Emily Dilling is a California native who has been living in Paris now for almost a decade, where she’s become known for her blog and podcast Paris Paysanne (rough translation: Parisian Peasant) which covers the local farm-to-table and craft production movement in Paris. She has interviewed and written about the markets, farmers, and chefs as well as craft beer brewers, natural wine producers and local coffee roasters.
In late fall her new book came out, “My Paris Market Cookbook: A Culinary Tour of French Flavors and Seasonal Recipes”, including 60 recipes you can make anywhere and a collection of all of the wonderful people, restaurants, and markets she has written about since starting Paris Paysanne.
Emily has recently migrated to the French countryside (in the Loir-et-Cher region just south of Paris), but she agreed to meet with me while in Paris last month for an interview. We originally were going to film in the Marché Bastille, but since it was pouring rain and rather chilly we decided to take shelter in the nearby Café de l’Industrie for a chat. Enjoy the Parisian café ambience (and some groovy jazz tunes…the sax calms down after a few minutes) while Emily reveals some insider tips to the Parisian markets, including:
* Why some family farms opt out of the “organic labeling
* Where to find the three main organic markets: Batignolles, Raspail and Brancusi
* Some of the exotic fruits at the Marché Barbès
* Why you should get in line behind the old ladies at the markets
* Some of the myths about Parisian food (and the coffee)
* And a peek inside her book!
And don’t miss the latest episode of her podcast, Paris Paysanne Podcast Episode #10: Women in the Kitchen, Countryside Living, and the Parabere Forum where she talks to chef Alix Lacloche about healthy comfort food and women in the kitchen, Haven in Paris founder Erica Berman about leaving Paris for the countryside, and Maria Canabal, founder of Parabere Forum, a non-profit organization dedicated to advancing women’s voices and views in the world of gastronomy.
