Escaoutoun Landais

This is an old, traditional dish from the French region called Landes, where Chef Helene Darroze comes from. Escaoutoun landais is a dish similar to the Italian polenta, blended with ewe’s-milk cheese and topped with chanterelle mushrooms lightly sautéed in some duck fat. Pronounced es-squa-TOON, this regional dish is based on corn flour, which, a long time ago, replaced bread in the Landes region, where there were more cornfields than vines.

Like polenta, escaoutoun is traditionally a peasant staple that was a lot more affordable than bread, since corn was more readily available and cheaper than wheat, as in many parts of Europe during that time. Normally, the corn flour is cooked with only water but in her restaurant, chef Darroze uses chicken or poultry stock to give the dish more flavor. Whether you use stock or water, the important thing is that the liquid should be cold when it is mixed in with the corn flour so that the mixture does not turn into glue. When it is well cooked, the texture should be like pâte à choux or choux pastry dough, which is a light paste used to make cream puffs. The ideal consistency is similar to stiffed mashed potatoes.

A rich and creamy often heavy appetizer, this version by Chef Darroze is a bit lighter. She often serves it with wild mushrooms but she varies the toppings at times and serves it with black truffles and hazelnut butter, depending on the season. She uses chanterelle mushrooms for this recipe but other types of mushrooms can also be used such as cepes, oysters, trompettes de mort, porcini or hedgehogs. Peasants often serve this dish with a neck of pig. Other possible toppings include roasted asparagus, grilled sardines, and even fresh chocolates.

Whatever the topping, the escaoutoun has to taste good enough to eat plain. Sprinkling a good amount of shredded Basque sheep’s milk cheese will often do the trick.