Find the best pains of Paris and Amsterdam here
In Paris, they take their baguette seriously. Deadly serious. There is even a law that determines what can, and especially cannot, be in a traditional baguette: flour, water, yeast, and salt. President Emmanuel Macron even wanted to have the bread declared a cultural heritage.
Despite all the rules, no two baguettes are the same. One cracks just a bit louder than the other. That’s exactly why the Syndicat des boulangers du Grand Paris (the bakers' union of Greater Paris) organizes a competition every year for the best traditional baguette in the city. This is who won this year and where you can find the best one in Amsterdam.
The secret of perfection
The rules of the Parisian bakers' union are very precise. A baguette must weigh between 250 and 255 grams. No room for cheat days, then. And the perfect baguette must be between 55 and 60 centimeters long.
The jury consists of industry experts, local media, and a number of lucky individuals. The panel judges blindly on appearance, baking, texture of the inside, aroma, and taste.
And the secret to winning lies not (only) in love, but in time. The dough must rise for fourteen hours at five degrees. That rest, or pointage, is where the aromas come to life and where the crust gets its golden brown color.
4000 euros and breakfast for the Élysée
This year, the title went to Fournil Didot, a bakery an hour's walk from the Eiffel Tower. For baker Sithamparappillai Jegatheepan, it was the first time he participated. And he hit the jackpot right away.
But the story of Sithamparappillai makes his win extra special. He came to France from Sri Lanka in 2003 and worked his way up in the Parisian baking world. Now he can officially call himself the best baguette baker in Paris and stick the matching sticker on his front door.
With the win comes a prize money of 4000 euros and perhaps the most beautiful reward: providing the Élysée with baguettes for a year. That means the French president starts his day every day with a baguette from Fournil Didot. Not bad for just some flour, water, yeast, and a pinch of salt.
South has its own Paris
With the Eurostar, you can be in Paris in three and a half hours. But sometimes three and a half hours is already too much to ask for a good craving. Fortunately, you don't necessarily have to cross the border.
The best baguette in Amsterdam can be found at Le Fournil de Sébastien at Stadionplein. But the winner is also in Amstelveen and Hilversum.
The breads are so good because baker Sébastien Roturier learned his trade in the land of baguettes (yes, France) and brought that flavor to Amsterdam-South. His secret? Not using bread improvers. Then you have your bread in three hours instead of thirty, but you can taste it with the first bite.
Sources: Paris Secret. Le Fournil. Image: oliviatps
