Le Cordon Bleu famously began in Paris before setting sail to bring its wisdom to the rest of the world. In many ways, this is quite a fitting origin story: Just as the school began life in France, many international cuisines owe their trademarks, flourishes and cooking techniques to the French.

In fact, French cooking techniques - from basic to advanced, from classic to modern - might be the most transferable of any culinary disciplines.

From slow-cooked meat in a burrito, to stock made from scratch in your favourite noodle soup; from street food to Michelin-star restaurants, chefs are using French cooking styles in kitchens around the globe.

We talked to some of Le Cordon Bleu’s Master Chefs about French cooking techniques that can transfer to other styles. They also shared a few cooking tips, before discussing regions where French cuisine has its greatest influence.

1.Braising

This is a long, slow cooking method - suitable for tougher meats as it produces beautifully tender results. This style of cooking is incredibly popular as it uses lower-cost ingredients. The results are perfect fillings for Bao buns and tacos which commonly include dishes like slow-braised pork and beef brisket.

2. Flambéing

Flambéing is used in the preparation of countless cocktails, including the iconic Cosmopolitan. From kitchens to cocktail bars – chefs and bartenders love the showmanship of this French cooking technique.

3. Poaching

Poaching at low temperatures using the sous-vide technique is suited to almost any ingredient from the obvious (meat, fish, fruit and brunch staples like poached eggs) to the quirky (pickles, gummies, egg nog). Also, poaching or cooking in liquid is one of the great arts of Chinese cooking. There are many different poaching styles, including master-stocks, red-braising, white-cut and salt-watering.

4. Sautéing

Sautéing is all about preparing food quickly. Ingredients are sliced thinly and tossed in a pan using minimal oil. It’s a perfect technique for creating a quick vegetable packed meal like (you guessed it) stir fry.

5. Broiling/Grilling

A health-conscious technique using minimal fat, this is supported by the new wave of Indian street food restaurants where it is more about grilling or searing its ingredients using tasty flavour combinations - rather than using heavy and rich sauces.

6. Fermentation/Pickling

These techniques are hitting a revival and are most prevalent across Scandinavian and Nordic countries, especially in restaurants.

7. Making Stock: The Most Transferable Skill

Perhaps the most fundamental or transferable French cuisine skill is making a good stock: If you get this basic preparation right, then a good stock will elevate any dish you choose to make.

Once you hone this technique of precise flavour extraction, with just a few tweaks to the ingredients, your stock can become a fish fumet, a Dashi, a Ramen, a bone broth or a vegan Pho…the culinary opportunities are endless, international and truly mouth-watering.

It’s no wonder that stocks and broths are seeing a resurgence, perhaps even linked to a growing interest in healthy cuisine. With a rise in Pho, ramen and bone broths in restaurants, their menus are not only appealing but also offer added health benefits and healing properties.

Cooking skills can all be learned, with the right combination of passion, graft and discipline. However, it’s important to get off on the right foot: Some budding cooks get so caught up in the process that frequent tasting can get overlooked.

The most common mistake in cuisine prep is not to taste enough as you go. Taste is king! The techniques taught are just the stepping stones in creating the flavour. To develop your palate, taste as you cook to understand how dishes and food evolves in its journey to becoming a complete, finished dish!

One more tip: Try to avoid adding too much liquid when braising meat. Some cooks confuse braising with boiling. The meat should not be completely submerged in liquid, but just enough to provide moisture or produce a rich, thick and flavourful sauce at the end.

Because of France’s history, its cultural influence and the shifting sands of world migration, France has had a profound influence on international cuisine.

Here is a quick tour of kitchens, tables and eateries around the world that reflect a French influence.

Mexican

Many of Mexico's sweet breads have been influenced by French immigrants. Additionally, Mexican Cuisine is a nice blend of the indigenous and Spanish cuisine too.

When it comes to pastries, the French introduced the pastry techniques that paved the way for Mexican desserts. The Mexican ‘orejas’ are akin to the French ‘palmier’. Similarly, Flan is known to most visitors as a Spanish or Mexican dessert, but the name itself actually comes from the Old French ‘flaon,’ as does its main components.

Vietnamese

The link between French and Vietnamese food stems from French colonization during the 19th century. This is an unlikely marrying of cuisines with the Vietnamese revered for their healthy and colourful cuisine and French for their butter and cream!

However, the Vietnamese absorbed the French influence and integrated it into their own lifestyle. For example, coffee is more accessible in Vietnam than surrounding areas as it was imported by the French earlier on. While the French serve their coffee hot, the Vietnamese have it cold and with sweetened, condensed milk.

Bread is not especially common in East Asia, but when the French arrived in Vietnam, they came with baguettes. The Vietnamese adapted this bread to include rice flour (for a thinner and crispier crust) and began using it in their local cuisine; perhaps most famously the bánh mì – a baguette filled with pickles, chilli, cucumber, coriander and sweet pork or duck.

Bún Ốc is a noodle soup dish containing vermicelli and probably one of the most renowned ingredients in traditional French cooking; sea snails. Its use here makes a delicate and always carefully seasoned noodle soup.

The fusion of Vietnamese noodles and herbs with a French beef broth is likely the basis for the original phở. In addition, the word for the soup itself has French roots. The French word ‘pot-au-feu’ literally translates to ‘pot in the fire’. A pot-au-feu is traditionally made by boiling beef bones, meat and vegetables in water.

Italian

The ties between Piedmont and south western France have always been strong.

Turin, North Italy is the home of ‘finanziera,’ a butter-infused sweetbread stew, enriched with porcini and a hint of Marsala wine. It’s as tasty as it sounds and is very similar to the French ‘ragout financière’.

’Fonduta,’ a creamy, warm concoction of cheeses and white wine enjoyed with cold cuts, bread and boiled potatoes, is typical not only of Turin, but also of the whole Alpine area of Piedmont, as well as Valle D’Aosta. Indeed, Italian ‘fonduta’ is sister to the French ‘fondue Savoyarde’ that gets its name from the homonymous French region where the Savoias of Turin had originated from.

German

One area of Germany has been owned by both France and Germany in the past: The Alsace region. Alsace Lorraine, wedged between Germany and France (currently ruled by France), is heavily influenced by both cuisines and as such, their local dishes are renowned in Germany and France.

The Alsatian culinary claim to fame is Foie Gras, a light, flavourful pate of duck or goose liver. In Alsace Lorraine, many farms still produce the liver dish, using their own geese.

Quiche Lorraine, a rich egg and ham open tart, hails from the Lorrainers. Munster-Gerome cheese is from both areas of the region and is best displayed with the simple presentation of en robe des champs (potatoes boiled with their skins) and cumin seeds on the side - a nice French/German fusion.

The culinary techniques used to prepare food in Germany are by and large the same as in other Western cultures. Dünsten, which is stewing in its own juice with a little fat and some liquid like wine, stock, or simply water added, is perhaps the method most commonly used for vegetables and meat. It combines dry heat for roast flavours with wet heat to tenderize and yield some sauce. This is also the case with schmoren (braising), most often used for ragouts, goulash, and large cuts of meat: The meat is browned, and then some vegetables like carrots, celeriac, and onions are added and lightly sautéed as well before the ablöschen, when a little liquid is added. Then a lid goes on the pan and the meat is slowly finished, often in the oven, where it yields the gravy deemed essential for a traditional ‘real’ meal with dumplings or potatoes!

Just as French cooking styles have travelled from restaurant to restaurant, port to port and table to table, so too have its students. If you can master the essentials, French cooking techniques can be the basis for a world of culinary experiences, and maybe a new vocation.

Old-world cooking techniques have a wonderful sense of tradition. Whether you’re braising meat for your chilli; making stock for ramen noodles; or preparing a Vietnamese dessert, it’s comforting to know that you’re continuing the work started in busy Parisian kitchens all those years ago.

 

Le Cordon Bleu has been training everyone from school graduates to career changers in a range of disciplines for over a century. Find out more information about our world-famous cookery courses or get inspired from reading some of our alumni success stories.