', called ' in
French, is a
buckwheat pancake in
Breton cuisine.
According to legend, the buckwheat pancake was born thanks to a Breton woman spilling buckwheat slop on a hot pebble in the chimney. Small quantities of buckwheat pollen have been found in the peat lands of
Brittany
Brittany ( ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the north-west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica in Roman Gaul. It became an Kingdom of Brittany, independent kingdom and then a Duch ...
that date to the 12th century.
Buckwheat
Buckwheat (''Fagopyrum esculentum'') or common buckwheat is a flowering plant in the knotweed family Polygonaceae cultivated for its grain-like seeds and as a cover crop. Buckwheat originated around the 6th millennium BCE in the region of what ...
agriculture appeared in Brittany at the beginning of the 16th century: its output is irregular and low, but it was not taxed. Buckwheat grows on poor, infertile land and can be harvested three months after sowing, giving the nickname "the 100 days plant". Among many legends about
Anne of Brittany
Anne of Brittany (; 25/26 January 1477 – 9 January 1514) was reigning Duchess of Brittany from 1488 until her death, and Queen of France from 1491 to 1498 and from 1499 to her death. She was the only woman to have been queen consort of Fran ...
, it is said that she developed its agriculture. Currently, the local production of buckwheat cannot supply the 15000 tons consumed per year in France, the preparation of these buckwheat pancakes relies on imports from
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
,
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...
and
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
. A "protected geographic indicator" exists for Breton buckwheat flour and the "Blé noir tradition Bretagne" society consists of more than 800 producers and around ten mills in order to promote buckwheat flour usage (4000 tons per year).
See also
* ''
Blini
Blini (plural ''blinis'' or ''blini'', rarely ''bliny''; pl., Ukrainian: млинці pl., ''mlyntsi''), singular: blin, are an Eastern European crêpe made from various kinds of flour of buckwheat, wheat, etc. They may be served with smeta ...
'' – Eastern European thicker buckwheat pancake
*
Galette
Galette (from the Norman language, Norman word ''gale'', meaning 'flat cake') is a term used in French cuisine to designate various types of flat round or freeform crusty cakes, or, in the case of a Breton galette ( ; ), a pancake made with buck ...
*
List of buckwheat dishes
This is a list of buckwheat dishes, consisting of dishes that use buckwheat as a main ingredient. Buckwheat is a plant cultivated for its pseudocereal, grain-like seeds and as a cover crop. A related and more bitter species, ''Fagopyrum tataricum' ...
* ''
Memil-buchimgae'' – Korean buckwheat pancake
References
Pancakes
Buckwheat dishes
Breton cuisine
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