Entre Les Murs

More Cheese

Some of the fun of the market is found in the rituals of preparation. I bought a poulet fermier (free range chicken) today and watched whilst the cheerful butcher weighed the bird, cut off various undesirable bits, salted and peppered the cavity, then bathed it all with a blowtorch; meanwhile I and the other customers were treated to samples of some of the sausages on offer and chocolate truffles.

But a bit of research will help before venturing into the marketplace. This I discovered when I went a few stalls down to buy some Gruyère. "De Gruyère, si vous plait." I said, but received a blank look in return. My cheese book says that Gruyère is one of the great French cheeses, so it must have been pronunciation. I tried again, annunciating more carefully, but got only a questioning look and a gesture towards the Emmental. My "Gruyère" sounds like Emmental? I dithered some more, and fell back on asking for something fairly strong, whereupon the vendeuse firmly indicated a yellow slab labeled "Beaufort", which looked close enough so I gave up and accepted a large chunk.

Back at home I consulted the cheese book again. It turns out that there are three types of Gruyère: Emmental (sometimes considered its own type), Comté and Beaufort, of which the latter is referred to as "the prince of Gruyères", owing to its use of extremely rich milk. Since I intended it for sandwiches, either of its less pricey cousins would have sufficed; and thus the lesson about research.

posted 22.11.05