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Panisses are deep-fried chickpea cakes originating from the French regions of Provence and Côte d'Azur. They can be consumed as snacks or served as a side dish, and consist of chickpea flour batter, oil, boiling water, and salt. Their flavor is creamy, crunchy, and savory, and it is said that they taste like something between French fries and hummus.
Panisses are best paired with rosé wines, while the children's version of these snacks might be additionally dusted with confectioners' sugar. In the 1930s, panisses were especially popular around Marseille's Old Port, when they were paired with various salads as a complete meal.
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Piperade is a traditional dish from the region of French (and Spanish) Basque Country, consisting of tomatoes, onions, bell peppers, Espelette pepper, and garlic, while ham, and eggs are sometimes added to the dish to enhance its flavors. The dish can be traced to the early 1800s, when the word piperade referred to ground pepper.
Red is the color of Basque, and it is evident in their cuisine, which is heavily dominated by peppers. Every year in October, there is a fair in the town of Espelette, featuring traditional Basque specialties, with piperade being one of the main attractions.
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Soufflé potatoes is an interesting French creation that is made by double-frying potato slices in very hot oil. The potatoes are thinly sliced into uniform slices, then thoroughly dried before being fried. Once fried, the potato slices are removed from the oil and allowed to chill before being fried for a second time in even hotter oil until puffed up, crispy, and golden brown.
The traditional accompanying condiment of choice is sauce béarnaise, which is a combination of butter, egg yolks, lemon, and tarragon. This dish is considered an unforeseen culinary invention from the early 19th century that has been attributed to a certain chef named Collinet.
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This colorful Provençal vegetable ragout is traditionally made with simple, easily accessible ingredients: courgettes, eggplants, green and red peppers, tomatoes, onions, garlic, and parsley. The name ratatouille stems from the old Occitan word ratatolha, and the French word touiller, both meaning to toss, or to stir up, referring to the cooking process in which the ingredients are first simmered separately—seasoned with salt, pepper, and olive oil—and then tossed together and stirred into a vibrant vegetable medley.
Though it wasn't until the 1930s that ratatouille was popularized, by the 1980s, the dish had become the star of any dinner party. Ratatouille can be enjoyed on its own, served either hot or cold, along with toasted garlic bread, or it can be dished out as a side to roasted or grilled meat mains, especially lamb and chicken.
VARIATIONS OF Ratatouille
MOST ICONIC Ratatouille
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Fougasse is a flatbread that is typically sweetened with sugar and orange-flavored water. It can commonly be found in Provence and throughout southern France, and it is easily recognizable by its shape. Fougasse is usually shaped like a wheat grain, with cuts that form a veiny, leafy outline.
Originally, this bread has been baked since Roman times, and it was mainly used to test the temperature of the oven. Today, there are several variations of the bread, while olives, cheese, and figs are often incorporated into the dough. It provides a perfect accompaniment to a number of dishes, but it can also be used to make a variety of sandwiches.
TasteAtlas food rankings are based on the ratings of the TasteAtlas audience, with a series of mechanisms that recognize real users and that ignore bot, nationalist or local patriotic ratings, and give additional value to the ratings of users that the system recognizes as knowledgeable. For the “5 Worst Rated French Side Dishes” list until May 18, 2025, 1,243 ratings were recorded, of which 1,056 were recognized by the system as legitimate. TasteAtlas Rankings should not be seen as the final global conclusion about food. Their purpose is to promote excellent local foods, instill pride in traditional dishes, and arouse curiosity about dishes you haven’t tried.