Fougasse (pronounced foo-gaas) is a type of bread found in the south of France. Many regions have their own take on this simple yeast bread. Typically, Fougasse is shaped like a grain of wheat, with cuts of dough removed to form a veined leaf-shaped outline.
History has it that this primitive sort of bread originated in Roman times. A simple yeast and flour bread, it was placed in the oven, typically on the hearth in order to test the temperature of the oven. The technique spread with the roman empire, as evidenced in the language, the french fougasse is cousin to the better-known Italian focaccia. Unlike the Italian style, which is often crisp on the bottom, but notably airy and lighter, what makes the French fougasse shine is its crunch!
By cutting out several spaces (see below), this bread maximizes surface area and thus maximizes the amount of crust the bread will have. Biting into a fougasse has a nice crunchy outside, and a doughy nearly wet inside.
To the taste it's distinctly sour inside, and often cooks will use a sourdough style recipe to make the dough. Commonly, fougasse bakers may add additional flavors. The style typical to the famous fougasse of Provence can include olives and a mixture of herbs including rosemary and thyme. In the Ariege, in the mountains of the Midi-Pyrenees where everything is a bit heartier, it often includes lardon (bacon).
One loaf of a lardon fougasse is enough to last a day. It seems as if food inventors in the Ariege thought to themselves, "Can I make it over the mountains with this?" And if the answer was 'yes' it came into existence. This is one hearty bread. Hearty and tasty. Savory bacon mixed with that sour, doughy soft inside, encased in a crunch.
History has it that this primitive sort of bread originated in Roman times. A simple yeast and flour bread, it was placed in the oven, typically on the hearth in order to test the temperature of the oven. The technique spread with the roman empire, as evidenced in the language, the french fougasse is cousin to the better-known Italian focaccia. Unlike the Italian style, which is often crisp on the bottom, but notably airy and lighter, what makes the French fougasse shine is its crunch!
By cutting out several spaces (see below), this bread maximizes surface area and thus maximizes the amount of crust the bread will have. Biting into a fougasse has a nice crunchy outside, and a doughy nearly wet inside.
To the taste it's distinctly sour inside, and often cooks will use a sourdough style recipe to make the dough. Commonly, fougasse bakers may add additional flavors. The style typical to the famous fougasse of Provence can include olives and a mixture of herbs including rosemary and thyme. In the Ariege, in the mountains of the Midi-Pyrenees where everything is a bit heartier, it often includes lardon (bacon).
One loaf of a lardon fougasse is enough to last a day. It seems as if food inventors in the Ariege thought to themselves, "Can I make it over the mountains with this?" And if the answer was 'yes' it came into existence. This is one hearty bread. Hearty and tasty. Savory bacon mixed with that sour, doughy soft inside, encased in a crunch.
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