Daube du Gardian

[jackal10]

In Nimes (Languedoc/Carmargue) at the weekend (conference) I had the local speciality of "La Gardian", a tender long-cooked beef stew (Daube) with carrots, olives etc. The beef was fork tender, but not falling apart. Delicious, especially when washed down with copious amounts of the local Costieres des Nimes rouge.

Can anyone help with the recipe in English?

Also the origin of the neme. I have variously heard it translated by the natives as "Ox-keeper's stew" and "Guardian of the orphan children".

[essvee]

I believe that one was traditionally made with bull instead of steer. The long cooking made it palatable. I may be wrong.

As to the recipe, almost any good French cookbook has several daube recipes. I'm very fond of Wolfert's The

Cooking of SW France. Wells' Bistro Cooking too. Richard Olney and Elizabeth David will provide some serious back in the day recipes. Good luck.

[jackal10]

Thanks. I can make daubes, bourgignons, gabures etc.

What I wanted to know was what made this one special?

[Wolfert]

I think it is a ragout or daube called a gardiane in the camargue dialect. It is made with a particular steer meat cooked in red wine, most likely a costieres from nimes. You judge a great gardiane if it has a very thick sauce.

[Jonathan Day]

I've seen a number of recipes for Gardiane, all of which call for "taureau" (bull) as the meat.

I'll translate one: take 2 kg of bull meat, cut in small pieces; marinate the meat for 2 days in 2 bottles of red wine (the recipe suggests Châteauneuf-du-Pape rouge 1985, domaine des Melagnes) and salt, pepper, onions, garlic, carrots, parsley. Drain, dry and brown the meat, then cover it with the marinade and cook on a slow fire for 2-3 hours. Serve with Camargue rice and more of that Châteauneuf-du-Pape.

Some recipes call for olives to be added, as well.

[essvee]

Sorry, jackal. Didnt meant to come off as condescending.