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The section “Les petits dishes dans l’screen” of 13 Heures, Saturday October 22, takes you to the Vaucluse to taste a fruit with firm flesh, eaten mainly cooked: the quince.
When its skin is very yellow with a fine down, it means that its skin is ripe. Cultivated for 4,000 years, the cousin of the pear, the quince, is back in fashion. It is only after cooking that it reveals its aromas and seduces chefs. In Cavaillon (Vaucluse), we have been arboriculturists for four generations. “We have very full branches, we have very good harvests for this year”, rejoices Gérald Gardiol, quince producer. On the decline, production resumed ten years ago with the growing appetite of consumers for ancient fruits.
Quince can now be found on all the stalls in Vaucluse. “I also take them into account”, says a woman. The region’s young chefs are bringing quince up to date. Hugo Loridan-Fombonne, chef of the Château des Fines Roches restaurant, cooks the quince in the kitchen. He adds a pinch of chilli Espelette in the cooking, then he prepares small tatin tarts on a salted caramel. The quince will accompany a poultry supreme. “The dish is excellent. This mixture of sweet and salty is very good”appreciates a consumer.