French Food Hacks I’ve Learned While Living Abroad

One of the most life-transforming lessons I’ve learned while living in France is how to have an appreciation for good food. French people love to talk about food! It’s no wonder why when you take a bite of the food here either! When I went back to the U.S to visit family, I missed French food more than I anticipated. I think what I missed more than the food itself though, was just how passionate the people in France get while talking about food. Want to make a connection and get someone who is French to open up? Talk about food! You’ll be amazed and inspired by just how energetic the conversation can become. Here are some food hacks I’ve learned by having many wonderful conversations about cooking while living abroad.

Ganache on pancakes

I remember one of the first times I ate “American food” in France very fondly. A French friend of mine told me that they’d like to make me feel more at home by cooking pancakes for me. To be quite frank, I’m not the biggest pancake fan, but I thought that the gesture was more than endearing. Of course, I said, “I’d love that!”. I went over to their house one morning thinking I was going to get some pancakes made out of a box. It was at this moment that I learned what cooking really means to the French. These pancakes were better than anything I’ve eaten even in a restaurant. I came over a bit early to try and help out. I walked into the kitchen where my friend was whipping eggs whites to make a meringue, sifting flour, and chopping up nuts. All of this was astonishing, but the most impressive part of these sophisticated pancakes for me, was when I looked over and saw a pot of chocolate with chopped hazelnuts mixed in. The pot was covering another pot of boiling water to melt the chocolate. “What’s this?” I asked. “Oh, that? It’s the Ganache,” she replied nonchalantly. Ever since then, when I make pancakes, I put a ganache on top. It tastes delightful, and it also feels like I’m the fanciest person in the world when giving people pancakes with ganache.

How to be a cheese expert

It’s hard to avoid learning about food while living in France. It is so ingrained in the culture. When coming over, I hoped that my cheese knowledge would grow. I wanted to taste, know, and be able to talk about more than just cheddar and swiss! I even considered taking classes. Classes aren’t exactly necessary though, as cheese is such an important part of French culture. You’ll hear people talk about it, see the different types of cheeses in dishes, and they will even be served as a dessert at times. You don’t need a cheese class to become familiar with a variety of them. If you come over to France and live here for a while, in no time you’ll know the difference between Tome, Raclette, and Mont d’Or.

Soy sauce on popcorn

The last food hack I have is not French, but it is one that I learned while living in France. My fiancé is from Japan but his family moved when he was a very young child so he grew up in France. When I met him while living abroad, he also introduced me to all the different kinds of Japanese food. He thinks I’m silly for thinking that this food hack is so extraordinary but it’s one of my favorites that I’ve learned while living abroad. It’s to put soy sauce on your popcorn! Instead of adding only melted butter and salt, add a little soy sauce to your melted butter to make your popcorn extra delicious. I can’t wait to see how you’ll like it. From the moment I learned this hack, I always ask for both butter and soy sauce on my popcorn.

I love seeing the difference in how we connect over food and which ones we gravitate to in each country. If you are interested in this too, here is another article I wrote on foods I found Americans eat that the French don’t understand.

It’s so fun to see how different countries and cultures use food as a way to build rapport. France does a great job of using food to bring people together and I hope that as my cooking and baking skills progress, I’ll be able to do the same.

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