Susan Herrmann Loomis - Plat du Jour: French Dinners Made Easy

PLAT DU JOUR

FRENCH DINNERS MADE EASY

SUSAN HERRMANN LOOMIS

THE COUNTRYMAN PRESS

A Division of W. W. Norton & Company

Independent Publishers Since 1923

CONTENTS

CHAPTER 1
Appetizers

CHAPTER 2
Poultry

CHAPTER 3
Seafood

CHAPTER 4
Beef, Lamb, Veal

CHAPTER 5
Pork

CHAPTER 6
Vegetables

CHAPTER 7
Salads

CHAPTER 8
Eggs

CHAPTER 9
Side Dishes

CHAPTER 10
Desserts

CHAPTER 11
Basics

Plat du jour , three familiar words in the French language that seduce, excite, and comfort.

Plats du jour are the dishes you find on handwritten menus outside bistros or cafs, the dishes that beckon everyone inside to sample a restaurants irresistible, mouthwatering menu. They change daily, a litany to the abundance in the French culinary repertoire.

Most plats du jour are classics lifted from the heart of French regional cuisine, dishes that evoke the essence of France, the spirit of farm, terroir, and Grandmre. They remain relevant to chefs worldwide, who continue to refine and adapt them because they are the fundament of cuisine and pleasure, of everything that is right with the world as seen on the plate.

You know many of them, from Boeuf Bourguignon and Blanquette De Veau to Bouillabaisse and Croque Monsieur. Dishes like these reflect the history of France itself and all the permutations of its cuisine. They evoke nostalgia, romance, emotion, and even today, chefs prepare them with reverence as they tweak and create whole new dishes based on the old. This makes for lively variety and flavor and a constantly evolving selection, which you will find within the pages of this book.

Plats du jour are hearty yet elegant, absolutely seasonal, calculated to give pleasure. Each makes a perfect one-pot lunch or dinner along with a ballon or a carafe of red wine and a basket of freshly cut baguette. Yet the plat du jour is always offered as part of a formule that includes a first course or dessert. For every French chef and cook knows that even the heartiest plat du jour is made better with more.

The plats du jour Ive chosen for this book are generous, authentic, delicious touchstones in an ever-changing world. They reflect the classics, the tweaking, my creations, and those of many a chef. They are simple to make, offered with joy, always welcome. Each recipe calls for easily available ingredients, offers substitutions, and includes methods that have been streamlined without sacrificing an iota of quality. As you prepare the dishes, they will teach you, without you even realizing it, the natural economy of the French chef and cook, who relies on the season for inspiration. Each will nourish you, and each will take you to the lively cacophony of the caf and bistro, then on a culinary tour of France and its regions. More than all that, though, even the simplest plat du jour in this book will lend your meal a festive air, whether it be for a crowd or for a busy family that sits down together before returning to whatever activities each is involved in. Why? Because every plat du jour speaks of caring, which includes time in the kitchen preparing dishes with delicious and simple ingredients, those that are in season and are filled with flavor.

Enjoy your journey through Plat du Jour and profit from all the flavors and colors, the side dishes, the first courses, and the desserts. Remember the carafe of wine and the freshly sliced baguette. I wish you all a hearty