Basvex Cuisine | Quebecois Recipes Without Vegetable Oil

Tourtière du Lac Saint Jean

⏱ 3 hr🍽 8 servings🔥 Medium

The legendary deep dish meat pie of the Saguenay region, layered with cubed pork, beef, and game, all wrapped in a flaky lard crust and slowly baked overnight.

Ingredients

500 g pork shoulder, cut into 1 cm cubes
500 g beef chuck, cut into 1 cm cubes
300 g game meat (venison or rabbit), cubed
2 large yellow onions, finely diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 large russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 tsp ground cinnamon, 1 tsp ground cloves, 1 tsp savory
500 ml beef broth
500 g all purpose flour for the crust
250 g cold rendered lard, cubed
120 ml ice water, sea salt, black pepper

Instructions

The night before, toss the cubed meats with onions, garlic, cinnamon, cloves, savory, salt, and pepper. Refrigerate overnight so the flavors marry.
For the crust, rub cold lard into flour and a pinch of salt until coarse crumbs form. Add ice water gradually until the dough just holds. Wrap and chill 1 hour.
Heat oven to 175°C / 350°F. Roll out two thirds of the dough and line a deep heavy pot or Dutch oven.
Layer half the meat mixture, then all the potatoes, then the remaining meat. Pour the beef broth over the top.
Roll out the remaining dough into a lid. Lay it over the filling, crimp the edges, and cut 4 steam vents in the center.
Bake covered for 1 hour. Reduce to 150°C / 300°F and bake 4 to 5 more hours until the crust is deep gold and the meat is tender.
Rest 20 minutes before cutting into wedges. Serve with sweet ketchup or pickled beets.

Saumon Fumé au Bois d'Érable

⏱ 2 hr 30 min🍽 6 servings🔥 Medium

A Quebec planked salmon brushed with pure maple syrup and slowly smoked over sugar maple chips. Sweet, smoky, and impossibly tender from butter basting.

Ingredients

1.5 kg side of Atlantic salmon, skin on, pin bones removed
4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
120 ml pure Quebec dark maple syrup
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
2 tbsp coarse sea salt
1 tbsp coarse black pepper
3 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only
2 lemons, one sliced and one for wedges
1 large maple wood plank, soaked 2 hours
2 handfuls sugar maple smoking chips

Instructions

Soak the maple plank in cold water for at least 2 hours. Soak smoking chips for 30 minutes.
Whisk together melted butter, maple syrup, Dijon, salt, pepper, and thyme. Reserve a third for basting.
Pat the salmon very dry. Brush the entire flesh side with two thirds of the glaze. Top with lemon slices.
Prepare a charcoal grill for indirect heat at 110°C / 225°F. Add the soaked maple chips to the coals.
Place the salmon on the soaked plank, then set the plank on the cool side of the grill. Close the lid.
Smoke for 1 hour 30 minutes, basting twice with reserved glaze, until the salmon flakes and reads 52°C / 125°F at the thickest point.
Slide off the plank onto a warm board. Serve with lemon wedges and a knob of cold butter melting over the top.

Soupe aux Pois Jaunes

⏱ 2 hr 15 min🍽 6 servings🔥 Easy

The classic Quebec yellow pea soup, simmered slowly with a smoky ham hock, root vegetables, and a generous knob of butter. Pure winter comfort in a bowl.

Ingredients

500 g dried whole yellow peas, soaked overnight
1 large smoked ham hock (about 700 g)
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 large yellow onion, diced
3 carrots, peeled and diced
3 celery stalks, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves, 1 tsp dried savory, 1 tsp dried thyme
2.5 liters cold water
Sea salt, black pepper, chopped fresh parsley

Instructions

Drain the soaked peas and rinse well under cold water.
Melt butter in a large heavy pot over medium heat. Add onion, carrots, and celery with a pinch of salt. Cook gently 10 minutes until softened.
Stir in garlic, savory, and thyme. Cook 1 minute until fragrant.
Add the drained peas, bay leaves, ham hock, and 2.5 liters of cold water. Bring to a boil then lower to a steady simmer.
Simmer partially covered for 1 hour 45 minutes, skimming any foam, until the peas have broken down into a thick, creamy soup.
Lift out the ham hock. Shred the meat from the bone, discarding skin and fat. Return the meat to the pot.
Discard bay leaves. Season generously with pepper and salt as needed. Ladle into warm bowls and finish with parsley.

Cipaille Forestier

⏱ 4 hr🍽 10 servings🔥 Hard

The towering layered pie of the woodsmen, built from stacked rounds of lard pastry, alternating with seasoned cubed meats and onions. Sliced thick and served straight from the pot.

Ingredients

400 g pork shoulder, cubed
400 g beef chuck, cubed
400 g venison or partridge, cubed
400 g boneless chicken thigh, cubed
3 large onions, diced
2 tsp ground cinnamon, 1 tsp ground allspice, 1 tsp savory
700 g flour for the pastry
350 g cold rendered lard, cubed
180 ml ice water
1 liter beef broth, warmed
Sea salt and black pepper

Instructions

The night before, toss all the cubed meats with onions, cinnamon, allspice, savory, salt, and pepper. Refrigerate covered.
Cut cold lard into flour with a pinch of salt until coarse crumbs form. Add ice water until the dough holds. Divide in four pieces. Chill 1 hour.
Heat oven to 160°C / 325°F. Roll one piece of dough to fit the bottom of a deep heavy Dutch oven.
Layer a third of the meat over the pastry. Roll the next piece of dough into a round and lay it over the meat. Repeat with two more layers of meat and dough, finishing with pastry on top.
Cut a wide steam vent in the center. Pour the warm broth slowly through the vent until it just covers the filling.
Cover with the lid and bake 3 hours. Uncover, raise heat to 190°C / 375°F, and bake 30 more minutes for a deep golden top.
Rest 25 minutes before scooping out wedges with crust, meat, and rich broth in every spoonful.

Choux de Bruxelles au Beurre

⏱ 35 min🍽 4 servings🔥 Easy

Roasted Quebec Brussels sprouts crisped in cultured butter and finished with a drizzle of dark maple syrup and crunchy roasted hazelnuts. Sweet, salty, and deeply caramelized.

Ingredients

700 g Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
5 tbsp salted cultured butter, divided
3 tbsp pure Quebec dark maple syrup
1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
80 g hazelnuts, roughly chopped
3 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves only
1 tsp coarse sea salt
Freshly cracked black pepper
Flaky finishing salt

Instructions

Heat oven to 220°C / 425°F. Toast the chopped hazelnuts on a dry tray 6 minutes until fragrant. Set aside.
Melt 3 tbsp butter in a large cast iron skillet over medium high heat. Toss in sprouts, cut side down, with sea salt and pepper.
Sear undisturbed for 4 minutes until the cut faces are deeply browned.
Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast 12 minutes until the sprouts are tender and crisped at the edges.
Return to the stovetop over medium heat. Add the remaining 2 tbsp butter, garlic, and thyme. Toss for 1 minute until aromatic.
Pour in maple syrup and cider vinegar. Toss to glaze the sprouts in the sticky butter sauce, about 2 minutes.
Scatter with toasted hazelnuts and flaky salt. Serve hot directly from the skillet.

Tarte au Sucre de l'Érable

⏱ 1 hr 20 min🍽 8 servings🔥 Medium

The iconic Quebec maple sugar pie. A flaky butter crust holds a deep, gooey filling of dark maple syrup, brown sugar, and cream. The dessert that defines a Quebec winter table.

Ingredients

250 g all purpose flour for the crust
140 g cold unsalted butter, cubed
1 tbsp fine sugar, pinch of salt
60 ml ice water
300 ml pure Quebec dark maple syrup
200 g packed dark brown sugar
180 ml heavy cream (35% fat)
3 tbsp unsalted butter for the filling
2 tbsp all purpose flour
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 large egg yolks, lightly beaten

Instructions

For the crust, rub cold butter into flour with sugar and salt until coarse crumbs form. Add ice water gradually until the dough just holds. Wrap and chill 45 minutes.
Roll the chilled dough into a 28 cm round. Line a 23 cm pie dish, crimp the edges, and chill 20 minutes.
Heat oven to 190°C / 375°F. Line the crust with parchment and pie weights. Blind bake 15 minutes. Remove weights and bake 5 more minutes until pale gold.
In a heavy saucepan, combine maple syrup, brown sugar, cream, and butter. Heat gently until the sugar dissolves, 4 minutes.
Whisk flour into the egg yolks. Slowly pour a ladle of the warm syrup mixture into the yolks, whisking constantly, then return all to the pan.
Cook over low heat 3 minutes, stirring with a wooden spoon, until the filling thickens enough to coat the spoon. Stir in vanilla.
Pour the filling into the warm crust. Bake 22 to 25 minutes until the surface is set with a faint wobble in the center. Cool completely on a rack 3 hours before slicing.

Quebecois Cooking Without Vegetable Oil

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Quebecois Country Recipes

Tourtière du Lac Saint Jean

Ingredients

Instructions

Saumon Fumé au Bois d'Érable

Ingredients

Instructions

Soupe aux Pois Jaunes

Ingredients

Instructions

Cipaille Forestier

Ingredients

Instructions

Choux de Bruxelles au Beurre

Ingredients

Instructions

Tarte au Sucre de l'Érable

Ingredients

Instructions

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