Burgundy

Burgundy is a region where many local favourites date from the middle ages and beautifully cooked food comes in huge portions. Ingredients range from its famous ‘Bresse’ chickens and Charollais beef from east and west of Mâcon, to ‘escargot’ (snails) and ‘cuisse de grenouille’ (frogs legs). Then of course, there is the fabulous Burgundian wine - all ingredients to delight the dedicated ‘Gourmand’.

Perhaps the most famous of dish from this region is Bouef Bourguinonne, cubes of Charollais beef marinated in red wine over-night and then cooked with shallots, garlic and chunky cut vegetables, served in a huge bowl of mashed, creamed potatoes along with a plentiful supply of the same red wine in which it marinated.

Then there is chicken cooked in Chablis (Poulet au Chablis) or Duck breast in red wine (Magret de Canard au vin rouge) and Coq au Vin, a favourite throughout France but a speciality of the Chambertin region of the Côte de Nuits. Nearly all meat and fish dishes are cooked in either white or red wine, or have it added to the sauce (au meurettes).

A speciality, when in season between October and March, is ‘Marcassin farci’. Consisting of young wild boar (sanglier) stuffed with sausage meat, this is a wonderful dish if you are partial to game.

Other famous dishes include escargot à la Bourguinonne - snails in hot garlic and parsley butter, and Frogs legs with a garlic dip and parsley sauce.

Around the Dijon area, freshwater fish of all descriptions are cooked in white wine in a dish called Pauchouse. Cooked with red wine, the dish is known as Matelote. Dijon is also noted for its 'Pain d'epices' or bread made with honey and ginger.

Some local dishes need to be approached with an open mind, such as poached eggs in a red wine sauce, (oeufs pochés en meurette). Look out for Nivernais, another local delicacy consisting of assorted vegetables with glazed onions and carrots usually served with 'Poulet en Matelote' or chicken cooked in red wine with sliced eels'.

The Burgundians have a particular liking for thick soups, almost to the texture of stew. Typical is Potée bourguinonne, usually made from vegetables and pork, but the meat can also be chicken or beef.

There is plenty of choice when it comes to either cow or goat milk cheeses, but they tend to be very seasonal.

For a simple guide to the cuisine of Burgundy, where the local wines are full bodied and 'rich', the food tends to be rich, strong and meaty. Where wines are light and delicate, the cuisine takes on a complementary style. Burgundy is the place to go if you like long, rich meals with a fabulous selection of regional wines.