The Important Flavors of Brittany, France

Like many individuals earlier than me, I didn’t have any plans to go to Brittany till after I moved to France. My travels previous to residing within the nation had included what I had assumed had been the best culinary hits, brasserie hopping within the Metropolis of Lights and tasting by all the primary wine-growing areas. It wasn’t till transferring my household to Paris that I started listening to extra about this westernmost area. I listened as Parisian cooks proudly proclaimed when an ingredient got here from Brittany, watched as neighborly dinner events ended with truffles of the Breton persuasion, and took notes as associates and colleagues raved in regards to the meals they’d had whereas on the Brittany coast.

My first go to was love at first sight. Even earlier than tasting a single chunk, I grew to become enraptured by the wind-shaved cliffs, the earthy scent of the marshlands, and the best way the salty sea air sweeps over the lengthy sandy seashores throughout low tide. The tribal Celtic roots and seafaring traditions linger by the stalls throughout market days — the place lamb raised on the salty marshland grass is offered close to ice beds crawling with wiggly blue lobsters — and the panorama is intimately intertwined with the delicacies.

Oyster farmers nonetheless arrange each day on a pier in Cancale to promote on to locals and guests, which was precisely the place I selected to have my first encounter with the well-known flat oysters of the area. A half dozen plate of recent oysters solely set me again 6€, and I ate them from my perch on a cement staircase that led to the ocean’s edge, letting my son toss the shells again to the ocean simply as quickly as I’d swallowed every briny morsel.

Brittany has a uncooked attraction, the place the regional delicacies is much less about preparation as it’s in regards to the purity of the substances used. Soil-grown strawberries, candy pink onions, and hand-milled grains are prized possessions, every savored solely at their peak ripeness. It’s a spot the place consuming is experiential, and as I cracked shells beneath the shadows of a seafood tower and helped my toddler smear salty butter onto recent slices of rye, it grew to become clear to me why this area is so beloved by so many.

My buying listing grows longer with every go to, however the necessities stay the identical. Listed here are the 15 important meals to eat — or carry dwelling — from my favourite meals area.  

Seafood towers

There are few issues extra Breizh (the native title within the Breton language) than a towering platter of crustaceans served on a mattress of seaweed, by no means ice, to protect the flavour. Search for plateau de fruits de mer or assiette de fruits de mer on menus, ideally something containing a mixture of cooked and uncooked shellfish, like brown crab, prawns, langoustines, oysters, periwinkles, whelks, cockles, and clams. Bretons want to eat their fruits of the ocean as near the ocean as doable — Au Pied d’Cheval in Cancale and Chez Jacky in Port de Belón are favorites — and all the time with a aspect of rye bread with salted butter. 

Breton butter

Butter in Brittany was initially salted to make it last more, utilizing salt harvested from Guérande to protect the complete taste of the milk. Butter making is an artform for Jean-Yves Bordier, who nonetheless makes butter the normal method (which incorporates kneading and forming it by hand) from his workshop in Saint-Malo. Purchase his butters at Maison du Beurre — you possibly can go conventional or attempt his vary of flavored butters, even his Salé 4%, which has crunchy salt crystals — or style them in motion at his restaurant Bistro Autour de Buerre.

Bouchot mussels

From July to January, these iodine-rich bluish-black mussels are on menus all through the area, stuffed, steamed, or bathed in a broth of white wine, shallots, and parsley as moules marinières. Mussels from the bay of Mont Saint-Michel have a protected designation of origin, and you may get pleasure from a mind-bendingly scrumptious pot for round 10€ from the no-frills roadside stand Dégustation Tonneau in Vivier-sur-Mer.

Farm cider

Whereas the remainder of the nation has been making wine, Bretons have been honing their cider-making abilities. Breton cider will be candy, semi-dry, or dry, however the choice for many cider makers leans to the dry aspect. You’ll see the drink served alongside galettes (buckwheat pancakes) in ceramic “cider bowls” that appear like outsized teacups. You may go to the cidreries themselves — I like Cidrerie Sorre and Cidrerie Manoir du Kinkiz — or pattern by the greater than 60 ciders at Le Sistrot cider bar in Quimper. For those who’re searching for a particular memento, bottles from Cidrerie Nicol are thought of the “Champagne of Brittany.”

Crêpes and Galettes

The nationwide dish of Brittany, crêpes are skinny pancakes served candy or savory (though in parts of the area, “crêpe” solely refers back to the candy model, the place “galette” refers back to the savory model made with buckwheat). Most crêperies will serve a variety of galettes and crêpes, whether or not they’re merely dusted in sugar, slathered in salted caramel, or fastidiously folded to disclose a middle of egg, ham, and cheese. Le Comptoir Breizh Café serves a few of the most cherished variations within the area, however you possibly can’t go fallacious with anyplace holding a “Crêperie Gourmande” designation. 

Cancale oysters

There isn’t a scarcity of oysters all through Brittany, and through low tide you’ll see a whole bunch of oyster beds peaking up alongside the shoreline in a lot of its coastal villages. There are 12 oyster rising areas, however many agree the perfect come from Cancale, they usually also have a place on France’s Intangible Cultural Heritage listing. Organize them by measurement immediately from the farmers on the Marché aux Huîtres in Cancale — sizes vary from n° 5 to n° 0; the larger the quantity, the smaller the oyster — and eat them on the spot with a glass of dry white wine (which you should buy on the pier). When you’re carried out, the custom is to toss the empty shells into the ocean.

Far Breton

This conventional cake has a texture much like a flan and is historically made with full-fat milk and prunes, since these had been traditionally what the sailors used to carry again from their time away. For those who’re invited to a Breton’s home, there’s a good likelihood you’ll be served a thick slice of this easy dessert. You’ll discover them at most boulangeries within the area, like Le Barbier Joël in Arzon and Gât & Vous Boulangerie in Dinan.  

Oignon de Roscoff 

These prized pink onions are revered by cooks for his or her delicately fruity scent and barely candy taste (additionally as a result of they prepare dinner faster than different onions). “Onion Johnnies” used to ship the crop door-to-door by bicycle, and immediately bunches of onions are braided collectively by their stems and draped over bicycles as they’re paraded by city throughout the Roscoff Onion Competition (sometimes the third week of August). After the pageant, yow will discover these onions in farmers markets and on menus, like at Le Brittany Restaurant in Roscoff or La Pomme d’Api in Saint-Pol-de-Léon. 

Prés-salés lamb

It’s on the Brittany aspect of the Mont-Saint-Michel bay, between the land and the ocean, the place these AOP (a protected designation of orgin) lambs graze on the salty grasses of the marsh (prés salés means salt marsh). Cooks reward the meat for its calmly iodized taste and close to good marbling, and yow will discover it on menus at Auberge du Pont d’Acigné in Noyal-sur-Vilaine, Brasserie du Sillon in Saint-Malo, La Desk des Pères in Piré-Chancé, and Le Bistrot de Cancale in Cancale.

Breton lobster

Known as “le petit bleu,” these deeply blue-hued lobsters are deeply satisfying, with a pure saltiness and meaty texture. You should purchase them straight from the boat in Plouguerneau if in case you have a pot to prepare dinner them in, in any other case it’s finest to depart it to the professionals, like Olivier Belin at Auberge des Glazicks and Jonathan Bigaré at La Gouesnière.

Caramels au beurre salé

The origins of this ubiquitous deal with are pure Breton, or at the least pure Breton butter, when chocolatier Henri le Roux made his first batch of caramels with salted butter. The recipe caught on, and a few of the high locations to pattern these candy and salty treasures are at Grain de Vanille in Cancale (Word: It is also value ordering the Le Mille-Feuille à la Vanilla Bourbon whereas there) and Au Petit Prince in Étel. Native liquoriste Fisselier even makes a La Fleur de Caramel liquor that I occur to know is unimaginable when drizzled on ice cream.

Kari Gosse

Brittany’s historical past as a part of the spice commerce — particularly within the southern city of Port-Louis — has peppered the area with a love of signature blends (take a look at the boutique spices at Épices Rœllinger). Some of the cherished native blends is a curry powder named after the key recipe shared from a shipwrecked sailor to an area apothecary. Kari Gosse curry is the bottom for a lot of native lobster curries, and blends ginger, turmeric, chili, cinnamon, pepper, and clove. Discover it in pharmacies in Auray, La Cale aux Épices in Paimpol, or Groix et Nature — when it’s not offered out. 

Kouign-amann

Brittany has many scrumptious truffles and pastries, however few extra well-known than this decadent multilayered cake. Kouign-amann interprets to “butter cake,” so it’s no shock which ingredient shines beneath the crunchy exterior of this salty-sweet dessert. Pattern a few of the current award-winning variations at Pâtisserie Aux Choux à Lié in Ploeuc-L’Hermitage or Zest de Gourmandise in Iffendic.

Plougastel strawberries

The key ingredient that makes these jewel-toned berries burst with taste lies within the fragrance of the Breton soil. Whereas different strawberry farmers go for hanging gardens or inexperienced homes, Breton farmers expose their crops to the terroir of the land, and the result’s intoxicating. Choose them recent every spring at La Ferme du Goazio in Trieux valley or Fraises Patrick Séché in La Baule, seize them from a farmers market, or eat them as a sorbet from Glacier Jampi or Alain Chartier.

Buckwheat honey

Many of the buckwheat merchandise within the area will probably be within the type of galettes or sables (i.e., cookies), however the beekeepers at Fleur de Ciel are making a honey that infuses the woody perfume of buckwheat immediately into the jar. It’s loaded with antioxidants and nutritional vitamins, nevertheless it’s additionally simply actually tasty drizzled on a freshly plated crêpe.