the essential
The winners of the competition for the best galette des rois de Haute-Garonne have agreed to share with us the secrets of a successful recipe, a few days before Epiphany.
All three of them emerged victorious from the Grand competition for the best galette des rois, organized this Thursday in Toulouse by the artisan bakers and pastry chefs of Haute-Garonne. Dimitri Bordon, for the Couronne des Rois, Clément Dejardin for the Galette frangipane and Sébastien Baye for the Brioche de Limoux.
A dozen professionals from the sector, including the Michelin-starred Michel Sarran, who is a judge on the show “La Meilleure Boulangerie de France” on M6, tasted around fifty products, submitted in the morning by the candidates. “We all know each other, we’re all at Radio Pétrin,” jokes Jean-Pierre Feuillet, the president of the bakers’ union. “So we make sure to preserve the anonymity of the participants, to remain objective.” Michel Sarran was a juror in the frangipane category, and he had difficulty tasting everything: “18 pancakes is heroic, frankly,” he smiles. “But the level was good. It’s Nice to see that the tradition is being perpetuated and to see that there are young people in this profession which is very difficult.”
The criteria? First, the visual. “We need good development on the brioches,” adds Jean-Pierre Feuillet. “Then we smell, and we taste. The interplay of textures is important. We look to see if the puff pastry is successful, if the cooking is good. And especially if the products are of quality. You can't lie with the galette des rois.”
DDM – Fabrice Aygalenq
Aromas and volumes
Dimitri Bordon created his bakery “D'prim nous”, in Cugnaux, two years ago, and he found the recipe that wins every time, since his Couronne des Rois won for the third time in a row the first prize. “You need a good ratio of aromas and volumes. Aesthetics also play a role: the crown must be pretty and very sweet throughout,” he explains. He uses good flour, that of Moulin Maury, in Tarn, and quality French butter. But that's not all: the process is very important. “A pancake is made over three days. The first day, we knead. Then, we divide and shape balls which we open with the elbow, three times in a row. It's a special gesture. And on the last day, we cook. It’s the time spent that makes it good.”
For Brioche de Limoux, Sébastien Baye has an unstoppable argument on his side: he makes his own candied fruits, at Tabliers Toqués, in Fonsorbes. This year's creation, with apricot, yuzu and Nice lemon, is a marvel. “I found that industrial candied fruits had no taste, so I gave it a try.” He buys his strawberries, melons, pears, kiwis and figs from local producers, his citrus fruits in Corsica and candies them, before cutting them into cubes and keeping them cool. “It’s a lot of work but it changes everything: it’s less sweet, it has more flavor… People love it.”
Clément Dejardin won the prize for best frangipane pancake for his first participation. “I did a lot of testing to find the best recipe, with good almond powder, which I roasted, and a little amaretto to accentuate it,” he confides. But above all, “you need a good dose of butter to have the fatty side, in the dough, which retains the flavors”. Clément opted for reverse lamination, which allows you to put a third more butter and thus have “a more prolonged taste over time”. Take it for granted.
