore the older, original/regional gastronomic expressions, such as cassoulet in SW France. Something like bouillabaisse should work well in Cote d'Azur. Or most any 'nicoise' or pain baignant. And any regional cheese, of course.
Here are a few of the local suggestions:
https://www.thetalkingsuitcase.com/1...e-specialties/

Far from nouvelle cuisine mate, plus the chef/owner is an Argie and so nearly all of their dishes come with a Latino twist :)

Did I mention that he's 3-star Michelin now? Haha.

We did just fine with Comptoir du Marche and Bistrot d'Antoine and others. Wonderful, more traditional French food and wine from the regions in the south. And, as Nice was part of Italy on (mostly) & off until 1860 we also had excellent pasta dishes. The carbonara was the best we've had, plus excellent clam & other sea-food pasta. The local pizza was good, but the two times we tried it was slightly under-cooked by our standards. Moules were 'in-season' and fat & delicious. Pain, unfortunately, ran from poor to outstanding. Part of the 'EU effect', we think. We found the deserts we tried to be of the highest caliber. On our last day we had dinner on the beach at Beau Rivage. We went for the venue (another beautiful day - as were all our days), but the food turned out to be delicious, as were a couple of their wines. We found the bistro, etc., to be so good that we never got around to buying food at the Cours Saleya open-air market and eating on our balcony (other than millefeuilles & tea). We found their veggies, including potatoes, to be as tasty and well prepared as any we have had. Will post a few pic's once I download the camera (got home @11 p.m. last night). The one steak-frites I had was anything but memorable.

https://www.audioaficionado.org/atta...1&d=1553089096
https://www.audioaficionado.org/atta...1&d=1553089096
https://www.audioaficionado.org/atta...1&d=1553089096

Here are some of the appetizers (entres) we enjoyed. Pate de campagne, grilled calamari in a squash puree & gamba in a carrot puree. All were delicious.

https://www.audioaficionado.org/atta...1&d=1553090872
https://www.audioaficionado.org/atta...1&d=1553091176
https://www.audioaficionado.org/atta...1&d=1553091074

Great stuff, glad you guys had such a great culinary time.

Thank you. Everything about our trip (except Heathrow) was a delight.