Ravioles du Dauphiné (in English, 'Dauphiné ravioli'), also known as ''Ravioles de Romans'' ('Ravioli of Romans'), are a French regional speciality consisting of two layers of pasta made out of tender wheat flour, eggs and water, surrounding a filling of
Comté or French Emmental cheese, cottage cheese made of cow's milk, butter and parsley, akin to Italian
ravioli or Russian
pelmeni. As the name suggests, they are usually associated with the historical region of
Dauphiné in South-Central France, particularly around the town of
Romans-sur-Isère in the department of
Drôme,
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (ARA; ; frp, Ôvèrgne-Rôno-Ârpes; oc, Auvèrnhe Ròse Aups; it, Alvernia-Rodano-Alpi) is a region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of ...
. The ''Ravioles du Dauphiné'' appellation has been legally protected since 1989, and received the
Label Rouge
Label Rouge (''Red Label'') is a sign of quality assurance in France as defined by Law No. 2006-11 (5 January 2006).
Products eligible for the Label Rouge are food items (including seafood) and non-food and unprocessed agricultural products such ...
in 1998, however is not an
AOC as it makes use of ingredients such as
Emmental
The Emmental ( en, Emme Valley) is a valley in west-central Switzerland, forming part of the canton of Bern. It is a hilly landscape comprising the basins of the rivers Emme and Ilfis. The region is mostly devoted to farming, particularly dair ...
and
Comté which originate outside the
Dauphiné region.
History
While ''ravioles'' have their origin in ancient Roman cuisine, the first mention of them dates from 1228.
They were widely consumed in the Dauphiné region during the Middle Ages, filled with either meat or root vegetables. Meatless ''ravioles'' were often consumed either by poor people or around
Lent or other periods of fasting.
The first mention of ''ravioles'' specifically from the town of
Romans
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
* Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
dates from 1807, when the use of vegetables started to be replaced by cheese as the local population became more prosperous.
By the 1960s, ''ravioles'' started to become produced on an industrial scale, with 100 tonnes of ''ravioles'' being produced annually by 1975. Since the 90s ''ravioles'' have also become available in supermarkets.
Geographical origin
Ravioles du Dauphiné are produced in
Romans-sur-Isère and more generally in the region of
Royans overlapping the two departments of
Drôme and
Isère
Isère ( , ; frp, Isera; oc, Isèra, ) is a landlocked department in the southeastern French region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.[Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (ARA; ; frp, Ôvèrgne-Rôno-Ârpes; oc, Auvèrnhe Ròse Aups; it, Alvernia-Rodano-Alpi) is a region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of ...]
. Any eggs or creme cheese used in the making of ''ravioles'' must also come from this region.
Production and commercialisation
Around 2500 tonnes of Ravioles were produced in 2005, which by 2007 had more than doubled to 5103 tonnes.
''Ravioles'' are usually sold in plaques of 48 pieces, with each plaque weighing around 60-65 grams,
and are often eaten in regional restaurants and notably during the Festival of ''Ravioles'' and ''Pognes'' (another local speciality roughly resembling a
doughnut) held in the town of
Romans
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
* Rome, the capital city of Italy
* Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
every September, or at the traditional ''Raviole'' Festival of
Eymeux.
Gastronomy
''Ravioles'' can be prepared by poaching in hot water or grilled in a frying pan, then served in meat broth, in a gratin or with salad.
Ravioles de Romans.jpg, Plaque of raw ravioles
Ravioles - cuisson.jpg, Raviole bake
Vinsobres Ravioles.jpg, Prepared ravioles
Gratin de ravioles.jpg, Gratin de Ravioles
Salade de ravioles.jpg, Ravioles with salad
Bibliography
*Laurent Jacquot
Société d'Etudes Historiques de Romans - Bourg de Péage ''Pour écrire l'histoire de la raviole'', Etudes Drômoises, 1996.
See also
*
Ravioli
*
List of dumplings
*
French cuisine
French cuisine () is the cooking traditions and practices from France. It has been influenced over the centuries by the many surrounding cultures of Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Belgium, in addition to the food traditions of the r ...
References
External links
*
Raviole du Dauphiné site of the
Institut national de l'origine et de la qualité
The Institut national de l'origine et de la qualité (previously ''Institut National des Appellations d'Origine'') (INAO) is the French organization charged with regulating French agricultural products with Protected Designations of Origin (PDOs ...
(INAO)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Raviole Du Dauphine
Cuisine of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes
French cuisine
Food and drink in France