French Eggs and Egg Recipes

The French use a lot of eggs to cook with and French egg recipes are well known. French chicken eggs are mostly brown and come with their expiration date stamped right on them.

How fresh are they?
In France an egg that is sold as fresh (frais) can supposedly be eaten up to 28 days after it has been laid. An egg that is sold as extra fresh (extra frais) must be less than seven days old.

If you are preparing a recipe that uses raw or barely cooked eggs, you should use an egg that is less than seven days old.

How big are they?
In France eggs are sold according to their size or caliber.

What are they?
In addition to being categorized by their size, French eggs can also claim to be organically produced as well as free range. You will also find quail eggs for sale in France.

Storage
When stocking eggs in the refrigerator, be careful not to place them next to strong smelling items. The odors will pass through the egg shell and flavor the egg.

Cooking with eggs
Always take eggs out of the refrigerator and hour before you are going to use them to cook with.

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French Egg Recipes

Soufflés: These egg recipes can be either sweet or savory and should be served hot from the oven. It is made from egg whites that have been beaten until stiff and into which a sauce is gently folded. A soufflé should be cooked in a special porcelain soufflé dish or in individual dishes (called ramekins). Be sure to preheat the oven and never open the oven door if you are making a soufflé.

Quiches: Can be made with or without crusts. They are made from beating eggs, adding cream and other ingredients and baking in the oven. Here are four recipes to try: quiche Lorraine recipe, Munster cheese quiche, salmon quiche recipe, and vegetarian quiche recipe. You might consider this classic onion pie recipe a quiche as well.

Egg Terrines: Terrines are layered dishes that make a pretty entree for an elegant meal. They are usually served cold and are often made with eggs. Try my vegetarian terrine.

Omelets: Omelets are very popular in France. They are usually served as a meal rather than at breakfast time. For best results you should have a special omelet pan with a thick bottom and raised sides. There are recipes for both sweet and savory omelets.

Mousses: Mousses are similar to soufflés in that you incorporate a sauce into beaten egg whites. However, you do not cook the resulting mixture. A mousse can be either sweet or savory. Here's an easy chocolate mousse recipe and a strawberry mousse recipe.

Oeufs Poches: You'll find lots of nice French recipes using poached eggs. Poaching an egg really lets the egg shine through and is a good idea if you are counting calories. Here you can learn a basic poached eggs recipe (all the hows and how nots of poaching eggs) as well as some French ideas for enjoying them.

Oeufs sur le plat (How to Fry a French Egg): I just have to share this with you because I find it hilarious. According to my LaRousse de la Cuisine to make a fried egg you should

• Break the egg onto a plate.
• Slide it into a special pan made just for one egg in which you have melted butter.
• Cook it for about two minutes on the stove top.
• Put it in the oven to finish cooking.

Now that's really complicating what I thought was a simple thing. I also heard a French chef on a cooking show recommending that a fried egg should be cooked as slowly as possible - up to 30 minutes! While you're waiting for your egg to cook, why not try one of my easy French recipes?

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