French Chicken Recipes

The French, as you may know, are passionate about food. And this extends to chickens. I was once at a French dinner party where chicken was discussed for over an hour. (I have subsequently learned that to discuss food extensively at the French dinner table is considered rude, but at the time I was amused at how heated up everyone got about the subject.)

The complaint that a lot of people had that night is that chicken had no taste anymore. Because of the increasingly industrialized methods used to produce poultry, the resulting mead was becoming more and more bland.

In France, we have a choice of poultry quality at the grocery store. As the qualtiy and taste goes up so does the price - by as much as three to four times. Here are the categories used in France to classify chickens:

• Classe A. Your everyday chicken raised in cramped quarters and fed industrial flour (whatever that is and I'm not sure you want to know).

• Red Label. A Label Rouge is the next step up. It is at least 12 weeks old.

• Farmer's Red Label. (Label Rouge Fermier) Here's a bird that has had a bit of care. Raised on grain and in the open air. It's flesh will be white or yellow depending on wheter it ate wheat or corn.

Here are a few of my favorite French chicken recipes, all of them easy of course.

Basque Chicken
Basque Chicken, or Poulet à la Basquaise, is a very easy French recipe using lots of fresh bell peppers. It can be prepared and cooked in less than an hour and is delicious served with rice.

Chicken Fricassee
Here's an easy and rich chicken recipe flavored with tarragon. Perfect for when you're having company or perhpas just craving something a bit more substantial.

Chicken Cordon Bleu Recipe
Chicken Cordon Bleu is made from rolled chicken, ham and cheese. This recipe calls for baking the rolls, and includes a shallot cream sauce to serve alongside.

Chicken Dijon Recipe
Chicken cooked with a mustard cream sauce and maybe a few mushrooms. You'll be surprised to see how the taste of the Dijon mustard mellows with cooking.

Coq au Vin
Here's the famous French recipe for chicken cooked in wine. The name actually means rooster in wine, but chickens are used more often these days.

Couscous Recipe
This recipe features spicy sauteed chicken along with merguez sausages and vegetables on a bed of fluffy coucous - a North African specialty that is very popular in France.

Moroccan Chicken Recipe
This recipe is a testament to north African influences in French cuisine. The chicken is cooked with preserved lemons and olives to succulent tenderness. You can use a tagine or a Dutch oven to prepare this.

Tarragon Vinegar Chicken
Tarragon is a fresh herb you will find frequently in French recipes. It's strong flavor goes especially well with chicken. This simple recipe puts tarragon flavored vinegar to good use.

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