# What to buy in France?



## Friant (Feb 10, 2008)

We are off to France later this week, firstly for a dash into Belgium for cigarettes (bad habit, not mine!) then to pick up some wine.
What else is good value at the moment please?


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## 91502 (May 1, 2005)

Nothing is cheap in France anymore except wine and fuel but just enjoy being there


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## Grizzly (May 9, 2005)

We don't do last minute shops in France any more. We can get pretty nearly everything we want locally, including French cheeses from an excellent local cheese shop, and for less than we'd pay in France. 

One thing I do stock up on, if I remember, are cartons of Knorr Bechamel sauce. The French ones seems to be nicer-tasting and they are extremely useful shortcuts when cooking in the van. 

G


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## tyreman1 (Apr 18, 2008)

William Saurin tinned meals available in most of the large supermarkets are fetching twice the price on amazon......stock up and make a fortune.


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## bognormike (May 10, 2005)

bonne maman jam
coffee - the real stuff is lots cheaper over there, for some reason they don't like instant! :lol:


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## HermanHymer (Dec 5, 2008)

Baguettes and croissants
Charcuterie (my favourites - jambon de Bayonne and Rosette brand Saucisson Sec or brawn in vinaigrette) - see what appeals at the deli counter
Escargot - prepared and frozen (supermarket)
Toulouse sausage/merguez 
Veal
Duck breasts, 
French and Belgian biscuits
Cooked pink prawns from the fish counter
Fruit tarts (buy from patisserie preferably - supermarket stuff can be a few days old)
Spirits and liqueurs - try the local fortified wine products like Pineau de Charentes. Or Calvados.

Trawl the markets and the supermarkets. Eat yourself silly but don't bother to take anything home it doesn't taste as good. Savour the memories.


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## Grizzly (May 9, 2005)

Thanks Viv, forgot the confit de canard. We tried the supermarket own brand this year ( Carrefour, tin of 4) and they were very good. The duck fat is almost as good as the meat as it makes wonderful roast potatoes and keeps in the fridge forever.

G


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## HermanHymer (Dec 5, 2008)

Grizzly said:


> Thanks Viv, forgot the confit de canard. We tried the supermarket own brand this year ( Carrefour, tin of 4) and they were very good. The duck fat is almost as good as the meat as it makes wonderful roast potatoes and keeps in the fridge forever.
> 
> G


That's it! Thank you! I was trying to think of Confit but I couldn't get the word out of the brain cellar! Anyone who travels with me would have a gastronomic tour. That was my short list!

Oh yes... if you see any fresh, new season garlic in Normandy... buy a string of heads, it's out of this world!


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## 91502 (May 1, 2005)

http://www.frenchclick.co.uk


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## Rapide561 (Oct 1, 2005)

*France*

Washing powder, Le Creuset saucepans

Russ


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## salomon (Apr 20, 2011)

Factory shops. There are loads. Pick a brand you know and like and visit them. Some are rubbish but others are outstanding.
I am a big fan of the porcelain outlets in and around Limoges. Raynaud plates which retail around €55 .....for € 2.50. Cant go wrong with that.

Veal, duck and rabbit we always used to take back.
Along with huge muscet de Provence pumpkins and whole peppercorns.


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Leffe Blonde (nearly half the cost of UK)

Morbier
Brie de Melun
Brie de Meaux
Comte
Beaufort 

Mouse de Canard

Decent Campagne bread and French butter!

Sorted!


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## p-c (Oct 27, 2007)

De-ionised water. A present for my wife to use in her iron! About a third of the price here, last time I checked.
p-c


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## teemyob (Nov 22, 2005)

Check Here


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## vicdicdoc (May 14, 2005)

Whilst in a small deli in the dordogne we noticed that they had tins of chicken's testicles . . Sorry, we didn't sample them i so can't say whether it's worth stocking up to bring back to UK.


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## fatbuddha (Aug 7, 2006)

we always bring back

rabbit - bloody hard to find in the UK unless you have a decent butcher handy (we don't)
pastis - much cheaper than the UK and a bigger choice of brands (and they sell 1.5l bottles... [hic])
Teisseire fruit syrups - sold in most supermarkets but hard to get hold of in the UK. if you've never tried them you should - great for making soft drinks up. and there's a huge range of flavours, most of which you won't see over here.


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

> *fatbuddha wrote: *]we always bring back
> 
> rabbit - bloody hard to find in the UK unless you have a decent butcher handy (we don't)
> pastis - much cheaper than the UK and a bigger choice of brands (and they sell 1.5l bottles... [hic])
> Teisseire fruit syrups - sold in most supermarkets but hard to get hold of in the UK. if you've never tried them you should - great for making soft drinks up. and there's a huge range of flavours, most of which you won't see over here.


What you on about Fats? Rabbit! Hard to find! There are millions of the little sods up here. I can lean out of the bedroom window and blast them away!

Mrs D has put a blanket ban on killing Bunnies though on the account of them being a bit cute and cuddly. Bloody townies!


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## fatbuddha (Aug 7, 2006)

barryd said:


> > *fatbuddha wrote: *]we always bring back
> >
> > rabbit - bloody hard to find in the UK unless you have a decent butcher handy (we don't)
> > pastis - much cheaper than the UK and a bigger choice of brands (and they sell 1.5l bottles... [hic])
> ...


that's OK for you country folk to say that but us townies have to get someone to blast the little feckers for us. I have toyed with buying an air rifle and getting some "target practice" in on some fields locally but CBA with the expense and getting landowner permissions. when we move back to the wilds, I will get a rifle then


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## pippin (Nov 15, 2007)

Vicdicdoc: 

"chicken's testicles" "les testicules de poulet"? Vraiment? 

How do they find them - I thought chicken-sexing was a fine art!


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## Zebedee (Oct 3, 2007)

No Pippin, it's a find art! :lol: :lol:


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## nicholsong (May 26, 2009)

What you on about Fats? Rabbit! Hard to find! There are millions of the little sods up here. I can lean out of the bedroom window and blast them away!

Mrs D has put a blanket ban on killing Bunnies though on the account of them being a bit cute and cuddly. Bloody townies![/quote]

Barry

As soon as I saw 'fats' post my mind conjured up you and a shotgun - then I scrolled down :lol: :lol: :lol:

I was brought up in the War (NO! WW II) during meat rationing, so rabbits were one of our main source of meat - grandfather was a dentist visiting schools including farmers' kids - "Come and rough shoot whenever you want"

I think I had a shotgun(410) in my hand before a bicycle, or certainly a moped.

Barry, does the ban extend to visitors - nudge, and does it extend to hares? [No lad, not shooting the visitors - visitors shooting the bunnies]

Geoff


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## tonyt (May 25, 2005)

A few pieces of cheval rump steak do very nicely over a charcoal fire. Difficult to buy here.


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

> *nicholsong wrote: *Barry, does the ban extend to visitors - nudge, and does it extend to hares? [No lad, not shooting the visitors - visitors shooting the bunnies]
> 
> Geoff


You dont want to come shooting around here Geoff. Your likely to get your head blown off. There are people who's job I am sure is just to wander around all day shooting anything that moves. 7am on a Sunday morning and some idiot will be out with a 12 bore or more scary a rifle. Health and Safety doesnt seem to be a primary concern. I had the passenger window of my Golf shattered one afternoon on the back lane back from Barnard Castle. There were a load of em blasting away in the field and the next thing the window explodes. 8O

If we are ever invaded god help them if they come to our village. 
:twisted:


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## nicholsong (May 26, 2009)

barryd said:


> > *nicholsong wrote: *Barry, does the ban extend to visitors - nudge, and does it extend to hares? [No lad, not shooting the visitors - visitors shooting the bunnies]
> >
> > Geoff
> 
> ...


They were not very good shots then, if you are here to tell the tale, or they should have used a bigger charge in the cartridge and the choked barrel- or an elephant gun 

Your friend, Geoff


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

No thats the point Geoff. They are not very good shots. You even see little old dears in tweedy skirts tottering around tooled up. Walking stick in one hand and 12 bore in the other. I am sure one of them even has a white stick. 8O


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## Littlebt (May 19, 2012)

*Food*



tyreman1 said:


> William Saurin tinned meals available in most of the large supermarkets are fetching twice the price on amazon......stock up and make a fortune.


Hmmmnn "not Bisto" always good to have a ready meal handy,we call it an "Emergency Dinner" when we are travelling or similar and are unable to plan ie: the old favourite, Fray Bentos Pie,Tin of new Potato's,Tin Peas/Carrots.

What's your favourite William Saurin?


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## Friant (Feb 10, 2008)

Wow, thanks all, excellent list of things I hadn't thought of.
Some now on my list, testicles not.


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## thieawin (Jun 7, 2006)

France or Spain we bring back things we like, and can't get at home.

Horsemeat salami, I know, but its nice and lean

aged manchega cheese, far better than parmesan

Vichy Catalan water, the best sparkling mineral water anywhere, bar none

Tinned Confit de Canard, as said above the fat is amazing for roasties and the duck is good too

The bottled/tinned fruit syrups for making up long summer drinks, as said above, amazing range of flavours

Don't bother with cheaper wines, they don't taste as good in the cold and after being shaken up on the trek home. I drink wholesale Spanish red and white and cava (bought in 5 litre refillable plastic containers) on the patio when in Spain, Its OK in the heat, but back here, yuk and anyway there as least as good a selection of reasonable wine in the UK nowadays 

Most other things we can get here or in UK. We also have a stock, in IOM, Spain and Bulgaria of cans and packets for easy ready meals. Might be interesting to find out what people have for their shelves for emergency.

We often arrive home or at a destination after shops have closed and after a long journey and having a can of beans, a pot of Bovril, tea bags on the shelves and bacon, frozen bread and fresh milk in the freezer makes all the difference.

We also have a stock in each location of english sauces, oxo, bisto, mint sauce and mustard and instant noodles or microwave rice. We have local stuff as well, but after a long trip, more likely than not via a low cost carrier and a drive to a remote location, (now we don't have the motorhome) its surprising what I fancy at 3 am

The one thing we always do before getting on the boat back to the IOM is visit a Booths supermarket and do a weeks shopping, or, if I'm in skin flint mode a Tesco online shop and home delivery for the next morning. Only £1 a slot now and that's less than the fuel id use going "live" shopping.


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## tonyt (May 25, 2005)

*Re: Food*



> ......................................What's your favourite William Saurin?


Not sure of the exact title but it's something like ""Chicken a la Normandy""

Very expensive for a tin of chicken stew but when you want something quick and tasty - perfect. It will be amongst my first supermarket purchases on my ext bimble.


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## Friant (Feb 10, 2008)

So... The tinned confit de canard, you heat the duck up? Then use the fat it came in to do roasties. Or is it eaten cold?
Please excuse my ignorance.

Also, the Teisseire fruit syrups, are these for milk shakes and the like?

Always something new to learn


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## Grizzly (May 9, 2005)

Friant said:


> So... The tinned confit de canard, you heat the duck up? Then use the fat it came in to do roasties. Or is it eaten cold?
> Please excuse my ignorance.


Put your pieces of duck, having scraped off as much fat as possible ( carefully as they are very tender) onto a rack in a roasting pan. Put them in a hot oven and roast until they are crisp on the outside or as you like them.

Eat the duck - good with cherry or orange sauces- and then drain the fat into a bowl and store, covered, in the fridge. If there is any meat fallen into the fat then remove what you can.

They can also be used, scraped of fat, in cassoulet. They are pre-cooked but I have never eaten one cold.

You don't need a lot of fat for the roasties- unless you like soggy roasties- so it is not a good move to put the potatoes under the confit as it crisps up. It doesn't take long to crisp up and heat through.

G


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## Friant (Feb 10, 2008)

Thanks Grizly, that sounds delicious and this item is definitely on my shopping list, can't wait to try it


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## Sundial (May 11, 2005)

*French goods*

Boursin with walnuts.....delicious ...have not yet seen this in sale in UK. Usually good dates...so worth putting in the fridge.

Sundial


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## Friant (Feb 10, 2008)

So my shopping trip is complete, thanks for the new ideas, added to my existing list of goodies I added;

Confit de canard
William Saurin meals x 2 
Fruit cordial, lime flavour which I'm going to combine with soda, ice, mint and gin/vodka
Real coffee, hadn't realised it was so much cheaper there and I am a bit of a coffee freak

Thanks again


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## thieawin (Jun 7, 2006)

try mixing the lime cordial with ginger beer, lots of ice and some crushed mint leaves for a long non alco summer cocktail


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## Koppersbeat (May 10, 2005)

If you grind your own coffee beans then try the ones in Auchan where the " cheap" aisles are.
They have the ' help yourself / fill a bag as much as you want,section'
And they have 4 varieties of beans all at 5.99€ per kilo.

Helen


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## MrWez (Sep 25, 2011)

Friant said:


> Also, the Teisseire fruit syrups, are these for milk shakes and the like?
> 
> Always something new to learn


Never had them with milk, always with water - I love the Citron Vert with ice cold eau gazeuse - very refreshing after a long drive!

I'd be interested to know if anyone has tried it with milk though - I love lime milk shake but you just can't seem to get it these days.

Mr Wez


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## thieawin (Jun 7, 2006)

they tend to curdle the milk


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## Whatton (Feb 1, 2010)

fatbuddha said:


> we always bring back
> 
> rabbit - bloody hard to find in the UK unless you have a decent butcher handy (we don't)


Pet shops will sell you a fully grown rabbit for less than a butcher. Bit more work to prepare but you can guarantee it's fresh.


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