Teurgoule - Normandy Rice Pudding

Posted by Rosie

One of the great things about travelling to a new place is discovering it's local food and drinks.  Normandy is no exception and offers plenty of culinary delights.  It's green fields feed the cows who produce the milk for Normandy cream, butter and cheeses such as Camembert and Livarot.  It's apple orchards grow the apples for Tarte Normande, Cider and Calvados.  It's coastline gives us wonderful seafood.

However, there is one dish that perhaps might not be the first to pop into people's minds when thinking of Normandy Cuisine.   It goes by the unusual name of Teurgoule and is a spiced rice pudding, ideally made with raw Normandy milk and flavoured with cinnamon.  And it is a great example of slow cooking as it takes anywhere between 5 and 7 hours to bake!

Such is the perceived importance of teurgoule that it even has a brotherhood called the Confrérie des gastronomes de Teurgoule et de Fallue de Normandie who oversee an annual teurgoule competition whilst wearing their tradition green and orange cape.  This brotherhood still guard the official recipe, however if you wish to have a go at this delicious pudding here is the unofficial recipe:

Teugoule terrine (Picture from Calvados Tourism)

Teurgoule

Ingredients

Serves: 12 

• 2 teaspoons vanilla sugar
• 175g caster sugar
• 175g short grain pudding rice
• 2 litres milk - raw milk is best otherwise full full fat fresh milk
• 1 pinch ground cinnamon

Method

1. Preheat the oven on 150º C / Gas 2.
2. In a large baking dish*, mix together the sugar, vanilla sugar, rice, milk and cinnamon.
3. Bake in the oven for 4 1/2 to 5 hours.

*  A traditional teurgoule will be baked in a special teurgoule earthenware terrine as pictured above.  I am however sure it would work just as well in any deepish bowl.

 

The long cooking time at a low temperature allows the rice to fully absorb the milk and create a delicious thick, caramelised top.  This really is poshed up rice pudding!  If however you don't fancy making this yourself you will find it for sale at most markets.

 

Teugoule

If this has tickled your taste buds for some French cooking why not have a look at our Pinterest Board - Normandy Cuisince - I am sure it will get your mouth watering!  

I have a traditional terrine but have never yet made a teurgoule - I really must remedy that very soon!  Have you ever eaten or made teurgoule or have you any other comments on our Normandy Cuisine?