LE PIED

FEET

CALF, LAMB OR PIG FEET
can be purchased from specialty butchers
may need to be ordered ahead of time
ready to cook
if frozen, thaw in refrigerator overnight

PART OF THE EXTREMITY OF THE LEG, BEARING WEIGHT AND ALLOWING LOCOMOTION

The foot is probably the richest offal meat. With elevated levels of fat and cholesterol, it comes across as a high-calorie food. However, its long cooking time (the time it takes to turn it into a soft and tasty delicacy) naturally renders out its fat and makes it more accessible in nutritional terms. It is essentially made of collagen, a particularly dense tissue used in dishes like aspic or boeuf à la mode to give the sauce a gelatinous consistency.

The foot is usually sold blanched and ready to cook. Pig trotters can be enjoyed grilled with a good vinaigrette, boned in a crépinette, or crumbed and then baked. Calf’s foot is prepared as a salad with onions, it fills the afternoon with its fragrance. It has, in short, conquered the wooden table and chequered tablecloth to the great joy of bistro aficionados.

If, by chance, the lovely creature sitting opposite you suggests with a naughty smile that you play footsies, rise to the occasion, forget about food and go for it.