If you are an ardent skier with a soft spot for breathtaking alpine beauty, then this is certainly not the first time you have heard of the French Alps. Only there can you ski down the best pistes, admire some of the most picturesque views and spend your nights at the cosiest resorts offering catered chalets in the world.
The thing with skiing and hiking in the mountains all day is that, even if you weren’t that sort of person before, you quickly develop a soft spot for delicious food (and lots of it!) too. Luckily the French Alps happen to be precisely the spot in which to indulge your gastronomic impulses with sheer gusto. So when you feel a Richter-scale 10 rumble in your stomach after a long day’s adventures, here is a list of the Savoyard dishes which will definitely appeal to both your belly and your palate.
Tartiflette
After a day’s strenuous skiing you’ll need to replenish your energy supplies with something fairly calorific, which, by an all too well known definition, means delicious. Tartiflette is just the thing. Steaming potatoes bathed in cream, aromatic onions and juicy bacon chops all coated in Reblochon cheese – a special delicacy of Savoie.
Croziflette
Not a fan of potatoes? Croziflette borrows all the ingredients of tartiflette save for potatoes, which it substitutes with crozets. These are tiny square bits of pasta, which you will also find in many other local dishes. Seasoned with cream and cheese, however, crozets are outright criminal not to try out.
Savoyard gratin
Vegetarians need not feel left out, because the Savoyard gratin can indulge their craving for calories and gastronomic ecstasy just as well. Deliciously seasoned slices of potatoes and onions baked in a crispy coating of cheese never fail to leave the taster (vegetarian or no) craving for more.
Fondue Savoyard
Traditionally a Swiss dish, fondue in its Savoie version in no way falls short of the original. A bite of bread dipped into liquid cheese will leave you swooning with relish at the assortment of local cheeses used in its preparation.
Raclette
Raclette is a special type of cheese which is served half melted. Usually on a dish it is garnished with boiled potatoes, pickles and dried meat, so that you can choose what to mix the raclette with. Diners are even equipped with tiny grills to warm up the cheese in in order to keep it deliciously creamy.
Whether you stay in for the evening at your catered chalet or choose to dine at a restaurant, you will have the opportunity to sample these and many more mouth-watering local dishes anywhere in the French Alps. But make sure you loosen your belt quite a bit before you dig in!
Belinda Smythson works for Ski Amis, a specialist ski travel agency and booking service that has been helping avid skiers craft their perfect winter holiday for over a quarter of a century. If you're looking for the best catered chalet accommodation in the Three Valleys, Paradiski, Espace Killy or Chamonix Valley, Ski Amis is the go-to company for winter sports fans searching for the holiday of a lifetime.
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