Flammekuchen (German), or tarte flambée (French), is a speciality of the region of Alsace. It is composed of bread dough rolled out very thinly in the shape of a rectangle or oval, which is covered with fromage blanc or crème fraîche, thin-sliced onions and lardons.
I love this dish. I love this ever since the first time I tried it in Germany. There's one flammekuchen specialty shop in Mainz that I really love and always make an effort to go if I were in Mainz.
Since I missed Germany, I asked my friend to give me an authentic flammekuchen recipe. Here's the one that he sent, I made, and my family love these!
Tarte Flambee Alsace (For 4 persons)
Preparation:
Overall time2 hrs
Working time20 min
Rest period1 hr
Cooking time40 min
Ingredients for 4 persons:
Wheat flour 400 gram
Dry yeast 20 gram
Lukewarm water 250 ml
Olive oil 3 tablespoon
Bacon125 gram
Onions 500 gram
Sour cream 200 ml
Whipping cream 200 ml
Steps:
1. For the dough, mix the dry yeast with a little bit of the lukewarm water and let it rest for 10 minutes.
2. Sift the flour into a bowl, add the yeast mixture, the rest of the lukewarm water, the olive oil and a little bit of salt.
3. Knead everything to a smooth dough and cover and let rise in a warm place for around 30 minutes.
4. In the meantime, cut the bacon into fine strips. Peel the onion, cut in half and finely slice it.
5. Whisk the sour and whipping cream with salt and pepper.
6. Quarter the risen dough. It is best to roll out each piece of dough on a large piece of baking paper into a wafer-thin rectangular sheet.
7. Spread 1/4 of the cream mixture on each and sprinkle with onions and strips of bacon. (of course, I have to make a few different variations based on what I have at home)
8. Bake the tarte flambee individually in a convection oven at 220 degrees for 10-15 minutes until golden brown. (I use 200 degree C for 15 minutes)
Sine I have a few bottles of self made funghi sott’olio and pomodori secchi sott’olio, I have made totally 4 different variations of flammekuechen this round. All of them have onions and bacons as base, but the other toppings are slightly different.
preserved mushroom in olive oil and broccoli
sweet peppers and broccoli
sun-dried tomatoes and mushrooms preserved in olive oil, sweet peppers and cheddar cheese
mushrooms preserved in olive oil, broccoli and greek cheese
Just like pizza, you can make any flavoured flammekuechen you like. I'm glad that I will have tons of experiments to try later.
I discovered this humble road-side stall back in 2018, and I was hooked ever since. I hope they are not impacted by Covid-19 and I wish they are still open as their customers are mainly local. I'm looking forward for the time that I can finally visit them again.
This family run stall is located at Soi Kraisi, very near to Khao San. Once you are at Soi Krasi, you won't miss this stall as there's always a long queue in front of the stall.
From my observation, it looked like Uncle handled the tom yum goong and most of the salads, while Aunty handled the stir fried and deep fried dishes.
The first time I went, I was aiming only for the tom yum goong. Little did I know, they are actually the king of wok! No joke, the "wok hei" here was amazing. Every single dishes that we ordered was outstanding. They really have excellence control of the "fire" (火候).
First, of course, we have to talk about their tom yum goong. Of course I haven't tried every single Tom Yum Goong in Thailand yet. But I am sure, this must be one of the best!
Their broth was extremely rich and buttery, with layered of flavours, and wonderfully aromatic. All that creamy fatty butteriness came from the freshwater shrimp. Their freshwater shrimp cooked just nice. A few seconds longer will be overcooked and a few seconds shorter will be undercooked. Really. They must have run the hell of Design Of Experiments to get this perfect texture and juiciness.
While I love every dishes here, still, I have to highlight their omelet. How do you make something so simple so incredible tasty? Crispy outside, tender inside. Yes, some complaint that it is oily, but come on, please bring your "healthy standards" some where else, don't come judge and spoil these rare authentic food.
Did I tell you that their crispy pork is very good too? You can order just as it is, or you can ask them to use this to stir fry various types of vegetables.
They served very good Thai salad dishes. I think it is mainly due to the freshness of their raw material, and how they ingeniously mix all the difference spices so well.
Also, order anything stir fried. You won't regret. Their "wok hei" guaranteed the quality!
There's also a small stand just right in front of Tom Yum Goong Banglamphu. They sell very good fish cakes and prawn cakes. You are allow to order and eat at Tom Yum Goong Banglamphu while waiting for your food to be served.
Another stall that I have to mention, is the fruit juice stall right opposite of Tom Yum Goong Banglamphu. They have very big menu with all kinds of fruits, and also all sorts of combinations. Very reasonable price. These juice go extremely well with the food at Tom Yum Goong Banglamphu.