There's no way I'm eating this! French food that only French people would agree to eat

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French food for the brave only (and at the end of the article a recommendation for more familiar dishes)

When you hear the words “French food,” you probably immediately think of wonderful baguettes, delicious and filling cakes, and of course, French restaurants that serve excellent food and wine. Indeed, French food is all of that, but…

If there is one thing that French and Chinese cuisine have in common, it is that there is almost no animal they don't eat and there is almost no organ that doesn't appear on their menu. There are several reasons for this. The first reason is that much of French cuisine originates from the (not so distant) days when food was a commodity in constant shortage and people simply ate whatever they could find.

One of the peaks of French “dietary freedom” undoubtedly occurred during the Prussian siege of Paris during the winter of 1870-1871. The siege meant that within a few weeks the city’s food supplies began to run out and those who did not have enough food were forced to start eating animals that they would not normally touch. The first to appear on Parisian tables were horses, followed by dogs and cats. When these ran out, poor Parisians turned to eating rats, while the wealthier ones began to sample everything that the Paris Zoo had to offer. Don’t believe me? Let me invite you to take a look at the unique menu of Café Voisin, one of the luxury restaurants in the City of Lights, which served, among other things: elephant meat consommé, kangaroo, stuffed donkey head, fried camel and even a cat stuffed with rats…

The second reason why the French eat almost everything stems, in my opinion, from the French philosophy that “you don’t say yuck about food” and that it’s worth trying everything at least once. This is why, from childhood, the French experiment with different and strange foods, including those that other children their age wouldn’t even think of putting in their mouths.

One way or another, over the generations, a series of strange dishes have been added to French cuisine, some of which, in the opinion of quite a few tourists, are somewhere on the border of disgust and culinary perversion. So today, we'll put onion soup, steak in pepper sauce, and eclairs aside and review some of the dishes that only true French people or serious Francophiles would eat. I've arranged the chapters in the article from easiest to hardest. We'll start with the strange French food that most of us have heard of (like escargot or frog legs) and end with particularly disgusting dishes such as sea snake or shocking (horse meat or ortolan bunting) so that those with a weak heart and sensitive stomachs can stop in time.

Snails (Escargot)

There is no doubt that of all the “special” dishes of French cuisine,Escargot It is undoubtedly the one with the highest chance of ending up on your table. The reason for this is its popularity in French restaurants and the fact that it is simply insanely delicious (once you stop thinking about what exactly you are eating).

So why is it so delicious? Because of the wonderful garlic butter sauce that accompanies the escargot, which is nothing short of divine. In my opinion, there is no better starter than it to start any meal, and with the baguette that is served with it, it is also fresh, so it is a celebration. So that's right, it is a snail that lives in the vineyards of Burgundy And it may not be the most photogenic, but if there's one French dish that you must try at least once (assuming you're not kosher, of course), it's this one.

And if you are traveling in Paris and looking for a place to taste properly made escargot, I recommend the restaurant L'Escargot Montorgueil which has existed since the 19th century and specializes, among other things, in this delicacy. You can read a little more about it in the article by Al Montreuil Street.

Frog legs (Cuisses de grenouille)

After the escargot Frog legs They are the second most famous “special” French dish in French cuisine and for good reason. Quite a few people are put off by the thought of this bouncy, greenish creature visiting their plate. I of course had to try it a few years ago and the result was a bit disappointing (it looked like chicken wings, smelled like chicken, had the texture of chicken and tasted like fish).

If you still want to taste this delicacy in Paris, you are invited to the restaurant tree frogs located inMarais DistrictKnowledgeable sources tell me that the frog legs there are simply wonderful.

The sea urchin (l'Oursin)

There is no doubt that sea urchin is an acquired taste. The first time I tasted it, it felt like I was eating pink shaving cream with a violet flavor. But once you get used to it, you start to love the taste. So it is not surprising that quite a few French chefs like to serve sea urchins or use them as part of their sauce that accompanies their fish dishes.

Salvador Dali was a big fan of sea urchins and recommended that anyone who would listen eat them in Catalan sauce (a sauce based on…chocolate) before bed to ensure particularly interesting dreams.

Want to try sea urchins? Try eating them at the restaurant The Foam of Bubbles In the sixth arrondissement of Paris.

Andouillette sausage

This is a sausage made from pork entrails that is traditionally served in Lyonnais cuisine and in Troyes, the city of Rashi, who would surely start turning in his grave if he knew that his people chose this sausage. Even though more than 15 years have passed since I visited In the city of Lyon I still remember the first (and last) time I ordered this hot dog. Even when I ordered, the waiter warned me that it was a local dish and much less recommended for tourists. However, I was young and curious and insisted on trying it despite his entreaties.

The first thing I remember from that encounter was the horrible smell that came from it. A smell reminiscent of meat that had been swimming in a pool of urine to maintain its shape. And the taste, ladies and gentlemen, was not much better. And so the endowment returned after coming to the kitchen, the waiter looked at me with a grin and went to get me a steak and fries…

Want to try the Andouille sausage and gain culinary world fame (or a particularly fragrant experience)? Go to the restaurant Racines located inPanorama Passage In the second arrondissement. She will serve you Andouillette AAAAA (this is a sausage that meets the standards of the Authentic Andouillette Association) and accompany it with Dijon mustard. If you survive the experience, you are welcome to come back here and tell me in the comments how it was.

And by the way, if all this porkiness wasn't enough for you, then you are also welcome to try a pig's trotter, which stinks just as much as an andouille. But before that, know that this dish is not recommended for Ashkenazim and other white people because the color of the trotter is very similar to the skin color of a white person, and when someone like that eats it, it looks like they are eating their own hand...

If you really feel like trying this “delicacy”, you are welcome to visit the restaurant. Au Pied de Cochon Located near the Saint-Eustache Church. The advantage of this restaurant is that if the pork leg is not to your taste, you can, as a consolation prize, enjoy the best French onion soup in Paris.

Ortolan bird

The ortolan is a tiny songbird that is in danger of extinction. Of course, this does not stop many French people from trying to eat them at every opportunity, even if it is against the law. The best example is François Mitterrand, who, even while dying of prostate cancer, requested and received the ortolan at his famous farewell dinner in late 1995.

The French drown the ortolan in fine Armagnac and then set the bird on fire until the chef decides it is well done. The small bird is eaten as is (including beak and bones), but before doing so, a cloth napkin is placed over the head to cover the face. The two reasons for this are the attempt to absorb as much of the smell of the fried bird as possible, and the second reason is to hide from God and the environment the sin of eating such a small bird that is protected by law.

Personally, I have never eaten an ortolan, so I don't know what it tastes like, and since it's illegal, I have no idea where you can eat this bird. Either way, I don't know about you, but I would be happy to forgo this pleasure (if anyone has had the pleasure of eating this bird, I would be very happy to read about it in the comments).

Horse meat

https://youtu.be/gP9VPy8BBGQ

The golden horse's head that symbolizes Italian restaurants that sell horse meat has almost disappeared from the French landscape, but in recent years, horse eaters have been enjoying a revival. One reason for this is the publicity that horse meat gained after it was discovered that some supermarkets were selling hamburgers in which horse meat was mixed with beef.

Horse meat is sweeter than beef, and the older the horse, the redder its meat. Those watching their weight will be happy to hear that horse meat is leaner than beef and can therefore go well with their diet (how about a sandwich containing horse salami, for example?). This is why, as early as the 19th century, more and more French scientists, such as Geoffroy-Saint-Hilaire, began to claim that horse meat was a nutritious and healthy food, which led to the opening of the first Italian restaurants selling horse meat in 1866.

Want to try horse meat? Try Chevaline Poncelet located at 3 rue Poncelet. A visit there will not only reward you with horse meat but also discover a great culinary street in the 17th arrondissement that few people know about.

Sea snake (Lamproie)

I don't know how to translate the word Lamproi exactly, so I called it a sea snake, even though it looks more like a worm. It's a creature that looks like it came straight from hell with a mouth full of teeth that attaches itself to various fish in the sea and drinks their blood. Although it is undoubtedly one of the most disgusting creatures on earth, it is considered a delicacy in France and not only there (Henry I, King of England, died from eating too many of these creatures).

This monster can be found mainly on the western coast of France near Bordeaux That's why it's considered a typical Bordeaux dish. It's marinated for two days in its blood, then local red wine is added to the sauce. It's said that the aroma is so delicious that it's recommended to cover your head with a cloth napkin to enjoy it as much as possible (like you do when eating the ortolan).

If you are in Bordeaux and want to try sea snake, I recommend you stop by the bistro. Le Noailles Because from what I heard, they make the most delicious sea snake in southwest France there.

Did you like the article? Looking for more information about more conventional French food?

• First, go toPart of the site that deals with French cuisine To get information about French food, recipes and more.
• If this article has made you hungry, then it means you are an advanced Francophile or at least an “honorary Frenchman.” If you are in Paris, you are welcome to come in. To my list of recommended restaurants In the City of Lights and choose a restaurant to satisfy your hunger and maybe try some of the dishes mentioned here.