Par
Margaux Desdet
Published on
Nov. 21, 2024 at 7:30 p.m.
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He is unstoppable. THE master butcher Jean Dijolswhose manufacturing laboratory is located in Crécy-la-Chapelle (Seine-et-Marne) since 2015, has just won a new award. She adds to her list of achievements which already counts a hundred prizes. Yes, just that…
It's this time for duck terrineone of its “winter specialties” that the multi-medalist enthusiast was rewarded with a gold medal during the national competition organized by the brotherhood of gastronomy of Flers (Orne)in Normandy, which took place on Sunday September 29, 2024.
As for the awards ceremony, it took place this Sunday, November 17, during the 35th chapter of the Fraternity of Gastronomy of Flers.
French duck terrine champion
Its duck terrine therefore ranked at the top of the 33 products received this year and rated by the 18 jurats present. “I am very happy to be the French champion. I love my job and I invest myself, surrounded by a great team of enthusiasts like me, in preparing and selling real products, carefully prepared on the basis of recipes developed by myself and respectful of traditions », Reacts Jean Dijols.
This reassures customers in the idea that when they come to the House they are not making a mistake.
Keeping the product truth
The product, made in his workshop and then sent to Normandy, was judged on both its taste and its appearance. “Both are very important. In a competition, you also have to meet standards and benchmarks. We don't revisit the product, we protect it. It’s essential to keep your base, your truth,” explains the 52-year-old butcher.
He is quite proud of this new gold medal, which he had already won during this same competition in 2008. “The recipes that I made before are not the same today. I am always developing them, modifying them, adding something… I no longer have the same way of doing things,” he explains.
For him, in the industry since he was 15, “charcutier is a transmission profession where we learn all the time. Not everything is necessarily in the books and we have secrets to pass on so they don't get lost. »
Love of competitions
If Jean Dijols has been in love with competitions since his first participation in 1995, he has, over the past two years, decided to significantly slow down the pace due to lack of time. “I'm a perfectionist and I don't like to lose. I would rather not participate than do something that does not correspond to what I could do well,” he says.
Especially sincehe has already won all the prizes he could win in his professionand this, even before its 50th birthday, and in all product families.
With the floods, the master butcher does not foresee any upcoming competition. “We will first relaunch the business properly and take care of the points of sale. Everything in its time! », he concludes. However, he already has some ideas for challenges to take on.
A postponed reopening
This gold medal comes at the right time, since Maison Dijols is currently going through a very complicated period. Indeed, since the passage of Storm Kirk and the significant flooding which caused extensive damage on October 10 in Crécy-la-Chapelle, the charcuterie factory located in the heart of the town is no longer operational. “95% of what we sell is made here, in our laboratory, and as everything has been at a standstill for a month, our two stores (in Crécy-la-Chapelle and Lagny-sur-Marne, Editor’s note) are also closed since they cannot be supplied,” adds the butcher, who will do everything possible to ensure that this situation does not happen again.
The reopening, initially planned for this Tuesday, November 19, had to be postponed. “We have passed the insurance stage, we are now in the process of repairing and restoring our machines,” explains Jean Dijols. But this is not easy, and there have been some delays.
Everything should be operational for a resumption of activity on Wednesday November 27.
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