Bloxicon
A
AOC : (f) Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée. Label awarded to some foods of certified geographic origin, made following strict production rules to guarantee an excellent level of quality.
Ail rose de Lautrec : (m) pink garlic from the town of Lautrec, in the south-west of France.
Amuse-bouche : (m) also : amuse-gueule. Savory nibbles offered before dinner to arouse your appetite and tickle your tastebuds. Literally "amuses the mouth".
Apéritif : (m) also : apéro. General term for the drinks and savory nibbles you offer your guests before dinner. It is also a widespread custom to invite people over just for l'apéro, which is a more casual way to entertain than a full-blown dinner invitation.
B
Beaufort : (m) firm cow cheese from the area of Beaufort, in the French Alps.
Berceuse : (f) mezza-luna, chopping tool with two handles and two half-moon blades. Literally "lullaby", because of the cradling movement you make while using it.
Beurre : (m) butter. Beurre doux is unsalted, beurre salé is salted.
Bio : (adj) [short for "biologique"] organic.
Biscuit rose de Reims : (m) crispy little cookie, pink and rectangular with a dusting of confectioner's sugar. A specialty from Reims, the largest city in the region of Champagne. A simple mix of eggs, sugar and flour colored with crimson, their particularity is to be baked twice, allowing them to stay whole even when moist. This makes the delicate Biscuit Rose de Reims the ideal dipping companion of a cup of Champagne, and the perfect biscuit to use in a charlotte, in place of the classic ladyfingers.
Blettes : (f. pl.) also : bettes. Swiss chard.
Boudin antillais : (m) a twist on boudin noir and a specialty from the Antilles, the French Carribeans. They are blood sausages, made of bread, peppers, milk, onions, rhum and various spices and pork blood.
Boudin blanc : (m) soft sausage, made with white meat (usually chicken or veal) enriched with pork or veal fat, cream, eggs, flour and mie de pain (the inside of a bread loaf), finely mixed and well seasoned.
Brasserie : (f) French restaurant, informal and busy, that serves traditional and unpretentious dishes.
Bresaola : (f) an Italian specialty of dried beef, lean and moist, cut in paper-thin slices.
Brick (feuille de) : (f) a "feuille de brick" is a sheet of brick dough (alternate spelling : brik). Brick dough is a very thin wheat dough, somewhat similar to phyllo dough, which is used in North African cuisine.
Brioche : (f) a yeast pastry, lightly sweet, rich yet aerated inside, with a thin soft golden crust.
Brousse : (f) a kind of fresh cheese, a.k.a brocciu when it's from Corsica.
C
Cake : (m) [pronounced more or less like "kek"] not just any cake - that would be "gâteau" - but a cake that's baked in a loaf pan.
Calisson : (m) almond shaped specialty from Aix-en-Provence (South of France), made with pâte d'amande (almond paste), sugar and crystallized melons, with a layer of "feuille d'hostie" (the thin wafer the catholic host is made of) at the bottom, and a crispy sugar coating on top.
Canelé : (m) small cake from the French city of Bordeaux, caramelized and crusty on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside.
Cantine : (f) school or office cafeteria, it is sometimes used to mean a restaurant that has a laid-back and relaxed atmosphere, and where you could see yourself having lunch or dinner everyday.
Caramel au beurre salé : (m) soft caramel from Brittany (a region in the west of France), the making of which involves just the right quantity of Guérande (a town in Brittany) salted butter to give you a hint of salt amidst the gooey sweetness.
Cari : (m) curry (in créole cuisine).
Cassonade : (f) brown crystallized cane sugar, refined only once. A specialty from Belgium.
Cassoulet : (m) a typical dish of the south-west of France, involving white kidney beans and various meats in goose fat.
Cervelle de canut : (f) literally "silkweavers brain" (the weaving of silk was the traditional industry of Lyon), a specialty of herbed garlic fromage blanc from Lyon.
Chalumeau : (m) blowtorch. Can be used to caramelize the sugar topping on crèmes brûlées.
Charcuterie : (f) a store halfway between a butcher's shop and a deli. Also, the variety of sausages and pork products (jambon, saucisson, salami, mortadelle, pâté...) sold in such stores. The person who holds the store is called "un charcutier" ("une charcutière" is it's a woman).
Charlotte : (f) a no-bake dessert in which the mold is lined with ladyfingers, then filled with layers of fruit, and layers of custard or fromage blanc.
Charlotte : (f) a variety of small potatoes, tender-fleshed and sweet. Also : a fruit dessert made in a high round mold, with ladyfingers all around.
Chauve-souris : (f) bat, literally "bald mouse".
Chichi : (m) long and rectangular donut sold by beach-side vendors in Marseille, fried in the van, rolled in sugar and served in a paper wrapping.
Chocolat : (m) the best edible thing on Earth.
Chocolat au lait : (m) milk chocolate.
Chocolat blanc : (m) white chocolate.
Chocolat noir : (m) dark chocolate, literally "black chocolate".
Chocolatier : (m) chocolate artisan.
Chocolatière : (f) like a teapot, but for hot chocolate.
Chou : (m) cabbage. Chou rouge (red cabbage), chou blanc (white cabbage), chou frisé (Savoy cabbage), chou-fleur (cauliflower)...
Chouquette : (m) small pâte à choux pastry puff, sprinkled with coarse sugar.
Chèvre : (f) goat. Also short for "fromage de chèvre", which means "goat cheese".
Clafoutis : (m) a fruit dessert from the Limousin, a region in the center of France. The epitome of the grandmotherly dessert, and involves baking fruit (most typically cherries, but also plums, apricots, and pretty much any fruit) in a batter made of eggs, milk, sugar and flour. Some recipes also include butter, cream or oil.
Clafoutis : (m) a simple, family dessert in which a pudding batter (made of flour, sugar, milk and eggs, sometimes butter) is poured over fruit (most commonly cherries, to make clafoutis aux cerises) and baked.
Coco-fesse : (f) a coconut shaped exactly like a pair of buttocks that's unique to the Seychelles and is said to have aphrodisiacal virtues.
Cointreau : (m) orange flavored liqueur.
Col-vert : (m) a type of duck (literally "green collar").
Compote : (f) a dessert made of fruits cooked slowly with sugar or syrup. Also used, by extension, for vegetables or meat cooked the same way.
Comté : (m) firm cow cheese from the Jura, a mountain range in the East of France.
Confit de canard : (m) duck legs, salted and cooked slowly, then packed in its own fat. A typical dish of the south-west of France.
Confiture d'oignon : (f) onion jam.
Confiture de lait : (f) literally milk jam, the equivalent of dulce de leche, a spread made with condensed milk and sugar.
Coque (à la) : (f) literally shell, or hull. "Oeuf à la coque" is a soft-boiled egg. (See mouillette.)
Coquille St-Jacques : (f) scallop.
Courge : (f) squash. Most commonly used to mean winter squash. This explains the etymology of the word "courgette" (zucchini) which literally means "small squash".
Croquant de Provence : (m) a finger-shaped crunchy almond cookie, from Provence, an area in the south-east of France.
Crème brûlée : (f) a custard-type dessert, served in an individual, round and shallow earthenware ramequin, topped with a layer of sugar that's caramelized solid right before serving.
Crème de cassis : (f) a thick sweet blackcurrant liqueur, mostly used diluted in white wine to make kir cocktails.
Crème de marron : (f) sweet chestnut purée.
Crème fleurette : (f) also : crème liquide. Whipping cream.
Crème fraîche : (f) thick, slightly sour cream, that doesn't curdle when heated (it's the fat content, you see...). Substitute heavy cream or sour cream, preferably a mix of the two.
Crêpe : (f) large and thin pancake, a specialty from Brittany.
D
Donburi : (m) (Japanese) bowl ; also : the name of any dish served atop a bowl of cooked rice.
Dorade : (f) sea bream or chrysophrys fish, from the Gulf of Gascony or the Mediterranean.
Droguerie : (f) hardware store. Despite the name, does not sell drugs, legal or otherwise.
Dégustation : (f) the process of tasting and savoring with attention.
F
Faire moit-moit : (verb) (pronounced mwat-mwat) to split dishes. "Moit-moit" is short for "moitié-moitié", which means "half-half".
Farci : (adj) stuffed, as in "stuffed zucchini", not "I'm stuffed" (that would be "j'ai bien mangé" - a bit of an understatement, but that's what's commonly said).
Ferme-auberge : (f) literally inn-farm, a farm which also operates as a restaurant, where they mostly serve their own products.
Feuille guitare : (f) sheet of a special plastic chocolate-makers use, which makes it easy to work with melted chocolate and ensures a shiny finish to chocolate confections. Literally "guitar sheet". (No idea why.)
Filet de boeuf : (m) literally beef filet, a very tender cut of meat equivalent to the tenderloin.
Fleur de sel : (f) coarse sea salt collected on the seashore. Grey and slightly moist, it has a tendency to gather in clumps, and has a very distinctive and delicate taste.
Florentin : (m) small disks of slivered almonds and candied fruits, baked together in sugar, honey, butter and/or cream, and dipped in chocolate. Recipe here.
Florilège : (m) a selection of the best items in a category.
Foie gras mi-cuit : (m) "mi-cuit" ("half-cooked") duck liver. Mi-cuit is a way to prepare foie gras in which the raw liver is cooked in a terrine, slowly and at a very low temperature, allowing the natural flavors and textures to develop in very subtle ways. The resulting product has a very short shelf-life, whereas regular canned foie gras can be kept at room temperature for up to four years. Foie gras mi-cuit can be bought whole, or in slices ("escalopes").
Fondue Bourguignonne : (f) a fondue (literally "fondue from Burgundy") in which you cook little cubes of beef in oil, to be enjoyed with a variety of dipping sauces.
Fondue savoyarde : (f) cheese fondue, made with white wine and cheeses from Savoie, a region on the French side of the Alps (a mountain range shared by Switzerland, Italy and France).
Fooding : (m) an art of eating and cooking mindfully, at home and at restaurants, an appetite for quality and innovation and a refusal of boredom.
Fourme d'Ambert : (m) blue cheese from Auvergne, a mountain range in the center of France.
Frais : (adj.) fresh. The feminin form is "fraîche".
Frite : (f) French fry (hence "frites" means "French fries").
Friture : (f) literally, something fried. Also : the name of the tiny fried fish they serve in the South of France, and the little Easter chocolates which are meant to represent them.
Fromage blanc : (m) a sort of plain yogurt, with a thicker texture and a milder taste.
Fromage frais : (m) fresh cheese, a kind of cheese that is very moist and spreadable, not aged at all, and generally very mild in taste. The texture resembles that of a very thick yogurt, and examples include cream cheese, ricotta, brocciu...
Fruits de mer : (m. pl.) literally "fruits of the sea", seafood.
Fruits déguisés : (pl. m.) literally "dressed-up fruits". A traditional Christmas confection, in which dried fruits (dates and prunes mostly) have their pit replaced with a piece of brightly colored pâte d'amande (almond paste).
Fruits secs : (m. pl.) dried fruits. Sometimes used to include nuts.
G
Galette : (m) anything that has a circular and flat shape can be called a "galette". It's the name of the savory buckwheat pancakes in Brittany (galette de sarrasin), it's also slang for a CD.
Galette des Rois : (f) flaked pastry pie filled with frangipane, a butter-rich, smooth almond paste. This is the traditional cake eaten for l'Epiphanie. More about the tradition here.
Ganache : (f) firm chocolate cream made with whipping cream, butter, chocolate and sometimes egg yolks.
Gazpacho : (m) a slightly spicy, cold tomato soup from Spain.
Girolle : (f) chanterelle mushroom.
Goûter : (m) afternoon snack kids are given when they come out of school around 4.
Graine germée : (f) sprouted seed.
Grissini : (m) long flaky Italian cracker.
Gruyère : (m) firm cow cheese from the area of Gruyères, in the Swiss Alps.
H
Haricot Tarbais : (m) white kidney-shaped bean from the region of Tarbes in the haute-Pyrénées. It is the only bean to be protected by a Label Rouge and regional appellation, and can only be hand-picked.
Haricot mangetout : (m) snow pea. Literally "eat-everything bean", because unlike regular peas, you eat the pod as well.
I
Ile flottante : (f) an island of sweetened, beaten and baked egg whites, floating in crème anglaise.
L
Lait de coco : (m) coconut milk.
Lait ribot : (m) traditional fermented milk from Brittany (laez ribod in Breton).
Lardon : (m) small strip of bacon, literally "little lard". Also, a colloquial word for "kid".
M
Macaron : (m) a sophisticated cookie made of two round almond meringues, sandwiching a creamy filling.
Madeleine : (f) small buttery cake, made in a special oval mold with shell-like shapes at the bottom. The dough rises when baked to form a characteristic dome which is, to some, the tastiest part of the madeleine.
Magret de canard : (m) roasted duck breast, usually served in slices, sometimes with a fruit-based sauce. A typical dish of the south-west of France.
Marron glacé : (m) candied chestnut (literally glazed chestnut), a chestnut cooked in sugar and coated with a sugar glaze. A typical Christmas delicacy.
Mendiant : (m) literally "beggar". Name given to food preparations that involve dried fruits and nuts : cakes, ice cream or chocolate bites. Originally, four of the thirteen simple Christmas desserts in the Provence tradition (South-East of France) : the four "mendiants" symbolize four mendicant monastic orders and the color of their robes : raisins for the Dominicans, hazelnuts for the Augustins, dried figs for the Franciscans, and almonds for the Carmelites.
Mie de pain : (f) the inside of a bread loaf, everything but the crust.
Mille-Feuille : (m) literally "one thousand sheets". A pastry made of layers upon layers of puff pastry and crème pâtissière (a rich custard), with a layer of glaze on top. Also used for any dish that layers ingredients several times.
Mimolette : (f) a bright orange cheese from the North of France, called "extra-vieille" ("extra-old") when aged for a long time until brittle and very sharp. In its young and unaged version, mimolette has a more mellow flavor but is also excellent : it's a favorite among French kids, its cheerful color surely playing a big part. Some say it was also Charles de Gaulle's preferred choice of cheese (the President, not the airport).
Moelleux : (adj) soft, mellow. (Shares common roots with "moelle", marrow.)
Mont d'Or : (m) a cow cheese from the Jura, soft inside a thicker rind, wrapped in pine bark and sold in a round wooden box. A popular and wonderful way to eat it is the "Boîte Chaude" (Hot Box), where the Mont d'Or is oven-baked in its box, with a little white wine.
Mouillette : (f) a finger of toasted bread, usually spread with butter, to dip into a soft-boiled egg.
Mâche : (f) lamb's lettuce. A variety of salad which comes in small bouquets of soft green leaves in the shape of drops, and has a mild taste.
Mâche : (f) lamb's ear lettuce, delicate young bright green leaves in little bouquets.
N
Noisette : (f) hazelnut, literally "little nut".
Nougatine : (f) a crunchy mixture of caramel and chopped almonds, often used in pastries as a layer or as a decoration.
O
Oeuf cocotte : (m) an egg cooked in a little ramequin, on top of other ingredients - usually ham and crème fraîche, with an optional topping of grated cheese.
Orangette : (f) a chocolate confection in which a strip of candied orange rind is dipped in dark chocolate, sometimes with chunks of almonds. Recipe here
P
Pain Poilâne : (m) rustic bread, created by Lionel Poilâne.
Pain d'épice : (m) a honey spice cake, litterally "spice bread".
Pain de campagne : (m) rustic bread, literally "country bread".
Pain polaire : (m) polar bread, also swedish bread. Round, soft flatbread with dimples.
Panisse : (m) fried slice of chickpea flour polenta, a specialty from Marseille, sold by beach-side vendors.
Patate douce : (f) sweet potato.
Pendaison de crémaillère : (f) housewarming party. A crémaillère is a trammel, the metal adjustable hook that was used to hang pots in the fireplace in the days of yore, and the hanging (pendaison) of that essential piece of equipment in a new house was a good occasion to have a village gathering.
Petit Beurre : (m) literally "little butter", a crispy butter cookie made by LU.
Petit gris : (m) small snail, literally "small grey".
Petit suisse : (m) plain thick yogurt sold wrapped in paper in small cylindrical cartons. Particularly appreciated by kids.
Pissaladière : (f) an onion tart with black olives and anchovies, on a thin pizza-like dough. A specialty from Nice, in the South of France. The name comes from "pissalat", a condiment made with pureed anchovies, cloves, thyme and bay leaves, which was spread on the tart before baking.
Pistou : (m) basil, oilive oil and garlic paste, equivalent to the Italian pesto, made in Provence, in the south-east of France.
Pomme : (f) apple. Sometimes also used to mean potato, short for "pomme de terre" (as in "pommes sarladaises", "pommes sautées", "pommes frites", "pommes dauphines"...).
Pomme de terre : (f) potato, literally "apple from the ground".
Pommes sarladaises : (pl, f) potatoes sauteed in duck fat and garlic, named after the town of Sarlat.
Pot-au-feu : (m) traditional French stew of vegetables and beef.
Potimarron : (m) winter squash with a delicate chestnut flavor. Its French name is a portmanteau of potiron (pumpkin) and marron (chestnut). Its skin is soft enough that it is unnecessary to peel it.
Pounti : (m) (also called pountari) one of the many specialties from Auvergne : it's a pork, swiss chard and prune terrine, with lots of fresh herbs (parsley, chervil, tarragon...) and sometimes shallots or onions. The terrine batter itself is made of eggs, flour, milk, cream and/or butter. Traditionally a dish to use up leftovers, it was usually served for supper, hot or cold, conveniently combining meat, vegetables and fruit in the same dish.
Praline : (f) 1. a mix of ground nuts and caramelized sugar used to fill chocolates. 2. the chocolates filled with the above mix. 3. a sugar-coated nut, typically an almond or a peanut.
Praline rose : (f) sugar coated almond with a pink coloring, which can be eaten as candy on its own, or used to flavor other confections, like brioche (Brioche aux Pralines Roses).
Presse-Purée : (m) potato masher.
Pré-dessert : (m) an intermediary dish, usually something small and fresh, served after the main course, to cleanse the palate before moving on to sweeter things.
Pâte brisée : (f) crusty pie dough.
Pâte d'amande : (f) almond paste, or marzipan.
Pâte d'amande : (f) almond paste, or marzipan.
Pâte de fruit : (f) dense fruit jelly coated with sugar, and my father's favorite treat : his mother gets him a kilo of it from Hediard at each of his birthdays.
Pâte feuilletée : (f) flaky pie dough.
Pâte sablée : (f) crumbly (literally "sandy") pie dough.
Pâte à choux : (f) dough made of butter, flour, salt, water and eggs, that puffs up when baked. Can be used to make a variety of pastries : chouquettes, éclairs, salambos, saint-honoré, profiterolles, gougères...
Pâtisserie : (f) pastry. Also : pastry shop.
Pâtissier : (m) pastry chef. The feminin form is pâtissière.
Pâté : (m) a mixture of finely chopped or pureed seasoned meat, usually used as a spread on bread.
Q
Quenelle : (f) oval poached dumpling, in the shape of a rugby ball, sometimes flavored with brochet (pike). Also used to designate the shape of such a dumpling.
R
Ratatouille : (f) a vegetable stew made with tomatoes, zucchini, eggplant, peppers, herbs and olive oil. Typical dish from Provence (South of France).
Ratte du Touquet : (f) small, knobbly and nutty potatoes, from the town of Le Touquet in the north of France.
Rince-doigt : (m) literally "rince-finger". A small moist paper towel with a citrusy smell to wipe your fingers after eating seafood. Alternatively, a small bowl filled with citrusy water, which serves the same purpose.
Rocamadour : (m) succulent individual little goat cheese, produced around the eponymous town in the south-west of France.
Rocher à la noix de coco : (m) coconut macaroon, literally "coconut rock".
Roquette : (f) rucola or arugula, a peppery and tangy spear-leaved salad green.
S
Sabodet : (m) pig's head sausage from Lyon.
Salon : (m) 1 : living-room. 2: trade show.
Saumon fumé : (m) smoked salmon.
Sec : (adj.) dry. The feminin form is "sèche".
Sommelier : (m) a waiter specialized in wine.
Speculoos : (m) crunchy cinnamon and cassonade cookie from Belgium.
Séché : (adj.) dried. The feminin form is "séchée" as in "figue séchée", dried fig.
T
Tapenade : (f) green or black olive paste.
Tartare : (m) a preparation of something raw, chopped or diced finely and well seasoned. The most classical example is steak tartare (raw ground beef), but the term is also used for preparations of raw fish (tartare de saumon for instance) or vegetables (like tartare d'aubergine, an eggplant tartare).
Tarte tatin : (f) fruit pie (traditionally made with apples) baked with the crust atop the fruit, but flipped before serving.
Tartine : (f) originally, a slice of bread, toasted or not, with something spread on it, usually eaten for breakfast. More recently, a main dish of one or two slices of bread on which ingredients are laid, creating a sort of open-faced sandwich.
Terrine : (m) a preparation of meat, fish or vegetables, cooked or assembled in an earthenware dish and served cold, in slices. Also : the earthenware dish used for such preparations.
Timbale : (f) tumbler, can be used for any dish served in a small cup, or shaped like a small cup.
Tourteau : (m) a variety of crab.
Tourteau fromagé : (m) a French cheesecake, traditionnally made with fresh goat cheese. It is a specialty from the Deux-Sèvres, a district in the Poitou (South-West of France). "Fromagé" means "with cheese", and "tourteau" is a variation on the word "tourte", which means "pie".
Tête de Moine : (f) a wheel-shaped, firm Swiss cheese. It is traditionally served in shavings, cut from the top of the cheese (hence the "Monk's Head" name) with a special rotating knife which you plant in the center of the wheel.
V
Velouté : (adj) velvety. Also the name of a yogurt made by Danone (the French name of Dannon).
Verrine : (f) small ball jar with a rubber banded lid, often used to can rillettes, pâtés and foie gras.
Vinaigre balsamique : (m) balsamic vinegar.
Violet : (m) also called biju or, rather cutely, patate de mer (sea potato), violets have a soft and deeply wrinkled shell, that looks like a rock covered with seaweed. They have two tiny breathing holes, which are in fact siphons through which they suck in the water, then filter in the suspended nutrients. If you press a violet with an expert hand, seawater will spritz out in two tiny spurts. Violets have to be cut open in halves with a sharp knife : inside, you will find its flesh, bright yellow like an undercooked omelet, holding on to the shell by a little foot and easily scraped out with a fork. It has an oister-like texture and a very iodized taste.