Rare French Beef Breeds

[cabrales]

Paris – Rare Breeds of French Beef

The Figaroscope (March 27-April 2, 2002 edition) offers an article entitled “Is beef in fashion?”.  The article mentions special breeds available at the following Paris restaurants (which I have never visited, except for Maison de ):

(1) Le Christine – Beef of Coutancie (1 rue Christine, 6th 01 40 51 71 64)

This beef is raised like Kobe beef, with cows receiving massages two times a day and taking in beef. However, Figaro notes the restaurant did not inquire how rare or well-done the diner wanted his beef and the serving of the dish left much to be desired. The taste offered “a limited amount of satisfaction”, with the beef being too young.  Cote de boeuf is priced at 62 euros (total price for a serving for two) and faux-fillet is at 23 euros.

(2) Le Galoche d’Aurillac – Salers Beef (41 rue de Lappe, 11th 01 47 00 77 15)

Figaro reports tender meat even if it would have been preferable to have more fat in a “veining” effect. Traditional decor; precise cooking.

(3) Maison de l’Aubrac – Aubrac beef (37 rue Marbeuf, 8th 01 43 59 05 14) ;)

It is open 24 hours (please verify before reliance), and has an impressive wine list that is strong in Languedoc-Rousillon-originated wines. Guigal’s La Turque is available there, of course.  Figaro reports more than 500 crus being included in the wine list. Figaro also notes that the restaurant’s bills are not particularly low, but indicates the quality and cooking of the beef is almost irreprochable.  Aubrac beef is offered in many variations: cote de boeuf for two, entrecote, tartare, etc.  

This is the only restaurant in this post I have visited. I have tasted the tartare several times and liked it. The aligot recommended to me by Steve P is good as well, with its elastic-like qualities highlighted.

(4) Le Saint-Amour – Salers (2 avenue Gambetta in the 20th, 01 47 97 31 26)

An entrecote of Salers beef is described by Figaro as being very well prepared, as large as three of one’s palms and as thick as three fingers. One caveat is that the tartare is machine-prepared. A pave or entrecote of Salers beef is 15.60 euros.

Another place mentioned for sampling beef (no rare breeds described in the article) was, among other things, 59 Poincare, 16th (01 47 27 59 59; supervised Ducasse and described as having a number of beef dishes).

[Bux]

Are these rare breeds relatively new, or should I ask if the attention they are getting is new? It seems that in years gone by, I mostly remember talk of Charolais beef and that was it. In the Aubrac, one sees many posters and billboards extolling the Aubrac race.

[cabrales]

Most of the breeds date from a while back.

They're still not getting as much attention as Charolais, which, even if it's not described as such on the menu, is the beef that one receives at many Paris two- or three-star restaurants (e.g., Ambassadeurs). I am beginning to appreciate Salers more, and continue samplings of Aubrac at Maison d'Aubrac or Maison de l'Abrac (?), in Paris (the tartare is a bit too sweet for my tastes, I am beginning to think -- had it recently with a Domaine Gauby Muntada, sic, 1996 and that was a good combination).  

There are many more French breeds raised for meat, and specimen were everywhere at the Salon Internationale d'Agricole I described a while back.  That salon featured, among other things, the products of Burgundy and had lots of Charolais cows for observation.

On non-French breeds, the Angus Steve P and macrosan ordered at La Trompette (see UK board) was really delicious. I still try to limit beef intake due to mad cow preventative measures, but have been growing increasingly lax about that of late. (I've posted about my concerns about beef-based stock, but that can't be helped in French cuisine.)

[Bux]

I assumed they are not new breeds and really meant to ask if the attention is new, or if I've just noticed it. As I mentioned, you can't ignore the posters in the Aubrac. If mad cow is a concern, and I think it should be, you are correct in noting that many, if not most, sauces are based on beef or veal stock and that many vegetables are cooked in veal stock and that fish aspic for the cold lobster is probably made from calves' feet. I read something in the newspaper this past week about a half dozen cases in France of a new strain of the related disease in humans. My suspicion is that these rare breeds are so well tended that they are unlikely to be getting contaminated feed, or at least less likely than supermarket beef in the U.S., where precautions are far more lax than they are now in France. Nevertheless, I tend not to order just plain beef in France, but I also don't ask if my tripe is from a cow or a pig. I think your concern, as well as your understanding that some things just can't be helped, is reasonable.

[cabrales]

I assumed they are not new breeds and really meant to ask if the attention is new, or if I've just noticed it.

Bux -- On your question, it's hard to tell. My sense is that the French have been eating some of these breeds at home from time to time (especially Salers). I can't tell whether the attention at restaurants is new. The restaurants listed in the original post appear to have been serving rare breeds for a while too.

I was reviewing Pierre Gagnaire's website (not in view of a planned visit, to be clear). On his Spring 2002 menu is "Boeuf, Araignee de Mer et Caviar (Araignee de Mer, Coeur de Filet de Boeuf de Salers au [text not visible], petites quenelles au caviar presse. Galette de ble noir au navets blonds)" (Beef, Spider Crab and Caviar. Spider Crab, Salers Beef filet, pressed caviar (inferior to regular, unclear of English reference). A galette of buckwheat and golden turnip.)

http://www.pierre-gagnaire.com/cdcame.htm

As might be expected, leading restaurants located in regions where certain breeds are raised have used that breed more than usual. Troisgros has had Charolais on the menu for generations. As previously indicated, Charolais may not be as rare a breed as I had originally believed.

http://www.troisgros.fr/anglais/accen.htm

("With such dishes as Steak with Melted Shallots, Beef 'Fleurie' with Marrow, and Poached Sirloin with Porcini Mushrooms and Chinese Vermicelli, each of the three generations has made Charollais beef its own.")

http://www.troisgros.fr/anglais/accen.htm

("beef fillet with fleurie and bone marrow. This classic recipe from the Troisgros brothers' heyday . . . .Roanne is located near Charolais, a region which is famous for its race of bovines.")

Similarly for M Bras and Aubrac beef.  

http://www.michel-bras.com/anglais/cuisine/gout.htm

(Bras speaking of his attachment to the region)

An interesting inquiry would be whether for restaurants in Paris or other large cities where there is not a local breed, rare breeds are appearing more on menus.

[Bux]

I think Charolais beef has been pretty well represented on Burgundian menus for some, if not exactly common. I wonder how much of the attention to the "rare" breeds might be due to mad cow disease. As the disease is traced to the feed, it might be assumed that these rare breeds are more carefully tended and fed a more expensive feed, or allowed to graze. In a supermarket I recalled seeing a display that had the phrase "viande bovine" and I didn't examine it closely at the time, but later wondered if somehow, "boeuf" was a word to be avoided.

[cabrales]

(3) Maison de l’Aubrac – Aubrac beef (37 rue Marbeuf, 8th 01 43 59 05 14) ;)

It is open 24 hours (please verify before reliance), and has an impressive wine list that is strong in Languedoc-Rousillon-originated wines. Guigal’s La Turque is available there, of course.  Figaro reports more than 500 crus being included in the wine list. . . .

The following is an excerpt from the M Bras newsletter for July 2002. As members may know, Laguiole is in Aubrac country.

"On a balsamic plateau, about 1/2 mile (800 m)above sea level, you will find our cattle with black-rimmed eyes. They are descendants of Aubrac stock from a well-defined geographical area, as only a hardy breed shaped by the country could adapt to the rigorous weather of the plateau.

This creation will not revolutionize the world of gastronomy. It is only a simple, heart felt dish I like to prepare for friends. This is a recipe owing more to love than to science. The centerpiece is obviously the Aubrac beef. I remove the piece on the top of the filet, which we call the 'ear.' It is silky and juicy, a choice cut. The position of the potatoes that garnish the meat was inspired by a profile I drew in my book and which, while I was working on it, developed in an unexpected way. The butter, fragrant with the aroma of shallots, absorbs all the flavors and the juices collected in the frying pan. The tastes remain very clear and fluid: meat, potatoes, and butter.

On Sundays, it is always a treat for Gi and I, who are fond of vegetables, to eat a top-grade piece of meat accompanied by a potato puree. Just as I did when I was a teenager, I like to dig a little hole in my puree. I fill it with a pat of slightly salted butter, which melts and spreads into the potato. I find that the hollow is never deep enough to accommodate all the butter!"

[Steve Plotnicki]

Why would anyone care about prized cuts of rare French beef when you can go into you local hypermarche and buy massed produced and hormone injected boeuf hache?

[lizziee]

Steve's comment will only be understood if you have waded through 13 pages of The Fine Dining vs. Cheap Eats thread!

[Bux]

lizziee, I'm not sure anyone's head would be clear enough to understand anything after all 13 pages. For the moment at least, lets assume this meat is much more expensive than the massed produced and hormone injected boeuf hache to be found in the hypermarché. There are those who, having discovered that they usually have to pay more for better quality, assume higher price is always indicative of better quality and they will buy Aubrac beef just because it costs more. Of course there is always a group who will buy it because there's not enough to go around and they must have what others can't have. That rarity will also attract another group of whom I can be less sarcastic, those who want to taste it out of intellectual curiosity at least once. I am likely to be discovered in that group. This is not a simple issue and there are always people who do the right thing for the wrong reasons as well as those whose reasons are sound. Finally, there are those who have tried the beef and find it desirable enough to seek out again.

The sad fact is that it becomes harder and harder to defend French food as the standard bearer when the hypermarchés are full of massed produced and hormone injected dreck. Then again I thought the EU had stricter rules on hormones, or is that only for beef from the U.S.?

It's too easy to separate haute cuisine from the daily food of the French, but I suspect the rise of French cuisine to it's position of prominence (Is that a better or worse term than "dominance" or "superiority?") has largely been tied over the years to the basic diet of the French at large. AJ Liebling and Waverly root did not form their opinions and dedication to French food by touring the three star restaurants, although they may have eventually enjoyed them as well.

[cabrales]

While Aubrac beef is not my preferred rare breed, it is worth sampling at Bras. I didn't consider the Aubrac beef at Bras stunning in the way that Charolais at Troisgros is. I also think Salers is worth sampling (not generally available at the above restaurants, to my knowledge).

I was surprised, upon a recent visit to Maison d'Aubrac in Paris, that the Aubrac tartare is now less tasty for me than before. There were more sweet elements (possibly from Worcheshire sauce) than I remembered. I've moved towards the entrecote at Maison d'Aubrac.

As indicated in the initial post in this thread, 59 Poincare has certain steak dishes. I'd be interested in visiting that restaurant for its historic value alone; the beef would be merely a bonus.