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Le Foodist Cooking School, Paris | |
| An informative trip to the market, a fun and interesting time chopping and cooking, and a delicious lunch at the end! | ||
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Le Foodist is a small cooking school not far from the rue Mouffetard. It's in the 5th arrondissement, just a few minutes from the Panthéon. Owner Fred Pouillot is a food enthusiast, and he and his team have put together a variety of classes, ranging from three-course lunches and dinners (preceded by a market visit) to pastry making to wine tasting. Classes are taught in English. Although Fred is French, he lived in the US for many years and speaks perfect English; the rest of the staff are equally capable. I took a market lunch course. We met at the school at 9:00 AM and got to know each other over coffee and croissants, sitting around the lovely table where we would later enjoy our lunch. Fred explained the menu and the shopping that we would do. We set off for the market and learned a lot about the various kinds of cheeses made in France—and there are many! We next visited a fish monger and bought some wonderful mussels to be the first course of our meal.. The main course was a chicken ballotine, served with gratin dauphinois—what Americans call potatoes au gratin, but these were made with lots of cream. After buying the various ingredients at the market, we had a little time to browse and see what else was on offer. French markets are always fun to explore! Then it was back to the school and we set to work in the kitchen.
During the preparation, everyone got to do a variety of tasks. We each prepared an individual chicken ballotine, shaping and seasoning the meat, rolling it, and then wrapping it in food-grade film. While it cooked and the potatoes baked, we made a red wine sauce with mushrooms.
Dessert was Poire Belle Hélène, poached pears served with home made vanilla ice cream and dark chocolate sauce. That meant some of us pealed pears and set them to poach, others whipped up cream and eggs for ice cream, and others melted chocolate for the sauce. One the work was done, we all sat at the table and enjoyed our delicious lunch. Succulent moules marinières, mussels with shallots and other delicate flavors; the chicken and gratin potatoes; and the poire; all accompanied by wine, of course. While we prepared the food, and even more during lunch, Fred talked about the meal and about French cooking. He's a great story teller and loves connecting food and culture. His relaxed and humorous style, coupled with his extensive knowledge, made for an enjoyable afternoon. And I now have recipes that I can reproduce (so far I've only done the pears, which were a great hit with my family). Le Foodist offers a variety of classes. Fred's wife Amanda is the leader of the pastry classes. Want to learn how to make croissants? There's a class for that. Fascinated by those multi-color macarons that have taken over all the patisseries? You can learn how to make them too. Or perhaps you want to focus on French wines, and gain more understanding of where the different wines come from and what pairs well with different foods. There's lots to choose from. And if you want to go even farther afield, Le Foodist offers a week-long cooking class in Provence. And just think: when you prepare a dish for your friends back home, you can say, "I learned how to make this in Paris." Because of the market and seasonal approach and the variety of chefs who teach the classes, each class will be different. This description is to give you an idea of one experience only, and your experience may be very different from mine. Métro: Cardinal Lemoine Le Foodist
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Above, Fred shares some of his knowledge of French cheeses—and then we went into the shop for a sample!
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