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The French pantry: mustard, jam, salt and more
The staples French households actually buy, most of them cheap and shippable. This page sticks to products that travel well and taste like the originals when bought in the US.
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MMaille
Dijon mustard since 1747. The sharp, creamy benchmark for vinaigrettes and sauces; the whole-grain version is the one for charcuterie boards.
Where to start:
Dijon loses heat with age; buy the standard jar rather than the giant one unless you cook with it constantly.
BBonne Maman
The gingham-lid jam from Biars-sur-Cère. Real fruit, cane sugar and nothing else; the strawberry and apricot are the classics.
Where to start:
The jars are standard canning size and reusable — one reason French kitchens are full of them.
FFleur de sel
Hand-raked salt crystals from the Guérande marshes in Brittany (and Camargue in the south). A finishing salt, not a cooking salt.
Where to start:
- Fleur de sel de Guérande
- Le Guérandais fleur de sel
- Camargue fleur de sel
- Gros sel gris (grey sea salt) for cooking
Look for 'Label Rouge' or 'IGP Guérande' on the label. Keep it in a lidded ceramic pot; it clumps in a shaker.
MMore pantry classics
A few other staples worth having on the shelf.
Where to start:
- Herbes de Provence
- Valrhona chocolate
- Lu Petit Écolier biscuits
- Saint-Michel galettes
- Lesieur or Puget olive oil
- Amora or Bornibus condiments
Check the 'ships from' line: French groceries sold by third parties from Europe can take two to three weeks to arrive.