The cuisine students at Le Cordon Bleu had a field trip to Rungis, the largest professional fresh product market in the world. The market is so big that it's actually it's own city! In this supermarket, just outside of Paris, there's a bank, hairdresser, coffee shop, chinese restaurant, hospital, and bistro – what more could one ask for?
My day started at 4:30 A.M. After a restful three hours of sleep I jumped in my pre-ordered taxi and headed across town to meet up with friends and await our tour buses. We were told to get there by 5:15 A.M. sharp or the buses would leave without us. I arrived at 5:00 A.M. underdressed, with no jacket, scarf, or hat – WHAT WAS I THINKING? The buses were late. An hour late. I froze my butt off during that long, long hour and had to pimp clothing from other barely awake friends (thanks Omry & Richard). We all huddled for warmth and amused ourselves with silly jokes still punch drunk from lack of sleep. Finally our buses arrived and we were off! Unfortunately, by 6 A.M we had missed all of the fish market, and most of the butchering in the meat packing area too.
I guess I didn't really understand how big Rungis was going to be. I thought it was going to be like a large farmer's market. When the bus tour guide rattled off the figure of 3,000 hectares, it really didn't mean anything to me – uh, what's a hectare?. Rungis is huge! We started off in the produce area and worked our way through exotic fruits, miniature vegetables, edible flowers, artichokes bigger than my head, hundreds of apple varieties, potatoes for miles, and more. I've never seen so much food in my life. In fact, Rungis supplies 20 million consumers with food. Incroyable!!!
After our vegetable and fruit tour we drove to the meat packing area and donned special hair nets and jackets. The area was a bit of a shock initially. There were hundreds of animals hung on meat hooks: veal, pigs, cows, horses, suckling pigs, etc. I'm a little desensitized because we butcher smaller portions of meat all the time in class, but I was struck dumb by the sight of dead baby suckling pigs. I don't know why, but baby animals really tear at my heartstrings. The funny thing was, they all seemed to be smiling. I wanted to ask how exactly they are killed, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it.
Another bizarre sight were butchered cows hanging with their pictures pinned on. As if to say, "Here's Daisy, she was once a gal chewing cud, now just a side of beef – but not just any side of beef – a blue ribbon choice". And then there was the horse section. I love horses and love to ride and I don't think of horse as an acceptable form of food. If I ever have to eat horse steak I'll probably throw up, but I was impressed by their massive muscular structure covered with the deep yellow fat. One of the meat packing guys told me that a lot of the horses come from America. That really shocked me. There were other disturbing things like how they crush the animal skulls to get the brains out, but I won't go into that...
Meat packers are a happy morbid bunch who can slash an animal into parts in record breaking time. I was interested in the process and impressed by the cleanliness of the facilities, but happy to get out – besides, it was freezing in there! Interesting to note also, is the bidding process on the animals. Restaurant and market managers come down to Rungis and haggle over the prices. I guess that's where the 'before' pictures come in handy. How some one can look at a side of beef and know what it's worth is beyond me.
Lips blue, fingers numb, and brains churning over the morality of animal death, we left for the the fromage section. Oh happy day! Many students entered the cheese warehouse and immediately pinched their noses from the overwhelming powerful cheese scents. Not me! I took a big sniff and smiled. I love cheese and there was every single type to be seen (unfortunately none to taste – and we were starving). Soft cheese wrapped in leaves or herbs, huge wheels of cheese aging on wooden racks, gooey cheeses with moldy crusts ranging from dark grey in color to soft fluffy white. Cheese for miles...yummmm.
I didn't know that buyers could sample the big wheels of cheese before buying. The process is kinda cool, like wine tasting. There is a special tool that takes a plug out of the cheese wheel about the size of a cork. The hole is then plugged back up with just the outer rind from the little cork. Next time I need to buy a wheel I'll make sure to get a plug full first...hey, maybe that's where all the holes in cheese come from!
Lastly we finished with the flower market which was half empty and dull in comparison to the San Francisco flower mart. There was only a hand full of vendors, but it's not exactly the best time to grow right now in Europe. The buyers for the market are on the phones every day to foreign countries including South America (Ecuador for roses) asking what the weather is like and how the flowers are doing. It's really a fast paced business and the buyers must speak a lot of languages. I always thought that the flower industry was more laid back, but it's more like the New York stock exchange.
On our way back to school everyone passed out on the bus. Heads bobbed trying unsuccessfully to stay awake as we pulled into the 15th arrondissement – more tired than when we had left. On arrival we stumbled back into school, changed into our uniforms, and prepared for a three hour demonstration on meat. I'm not quite sure how any of us made it through that demo, and I don't remember a lot about it either except that I did have to leave a few times to get coffee from the vending machine.
We always think so much about what we're going to put on the plate, but seldom do we have the time to actually consider the business of food. How it's grown, how it gets to the markets, the middle men involved in price negotiations, and the health standards maintained or ignored. The trip was fascinating, like walking backstage in a Broadway show.
Rungis is a professional market and you can't get in without the appropriate license so we were very lucky to have this opportunity. It was an experience I'll remember forever despite my lack of sleep and warm clothing!
Technorati Tags: Cooking School, Food, Le Cordon Bleu
Love the colorful pictures.
any chance I could get in if I pretend I'm a horse from China by pulling a long face?
but that'll probably mean I'll be one of the dead horses...
anyway, horse sashimi is good. It's a nice treat for the Japanese. For chinese, we prefer donkey's meat more...
Posted by: chaxiubao | April 17, 2006 at 02:48 AM
Wow....Horse sashimi! Never imagined that...
That was the hardest part of the market for me. I used to own horses when I was younger...they are still my favorite animal (and dolphins), seeing half a horse hanging from a hook kind of took my breath away. I knew that people eat horses...but for some reason I didn't think (or want to believe) in France...silly me!
The market was incredible...Amy, you did a fabulous job of describing it! I had this romantic vision in my head that it would be like one HUGE walking market where all the farmers bring their best products...never expected what we got! Incredible.... Nice pics! ;)
Posted by: Jamie | April 17, 2006 at 05:47 AM
I hope you're joking about the horsemeat sashimi. Horsemeat Shabu Shabu I can understand or perhaps seared and sliced thinly over rice, but sashimi? I have never seen it on the menu in Japan but I've heard it exits in some specialty places.
Don't get me started on Donkey meat....hee, hah, hee, hah, hee, hah.....
Posted by: Ms. Glaze | April 17, 2006 at 07:23 AM
Okay, maybe I'm wrong about the horsemeat sashimi, but that french meat packer was certainly right about the import of American horses for meat.
This article is REALLY disturbing...http://www.marynash.org/libraryandarchive/publications2004/HearstNewspapers04302004.htm
Posted by: Ms. Glaze | April 17, 2006 at 07:27 AM
I am amazed to see you gals taken aback by the horse sashimi. Trust me, it's very common in Japan. the reason you didn't see it coming in their menu often is because it is rather seasonal and limited, so they tend to written it on the wooden plate on the wall whenever it is available, instead of print it on the menu. We have about a dozen Japanese restaurants serving this in Hong Kong too, though the supply is very limited.
Sometime I really don't know who's more outlandish when it comes to the choice of food. We Chinese can go very far end for it (and eat it in a matter-of-fact fashion); the world never cast this fact a shadow of doubt. But in Japan, the southern part of it to be specific, people actually eat *and say highly of it* sashimi made of whale's heart. A heart sashimi! Imagine you're practice your culinary skill in Japan and one day your head chef ask you to carve the heart in front of the guest and watch them eat it! Spooky!!!!
Posted by: chaxiubao | April 18, 2006 at 06:01 PM
Yeah, I don't think I could do that!
In America Horse has never been on the menu. We look at horses as beautiful intelligent animals that partner with humans the same way dogs do. They become part of our families not part of our dinner.
Did you read the article above on Horsemeat and America? It really explains mentality towards it.
I also don't think whales should be on the menu. They're practically exinct as are many other items that are found on Japanese and Chinese menus. This bothers me. What do you think about it?
Posted by: Ms. Glaze | April 19, 2006 at 09:35 AM
The way I think. Well, it's a very profound question...I'd certainly write up a post just for it, you know.
1st of all, lets look at it this way: culinary history of US vs that of China; we are talking roughly 300 years vs 4000 years, right? With the passage of time, the food chain expand, with what used to be eccentric cease to be. On to our dining development in these thousands of year, we don't have the burden of any environmentalist, animal right outcries, and etc., of which, gifted us an extremely eclectic taste in food (yeah, I know, eating horse and whale is by no means eclectic).
Noted that, the above phenomenon is not oriental but universal. Henry V, a well-known gourmet at his time, is famous for his passion on rarity: he eats, among other lovely creatures, peacock and dolphin.
Third, as strange as it sounds to you, just becoz' people in Japan eat horsemeat, doesn't mean they have no feeling to horse in any way. Racing is huge in Japan. Winning jockey and horses are regarded as national heroes. The thing is, people in asia, europe, and africa managed to find ways to depart our attachment for the animal under the dining table. Ms. Glaze, as a good chef, you may someday do some 'staging' around the globe further down your career. I think this is an inevitability you need to aware, right?
Posted by: chaxiubao | April 21, 2006 at 09:28 AM
I think that we agree that we come from different cultural perspectives and we're going to agree and disagree on certain points. I do understand the horsemeat issue, but I'm a rider and was raised riding and owning horses so I have a certain fondness for the animal. I can't see eating my pet horse.
I also have an issue with race horses that are sold to Japan only to be slaughtered for food. Especially our national heros. If you read the link I posted earlier, I think you'll understsand the American cultural perspective.
Just because I am a chef doesn't mean that I feel everything is appropriate for the dinner table. I don't eat veal for instance because I think it is inhumane or foies gras. I do draw the line on certain issues. I also buy, demand, and pay the extra price for biologique products wherever I go.
With all the knowledge that we have today can we really justify eating endagered species (whales, tiger penis, etc). What our forefather's did was a long time before the 18th century man came along and decimated whole populations of species. I would like those animals to be around for my children. Also there are so many more people in the world today so we must be conscious.
I don't need to further my career by carving a whales heart nor do I see myself comprimising my values for the sake of spectacle. But, that's me and my philosophy. When I do open a restaurant it will be based on local organic produce and meats raised naturally and killed humanely.
Bisous,
Ms. Glaze
Posted by: Ms. Glaze | April 22, 2006 at 11:36 AM
Hello
I'm doing a project based on market theme of all kinds so I appreciate the information that has put in his blog.
Very interesting this article ..
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