French recipes, the everyday ones
What a French household actually cooks. None of it is difficult.
These are the recipes that get made in a French kitchen on an ordinary week: a dressing, a gratin, something to hand round before dinner. Each one has the quantities in metric and American measures, the reason behind each step, and the mistakes worth avoiding.
Start with the vinaigrette. It takes two minutes and you will never buy dressing again.
French vinaigrette, the only dressing in a French house
There is no dressing aisle in this recipe. There is a spoon of mustard and a bowl.
Gratin dauphinois, the French potato gratin with no cheese in it
Potatoes, cream, milk, garlic. The cheese belongs to a different dish.
Gougères, the warm cheese puffs that open a French evening
If you can stir a saucepan, you can make choux pastry.
A French Thanksgiving menu
The turkey stays. Almost everything around it is open to negotiation.
Avocat aux crevettes
The French shrimp-stuffed avocado, and the sauce he refuses to call ketchup.
10 classic French appetizers every American should try
A perfectly normal French appetizer can apparently cause an international incident. By Sacha.
Radishes with butter and salt: the French snack that is not a snack
Three ingredients, no cooking, and a small argument about which order they go in.
While you are here
Could You Survive a French Dinner Party?
When to arrive, what to bring, where to put your hands. Eight questions. I failed all of them in real life.
Not on the list?
Ask my French husband.
A short ruling in a few seconds. Written by AI from our Journal, in his voice.
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