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French · IV The Method

Pâte à frire

France, the classical kitchen

‹ The Method

I

Origin

The pâte à frire is the batter of the French kitchen, used to coat pieces of fish, meat, vegetable or fruit before they are plunged into hot fat. Larousse Gastronomique treats it among the preparations of the fried course, where it belongs to the classical repertoire of the friture and of the beignet. It is carried by the professional kitchen and the household alike, and its variants, with beer, with yeast, with whisked egg white, are handed down as part of the common craft rather than as the property of any one region.

II

Description

A pâte à frire is a batter of wheat flour (Triticum aestivum), liquid, egg and a little fat or salt, fluid enough to cling to the food in a thin veil and firm enough to set at once in the fat. The liquid may be water, milk or beer, and the batter may be lightened with whisked egg white or raised with yeast, which gives the several types of the classical kitchen. It coats small whole fish, fillets, slices of aubergine, salsify, cauliflower florets, apple rings and similar pieces, and it is also the batter of the sweet and savoury beignet. The coating is not a crust added to the food; it forms around it a thin, brittle shell that shields the interior while it cooks in its own moisture.

III

The Thread

—Both are light batters that protect delicate food in hot oil and leave a thin, crisp shell. Tempura is mixed cold and minimally, with iced water and a lumpy texture, and fried at once, while the French batter is often rested and may carry fat, beer or whisked white. Japanese
—Both coat white fish in a batter, frequently raised with beer, so that the flesh steams inside a crisp envelope. The British batter is thicker and forms a substantial crust, whereas the French pâte à frire is usually thinner and clings as a veil. British
—Both dip vegetables in a seasoned batter and fry them until the coating sets. Pakora batter is made with chickpea flour (Cicer arietinum) and spices, which gives a denser, nuttier shell than the wheat batter of the French kitchen. Indian
IV

Flavour Context

The fried piece is served very hot with lemon, a sauce tartare or a tomato sauce, and sweet beignets with sugar or a fruit purée. Fried food is rich and dry, so it calls for acidity and freshness to cut the fat and refresh the palate. A dry, crisp white wine with good acidity, such as a Muscadet or an Alsace Riesling, or a light beer, answers the oil and clears the mouth between pieces.

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