Fricot is a traditional
Acadian dish. Fricot is such an important part of Acadian food culture that the call to eat in
Acadian French
Acadian French () is a variety of French spoken by Acadians, mostly in the region of Acadia, Canada. Acadian French has seven regional accents, including Chiac and Brayon.
Phonology
Since there was relatively little linguistic contact with F ...
is "''Au fricot!''"
The main ingredients consist of
potato
The potato () is a starchy tuberous vegetable native to the Americas that is consumed as a staple food in many parts of the world. Potatoes are underground stem tubers of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'', a perennial in the nightshade famil ...
es,
onion
An onion (''Allium cepa'' , from Latin ), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus '' Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion which was classifie ...
s, and whatever meat was available, cooked in a stew and topped with
dumpling
Dumplings are a broad class of dishes that consist of pieces of cooked dough (made from a variety of starchy sources), often wrapped around a filling. The dough can be based on bread, wheat or other flours, or potatoes, and it may be filled wi ...
s. The common meats used were
chicken
The chicken (''Gallus gallus domesticus'') is a domesticated subspecies of the red junglefowl (''Gallus gallus''), originally native to Southeast Asia. It was first domesticated around 8,000 years ago and is now one of the most common and w ...
(''fricot au poulet''),
clam
Clam is a common name for several kinds of bivalve mollusc. The word is often applied only to those that are deemed edible and live as infauna, spending most of their lives halfway buried in the sand of the sea floor or riverbeds. Clams h ...
s (''fricot aux coques''),
rabbit
Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also includes the hares), which is in the order Lagomorpha (which also includes pikas). They are familiar throughout the world as a small herbivore, a prey animal, a domesticated ...
(''fricot au lapin des bois''),
beef
Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). Beef can be prepared in various ways; Cut of beef, cuts are often used for steak, which can be cooked to varying degrees of doneness, while trimmings are often Ground beef, grou ...
, or
pork
Pork is the culinary name for the meat of the pig (''Sus domesticus''). It is the most commonly consumed meat worldwide, with evidence of pig animal husbandry, husbandry dating back to 8000–9000 BCE.
Pork is eaten both freshly cooke ...
. When chicken was used, it was traditionally an older chicken, since an egg-laying chicken would have been too precious to cook. This accounts for the long cooking time, as an older chicken would have had tougher meat.
In lean times, a meatless fricot would be made. ''Fricot a la belette'' was one term for this, which means "weasel stew". The reference being made is that the cook is as sly as a weasel for leaving out the meat. In the opposite vein,
Prince Edward Island
Prince Edward Island is an island Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. While it is the smallest province by land area and population, it is the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...
Acadians use the term ''fricot a la bazette'' which means "stupid cook's stew", implying that the meat was forgotten.
The word ''fricot'' has its origins in 18th century
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
where it was used to mean a
feast
A banquet (; ) is a formal large meal where a number of people consume food together. Banquets are traditionally held to enhance the prestige of a host, or reinforce social bonds among joint contributors. Modern examples of these purposes inc ...
. The following century, it had evolved to mean "meat stew", and later still it became used to refer to prepared food.
See also
*
List of stews
This is a list of notable stews. A stew is a combination of solid food ingredients that have been cooked in liquid and served in the resultant gravy. Ingredients in a stew can include any combination of vegetables, such as carrots, potatoes, bea ...
*
List of Canadian inventions and discoveries
Canadian inventions and discoveries are objects, processes, or techniques—invented, innovated, or discovered—that owe their existence either partially or entirely to a person born in Canada, a citizen of Canada, or a company or organization ...
*
Canadian cuisine
Canadian cuisine consists of the cooking traditions and practices of Canada, with regional variances around the country. First Nations and Inuit have practiced their culinary traditions in what is now Canada for at least 15,000 years. The adve ...
References
External links
Acadien Fricot History
Acadian cuisine
Stews
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