beef

[johnycarper]

I am sending this on behalf of my wife who is getting fed up with not being able to cook a good roast beef dinner here,we have tried various joints including several times a roti but to no avail.The meat always seem to come out tough and well done no matter how long she cooks it,any advice would be great to help me have a quite life on sundays.

[Théière]

Oh boy have you any idea what youv'e done now [:)]

[johnycarper]

Hopefully getting some peace and quite and a good roast lunch

[cooperlola]

Make the trip to my village (Nogent le Bernard) and buy a joint from out butcher!

My own experience is that most of the supermarket beef is absolute rubbish compared with properly hung butchers' stuff and the key to a good roast is a good piece of meat, properly prepared, which is what my butcher is supreme at.  But I confess the prices put one off so it's a rare treat thing.   In the Sarthe I've found the pork in particular, and the lamb to a slightly lesser extent (although I've got half a beast in the freezer from my neighbour whose rouge normande is superb, yum) to be far better than the beef unless you can buy really well.

[Loirette]

I agree with Cooperlola.  If you want decent beef, then you have to buy from a butcher.  Our local butcher displays the breed, age and other info for the meat that you are buying.  A rib is good for roasting.

 

 

[Hoddy]

Same here, Loirette. Our butcher even shows the date it was killed and the abbatoir. It is pricey, but worth it from time to time.

Hoddy

[Sunday Driver]

Our local SuperU does a good line in beef ribs with a bit of marbling - always delicious and tender.

We also buy their pork bellies - we slice them into two person portions then freeze. Nice and succulent with good crackling.

 

 

[Pommier]

I think that for roasting you want to chose a piece of meat with a reasonable amount of fat in it - cote de boeuf is a good cut. Then either cook it for a short time and eat it rare, or braise it in gravy if you prefer it well done.

[Jazzer]

I think finding a good butcher is essential. In the UK had a very good butcher who was in the Q guild. Never bought from a supermarket. Here we have found Royal Limousin and Blond D'Aquitaine breeds usually have the best flavour/texture.

[baypond]

French beef isn't hung so has to be eaten very rare, or cooked extremely slowly at a low temperature (in which case it will not be rare). If you are feeling really flush, you can always roast a portion of beef fillet, smothered in garlic, salt,  pepper, some butter and a little olive oil (to stop the butter burning). Should only take 30 mins in a hot oven, and you can control rareness fairly easily. Not cheap but tastes great.

[Frenchie]

[quote user="Théière"]Oh boy have you any idea what youv'e done now [:)][/quote]

[:D][:D][:D]

Jeeezzz

How many times have we already discussed this indeed? [Www]

While you're at it, please mention that our sausages are cr*p; that you can't find salad dressing, that most women are beaten, that we all treat our pets badly, that hairdressers aren't good in France, that we like drinking and driving, that we drive too close to your cars, etc.. Please help me complete the list!!)  [:D]  ........ [;-)]

Hey, no offense intended, just humour!!

[cooperlola]

Ha ha Frenchie!  Although I think supermarket meat in the UK isn't a patch on a butcher's either.

Baypond says French beef is not hung  -  really?  I did not know that.  Honest.

[Bugsy]

[quote user="Frenchie"]

[quote user="Théière"]Oh boy have you any idea what youv'e done now [:)][/quote]

[:D][:D][:D]

Jeeezzz

How many times have we already discussed this indeed? [Www]

While you're at it, please mention that our sausages are cr*p; that you can't find salad dressing, that most women are beaten, that we all treat our pets badly, that hairdressers aren't good in France, that we like drinking and driving, that we drive too close to your cars, etc.. Please help me complete the list!!)  [:D]  ........ [;-)]

Hey, no offense intended, just humour!!

[/quote]

Reg: You forgot writing cheques for 50cent purchases in supermarkets or showing the cashier pictures of the latest grandchild when the queue is half a kilometre long. [Www][kiss][kiss]

.

[Benjamin]

I'm still smiling trying to work out how cooperlola knows her butcher is well hung from her comments in an earlier posting.  [6]

[Frenchie]

[quote user="Benjamin"]I'm still smiling trying to work out how cooperlola knows her butcher is well hung from her comments in an earlier posting.  [6]



[/quote]

All French butchers are, didn't you know ?? [:D][:D][:D]

[Benjamin]

Done a lot of research on the subject then?  [Www]

[Quillan]

I don't think we have ever had a decent bit of beef in France since we got here. We did the supermarkets first then moved on to the butchers even going to the best (and most expensive) one in Quillan. We have tried cooking it like we did in the UK and even the 'French way' (turn your oven on to maximum, wait 30 minutes then stick the beef in for 25/30 min's) and still its as tough or tougher than old boots. So the long and the short of it is that we have given up with beef. It's the same with steak although we have had fillet and it is very good but then theres the price to contend with.

Like somebody has mentioned we go mainly for pork, lamb and chicken. I buy pork when its on offer and in huge quantities. Those pork leg slices are pretty good for the BBQ, season and cook whole then carve at an angle, you can feed about four people with one of these.

I love French sausages and in particular the Toulousian sausage. When I went back to the UK for my mother-in-laws funeral my father-in-law presented me with a full English breakfast one morning with best Walls bangers, it was like eating sawdust but I guess he meant well. The only thing I miss is decent bacon (I have got over withdrawal symptoms from lack of baked beans) but we can go to Iceland just over the border in to Spain and get it.

 

[cooperlola]

[quote user="Benjamin"]I'm still smiling trying to work out how cooperlola knows her butcher is well hung from her comments in an earlier posting.  [6]

[/quote]That is for me to know and for you to keep wondering about.[;-)]

[Frenchie]

[quote user="Benjamin"]Done a lot of research on the subject then?  [Www]



[/quote]

No need, all French women know that... It's a French secret .. [:D]

[osie]

I buy entrecote(10€ / kg) or beef bourguignon(4€ / kg) meat as the entrecote is generally good cooked quickly and the bourguignon is good cooked slowly...

Roasts just dont work... unless you spend alot.... and I have to say the french dont know how to cook it anyway.

They either eat it tough or spend a fortune(40€ /kg) and have a poor cooked roast that is quite enjoyable-ish.

Best bet.. is to buy veal or get lucky

p.s. Entrecote is great cooked on your home fires... with some home fire cooked parsnips and baked pots!!

 

[Frenchie]

[quote user="osie"]I buy entrecote(10€ / kg) or beef bourguignon(4€ / kg) meat as the entrecote is generally good cooked quickly and the bourguignon is good cooked slowly...  Yes
Roasts just dont work... unless you spend alot.... and I have to say the french dont know how to cook it anyway. I think just the same about the English !! [:P]
They either eat it tough We don't have roastbeef tough! We have it pink in the middle !!  or spend a fortune(40€ /kg) and have a poor cooked roast that is quite enjoyable-ish.

Best bet.. is to buy veal or get lucky

p.s. Entrecote is great cooked on your home fires... with some home fire cooked parsnips and baked pots!!

 [/quote]

Oh lala.. Que de préjugés et d incompréhension et de refus d 'ouverture...