Gourmet island food

Local produce and specialities of L'île d'Yeu

There are lots of local specialities to try. The island has also launched its own brand, "Les Produits de L'Île-d'Yeu"

There are lots of local specialities to try.

The island has also launched its own brand, Les Produits de L'Île-d'Yeu, which can be found in markets and shops on the Island.

Traditional recipes have been handed down for generations, to the delight of visiting foodies.

The Produits de L'Île-d'Yeu brand

The brand Les Produits de L'Île-d'Yeu (The Products of the Ile-d'Yeu) was created in 2012 by the local authority, in an attempt to promote and  to add value to the work of men and women of L'île d’Yeu do year round.

A productive and creative place, no fewer than twenty producers and craftsmen are entitled to place the official brand name on their creations.

You can't leave without having tasted, tested, or bought one of the delightful products that you can find at the market place, at the Fabrique (the artists' workshop), or in their little island boutiques.

Download the Produits de L'Île-d'Yeu brochure here

MARKETS ON L'îLE D'YEU

The market of Port-Joinville is the centre of the island for everyone who likes, loves and adores food and drink.

The atmosphere is lively and always friendly throughout the year. The colourful market stalls are part of the decor, while the comings and goings of fishing boats, yachts and travellers on the port form a magical backdrop. In July and August you can also enjoy the small market at Saint-Sauveur, on the church square.

The atmosphere is lively and always friendly throughout the year. The colourful market stalls are part of the decor, while the comings and goings of fishing boats, yachts and travellers on the port form a magical backdrop. In July and August you can also enjoy the small market at Saint-Sauveur, on the church square.

CULINARY TRADITIONS

Sweet cakes and biscuits

Cabotage - the ferrying of goods to the major ports for export - saw a tradition of sailors from the Ile d’Yeu bringing rare products back to the island from Bordeaux - prunes, cinnamon and rum among them. This is how many old island recipes got their surprisingly exotic flavours.

Prune tart is a gastronomic institution of the island, and accompanies many a sunny Sunday lunch, but is primarily known as the traditional dessert at island weddings.

Each festival has its own sweet tasty treat. The cakes known as the fion and the mérisse are special to Easter and Shrove Tuesday, while the betchet is enjoyed all year round.

Seafood revisited

Unsurprisingly, the sea is a cornucopia for food lovers visiting the island. In addition to fish, shellfish and crustaceans, it is the source of a new wave of fantastic cooking. One of the cooks at the forefront of the revolution is Eugène Ravalais, who owes his fabulous smoked tuna, to a recipe from the 1950s, revisited for an exciting new variety of accompaniments.

New products are appearing all the time, often inspired by tradition. Boudin (like black pudding but based on a fish reduction) and tuna pie with prunes, smoked swordfish, fish soups and much more besides.

Cooking enthusiasts will soak up lots of ideas - from the tradition of preparing small dishes and canned meals for their husbands going to sea, the fishwives seem to have passed on their know-how to the entire island!

Not to be missed: patagos, delicious and fine shellfish, served hot in a rich cream sauce. To date, three small vessels are allowed to practice this fishery in the greatest respect of the resource. It is open in May, closed in June, and reopened from July to September.

Local favourites

Spider crab salad

Traditionally a staple of wedding menus, this salad would be the first dish of a long meal.

Ingredients: spider crab meat, hard boiled eggs, tomatoes, lettuce, chopped parsley, shallots, olive oil, vinegar.

  • Recipe:

Cook the spider crab in a bouillon for 20 minutes.

Shell them carefully and put the flesh to in the oil for 2 hours to make it puffy and tender.

Drain and add the vinegar, shallot and chopped parsley.

Present on a bed of salad with sliced boiled eggs and tomatoes.

The "Boudin blanc aux pruneaux" (white pudding with prunes)

Prunes are found in lots of island dishes. They bring an unusual sweet-salty flavour.

Ingredients: 500 g fresh pork belly, 200 g veal, 500 g prunes, 3 eggs, 1/2 litre milk, cream, 1 large onion, salt, pepper, parsley, chard leaves, sheeps stomach, cinnamon .

  • Recipe:

Soften the onion in oil over a low heat.

Rinse the chard leaves and them with the meat.

Mix all ingredients.

Stuff the sheep's stomach. Place the pudding in a buttered dish and bake for 2 hours.

Allow to cool - the dish is best eaten cold.

The"Rata" (fricot)

This is the traditional Sunday dish. It used to be prepared on Saturdays to be baked in the baker's oven all night and eaten after Sunday morning mass.

Ingredients: pork shank (or pig's feet and ears), onions, carrots, potatoes, bouquet garni, salt, pepper, leeks (optional).

  • Recipe:

Cut the onions into slices and place them in the bottom of a large pot.

Add the pieces of meat, carrots and cut potatoes, salt, pepper and bouquet garni.

Cover with water, simmer for at least 14 hours. Keep an eye on the cooking, add water if necessary.

The "Tarte aux pruneaux" (Prune tart)

The families of the bride and groom would bake a prune tart for all the guests who couldn't make it to the wedding.

  • Recipe:

The day before, put 500 g of prunes on to soak with cinnamon.

Cook the prunes in water the next day. Remove the stones and add 400g of sugar and rum. Mix and roll.

Roll out the dough. Fold in three, placing salted butter on each fold. Turn the dough a quarter turn and continue to fold in three, incorporating butter. Use 250 g of butter in total.

Divide the dough into four. Spread each part out on a plate. Cut the dough around the plate leaving a wide edge.

Fold this edge by rolling it on itself and passing the previous fold each time. Then fill the inside of the pie with the prune jam.

Prepare the other three tarts the same way. With the rest of the dough, make strips 1 cm wide to place on top of the jam.

Brush the dough with a mixture of water and egg yolk to brown.

Put in a very hot the oven for at least half an hour.