12 disgusting French dishes you might want to avoid on holiday
There you are, sitting on the terrace in that picturesque French town. The French waiter comes over with the menu and hey, you speak a little French and French cuisine is world-famous. Don’t all the star chefs take their lead from here? Exactly! So, waiter, I’ll have the salade de gésiers! Salad, sounds fine, right? Think again. Frogs’ legs, pig intestines, tripe & trotters… With these 12 French dishes, you really want to know exactly what you’re ordering (and yes, I speak from experience).
Ah, holiday! Eating out every day. Well, delightful… Although French cuisine is considered by some people to be the best cuisine in the world, that doesn’t apply to everything on the menu. There are definitely some disgusting French dishes that you might be better off avoiding if you’re not an adventurous eater, or if the word ‘offal’ doesn’t immediately make you think of a delicacy.
12 French dishes you’ll want to know the meaning of
Because yes, French cuisine isn’t only known for its addictive beurre blanc and steak tartare, but also for the rougher stuff, which can be quite a challenge for your taste buds. So watch out for dishes you weren’t expecting and make sure you know what you’re eating…
1. Andouillette
At number one by a mile: the famous French horror sausage made from pig intestines. That’s already enough for me (Au revoir!), but I’m not one to shy away and, when it comes to food, I’m pretty much open to anything. So it happened that this turd, while travelling through Burgundy, ended up right in front of me. Andouillette smells like a blocked sewer and tastes the same. Or as the mayor of Lyon once said: “Politics is like an Andouillette – it should smell a little like shit, but not too much.” Andouillette almost always consists of several types of offal; for the die hard fans, there’s also a version made solely from pig intestine. For the acquired taste—let’s leave it at that.
2. Vieux Boulogne
Is the smell of socks you take off after running a half marathon disgusting? Then don’t order a Vieux Boulogne, because this cheese stinks worse than all the athletes’ sports socks combined. According to a British study, it is even the smelliest cheese in the world! In France, of course, they see it differently: it’s a fromage de caractère!
3. Tripes à la mode de Caen
There isn’t a single French region where tripes—OFFAL—doesn’t appear on the menu. Simply put: the less desirable parts, the slaughterhouse waste. But don’t say that to lovers of organ meats, because to them this is anything but waste. Les tripes à la mode de Caen is a speciality from Normandy and consists of four different parts of the cow’s stomach + its foot + a calf’s foot. This rustic dish simmers gently for eight hours in cider with a little calvados, vegetables and spices. A delicacy to some, a horror to others.
4. Cuisses de grenouille
The French love frogs’ legs. Correction: a frog’s hind legs, because frogs don’t have buttocks. When prepared well, they taste the way chicken breast should taste: deliciously tender. Especially when they’re fried in butter and garlic (à la Provençale). Eat them with your eyes closed.
5. Boulette d’Avesnes
Another devilish stink bomb of a cheese. In fact, this red cheese washed in beer has such a pungent smell that it’s even been banned from travelling!
6. Pieds de porc
Pig’s trotters, anyone? The French turn slaughterhouse waste into the most—ahum—culinary preparations. Even trotters. A pig’s version is called pieds de porc, but calf’s feet are also on the menu here. That’s called pieds de veau. On holiday in the Rhône? Then watch out for pieds de mouton, or sheep’s feet.
7. Pieds et paquets
Oh, how sweet it sounds. Feet and little parcels. They love it in Marseille: sheep’s feet and parcels made from sheep’s stomach, filled with pork in tomato sauce. Would you rather order that truffade instead?
8. Langue de veau
Calf’s tongue and beef tongue (langue de boeuf) are incredibly fatty and, according to many a French person, incredibly delicious too. They’re often served with something sour, such as sauce piquante, with chopped gherkin.
9. Salade de gésiers
Yep, you ordered a salad. But one with gizzards. In many cases, duck gizzards. Generously scattered over a head of lettuce, decorated with walnuts and drenched in a classic French vinaigrette.
10. Foie gras
Foie gras literally means fatty liver. It’s creamy, sweet and silky smooth. That buttery, soothing texture is unlike anything else. For many people, it’s therefore an absolute delicacy. Foie gras has even been declared part of France’s cultural heritage by law. And yet: merde! The enlarged liver of force-fed ducks (formerly mainly geese) makes this tempting luxury food controversial, to say the least. During the force-feeding process, the animals are fed several times a day through a funnel or soft rubber tube inserted as far as the crop. A fatty corn mash ensures extra-fast growth and the desired yellow colour. Animal cruelty? Of course we’re opposed to that.
11. Ris de veau
Ah! Sweetbreads! The gland of young animals (veau = calf), found on menus all over France. Thymus sweetbreads are particularly popular. Traditionally, sweetbreads are blanched, then sliced and fried or grilled.
12. Escargots
Snails, another beloved French snack. They come in many shapes and sizes. The Burgundy snail, or escargot de Bourgogne, is France’s most gourmet snail. They’re prepared à la Bourguignonne, gratinated with garlic butter. You often eat them from special dishes with deep wells. Once the snails are gone, you can dip your bread in the butter for the ultimate French holiday feeling. Bon appétit!
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