On French Food Culture

Every country has its own special diet, which also reflects its culture. As a world-recognized food kingdom-France, do you know the exquisite food characteristics and culture of France? French food is actually very unique. Let's learn about a country by learning about French food culture.

Next, let's study together!

French food culture and its causes

First, the culture of dishes.

Exquisite seasonings with simple dishes. French cuisine pays attention to ingredients, cooking time, collocation of dishes, freshness of selected materials, diversity of dishes in different regions, and delicacy, rationality and artistry of cooking, which are above other western foods. Commonly used spices include: thyme, rosemary, laurel, parsley, tarragon, nutmeg, saffron, lilac, and hundreds of sauces, which not only pay attention to the subtle differences in taste, but also consider the differences in color. Compared with a wide variety of ingredients, there are only a dozen dishes. The order of ordering is: cold dish or soup is the first course. Although there are many kinds of "first courses" on the menu, you can only choose one. There will be a loaf of bread before serving. After eating, the waiter will help you remove the plate and then serve the second course. The second course is soup, delicious French soup, thick broth, light vegetable soup and delicious seafood soup. The third course is the main course of a meal. The main course is all kinds of "ribs", such as chicken chops, fish chops, steak and pork chops. This so-called steak is clean meat with bones and thorns removed, and then poured with a unique juice, which is delicious and convenient to eat. Then there is dessert, which can be fruit, coffee, cake or ice cream. French specialties include Marseille's "Provence Fish Soup", foie gras, Paris lobster, red wine pheasant, chicken liver steak, roasted snail and so on.

Second, catering culture.

The French attach great importance to the etiquette of dining, and the arrangement of tableware is one of the contents of food culture. In France, the simplest way to place tableware is: the plate is placed in the middle of the front, the napkin is placed in the plate, the fork is placed on the left side of the plate, and the knife and fork are placed on the right side. In front of the plate, from left to right, there are water cups, red wine glasses and white wine glasses. The French not only pay attention to dining etiquette, but also pursue the emotional appeal of dining. The French even gave the philosophical meaning of eating at the same table, and regarded eating at the same table as an elegant pleasure and enjoyment to connect feelings and make friends. A world-class gourmet once said, "You can judge the overall character of this country by feeling the dining atmosphere on the table." Therefore, the attitude of the French towards food is not only to fill their stomachs, but also to enjoy life. It takes four or five hours to enjoy a formal French dinner, from appetizers, seafood, meat, cheese to dessert. Although the procedures are complicated, what matters is not how many dishes are eaten, but how to fully enjoy the high-class atmosphere of the restaurant and appreciate the collocation of tableware and food while tasting delicious food.

Third, coffee culture.

Coffee culture is also a major feature of France. Starting from 1686, businessmen from Sicily, Italy, came here and set up the first cafe. Cafes in Paris have been booming. Inside and outside Paris, sidewalks, squares and gardens can be seen almost everywhere, and business is booming. Coffee is inseparable from French life, from croissants and milk coffee for breakfast to afternoon tea for French office workers. Coffee is accompanied by French life, so it is not surprising for coffee shops all over the world. French coffee culture has a long history, and it is not as simple as eating, drinking and drinking. A cup of coffee plus an afternoon of sunshine and time is a typical French coffee. What matters is not the taste, but the casual attitude and behavior. French people pay attention to the environment and mood when drinking coffee. They read and write at the small coffee table on the roadside, chatting and killing time. Since the last century, cafes have often become the center of social activities, clubs for intellectuals to debate issues, and even become typical symbols of French society and culture. White tables, blue coffee cups, awnings fluttering in the wind, busy waiters and, of course, leisurely organ are all characteristics of French cafes. These cafes were born in Place de la Concorde, Champs Elysé es, Montmartre and Mont panas, and then went to glory. The new trend of thought of French literature and art took root here. These cafes also witnessed the French culture from germination to prosperity.

Fourth, wine culture.

French wine culture grows and develops with the history and civilization of France. Wine culture has penetrated into all levels of French religion, politics, culture, art and life, and is closely related to people's lives. As a daily necessity of French people, wine has become an indispensable part of French food culture. As a major wine producer in the world, France has 65,438+00 wine producing areas, with a wide variety, among which Bordeaux and Champagne are the most famous in the world. At the dinner table, the French also pay great attention to the collocation of wine and vegetables, such as drinking a light aperitif before meals and drinking white wine or rose wine when eating salads, soups and seafood; Drink red wine with meat and a little brandy or liqueur after meals. Champagne is used to celebrate.

Fifth, cheese culture.

General de Gaulle once lamented: "Who can manage a country with 246 kinds of cheese?" In fact, there are currently 487 kinds of cheese in fromage, which means that French people can eat different kinds of cheese every day, 365 days a year. Therefore, cheese is also a must-have item for every meal on the French table. There are roughly eight kinds of fromage: fresh cheese, soft cheese with flower skin, soft cheese with washed skin, blue cheese, goat cheese, immature hard cheese, mature hard cheese and melted cheese. Eating cheese is also an art, and the correct collocation method can better feel its rich flavor. Generally speaking, mild cheese must be accompanied by mild wine; Salty cheese should be paired with strong red wine. French bread with crisp texture should be selected for fresh and first-cooked cheese, and rich and aged cheese is suitable for whole wheat bread with heavy taste. The formation of French cuisine and its unique food culture are the products of many factors.

The main reasons are as follows:

1, historical and economic conditions

Long-term cultural, lifestyle and economic conditions have developed the dietary traditions in various parts of France. Burgundy's rich meat dishes and cream sauce are not only attributed to the Excellence of Burgundy's cattle industry, but also to the economic prosperity of this area for centuries. On the other hand, mountainous areas are conducive to making hard cheese, which can be preserved for a long time. Historically, in areas with limited economy, most families lived on animal husbandry, which led to various food production system projects.

It is closely related to French nationality.

The French attach great importance to diet. A French chef once famously said, "Finding a new dish is more beneficial to human beings than finding a new star." For them, food is not only a fragment of life, but also an attitude and even a basic art of life. This is the reason why French food is enduring. In addition, the romantic feelings of the French people have created many romantic and wonderful life forms in the world, especially for French aristocrats, whose characteristic in their bones is luxury enjoyment. In banquets, hunting and other activities, red wine is essential, which promotes the formation of a long-standing wine culture. Therefore, the world-famous French cuisine cannot be separated from this nation's unremitting pursuit of food.

French cuisine enriches the learning of others.

France is adjacent to Italy, Spain, Germany and Britain, which is conducive to French cooking. In A.D. 1533, when Italian Princess Catherine de Medici married Crown Prince Henry II of France, she brought 30 chefs to introduce new food and cooking methods to France. The French combined the advantages of cooking in both countries and gradually developed them. Louis XIV creatively launched a cooking competition, and chefs competed to perform and show their unique skills. /kloc-in the 0 th and 7 th centuries, France learned from Italy to use knives and forks, which initially formed the present western etiquette. After two or three hundred years of unremitting efforts, shine on you finally surpassed Blue. French cuisine has conquered gourmets all over the world and become the representative of western food in Europe and America.

In recent years, France has been hit by the economic recession and the change of young people's eating habits. The overall price and standard of traditional precious and exquisite food have a downward trend. Fewer and fewer French people are willing to pay astronomical prices just for a meal. Michelin and Gott Mi You, two authoritative French food critics, began to advocate a new food culture with good quality and low price. Many restaurants that used to be unattainable tried to cut prices sharply to attract more diners. For friends who want to taste French food, it is not an unattainable thing to go to an authentic French restaurant and enjoy a perfect meal of wine and food. No matter how modern the society is and how avant-garde people's thoughts and behaviors are, food is always a traditional and ancient art of a country, a reflection of a country's cultural life and a window to understand foreign cultures.