The market · Seasonings and ferments · France and the north-west, Southern Europe
Cider
Fermented apple juice. In Normandy, Brittany and Asturias it's a cooking liquid as much as a drink — for mussels, pork, chicken and chorizo.
appley · dry · tart
What to do with it
Classics built on it
AsturianChorizo a la sidraSmoked Asturian chorizo simmered in dry cider until the sausage is soft and the cider has cooked down to a sharp, red, rich sauce.No one here has made it yetNormanMoules à la normandeMussels steamed open in cider with shallots and butter, the juices finished with crème fraîche.No one here has made it yetNormanTripes à la mode de CaenBeef tripe and ox foot cooked for many hours in cider and Calvados with onions, carrots and leeks, in a sealed earthenware pot.No one here has made it yetNormanPoulet vallée d'AugeChicken browned in butter, flamed with Calvados, simmered in cider and finished with cream and mushrooms, sometimes with apples.No one here has made it yetNormanMarmite dieppoiseChannel fish and shellfish — sole, scallops, mussels, prawns — cooked in a broth of leeks and white wine or cider, finished with cream.No one here has made it yet Knowing it
- Where to buy
- Dry, unpasteurised farmhouse cider for cooking; sweet commercial ciders make sauces cloying.
- Worth knowing
- Reduce it by half before adding cream, or the sauce will be thin and sharp.
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