Bar-le-duc jelly () is a highly regarded preparation of jelly originally composed of select whole seeded currants, typically

white currant The white currant or whitecurrant is a group of cultivars of the red currant (''Ribes rubrum''), a species of flowering plant in the family Grossulariaceae, native to Europe. It is sometimes mislabelled as '' Ribes glandulosum'',Darina Allen ...

s or red currants. The name ''Bar-le-duc'' refers to the geographical origin of the preparation in the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

town of

Bar-le-duc Bar-le-Duc (), formerly known as Bar, is a commune in the Meuse département, of which it is the capital. The department is in Grand Est in northeastern France. The lower, more modern and busier part of the town extends along a narrow valley, sh ...

. Since the jelly's first documented reference in 1344, the

culinary name Culinary names, menu names, or kitchen names are names of foods used in the preparation or selling of food, as opposed to their names in agriculture or in scientific nomenclature. The menu name may even be different from the kitchen name. For exa ...

"Lorraine jelly" is occasionally used, as the

city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...

of Bar-le-duc lies within the boundaries of the former province of

Lorraine Lorraine , also , , ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; german: Lothringen ; lb, Loutrengen; nl, Lotharingen is a cultural and historical region in Northeastern France, now located in the administrative region of Gr ...

. Commonly served as an accompaniment to

game A game is a structured form of play (activity), play, usually undertaken for enjoyment, entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator s ...

, spread on bread, or with ''

foie gras Foie gras (, ; ) is a specialty food product made of the liver of a duck or goose. According to French law, foie gras is defined as the liver of a duck or goose fattened by gavage (force feeding). Foie gras is a popular and well-known delicacy ...

'', it is considered a culinary luxury, purportedly sharing an elite status akin to

Beluga caviar Beluga caviar is caviar consisting of the roe (or eggs) of the beluga sturgeon ''Huso huso''. The fish is found primarily in the Caspian Sea, which is bordered by Iran, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan. It can also be found in th ...

and is colloquially referred to as ''Bar caviar''. The typical product is a

jam Jam is a type of fruit preserve. Jam or Jammed may also refer to: Other common meanings * A firearm malfunction * Block signals ** Radio jamming ** Radar jamming and deception ** Mobile phone jammer ** Echolocation jamming Arts and entertai ...

, with the berries remaining intact in a thin

syrup In cooking, a syrup (less commonly sirup; from ar, شراب; , beverage, wine and la, sirupus) is a condiment that is a thick, viscous liquid consisting primarily of a solution of sugar in water, containing a large amount of dissolved sugars ...

. About 200 currants go into one 85 gram jar (approximately 3 ounces), which costs approximately €18 a jar in Bar-le-Duc (as of 2021) and $40 in the US (). The spread has been enjoyed by notables such as

Alfred Hitchcock Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...

Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century fic ...

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...

, and

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legitimate child of James V of Scot ...

Examples

, the House of Dutriez in the town of Bar-le-Duc provides one of the very few hand-made preparations still on the market, ''la confiture de Groseilles de Bar le Duc'' (Currant Preserve). The traditionally hand-made product involves '' épépineurs'' or ''épépineuses'' (seed extractors) de-seeding the currants with goose quills to flick out the tiny seeds without disturbing the flesh of the small fruit. Sometimes sweetened jellies, consisting of mashed and sieved currants of a significantly lower cost and quality, appear on the market under the same name.

Notes

References

* Barry, Ann. Bar-Le-Duc Currant Preserves. ''The New York Times'' : Arts and Leisure Section. January 30, 1983. * Anon. Royal Jelly
''Waitrose''
February 2000 * Anon. Homepage of Bar-le-Duc France, ''Delights and Traditions'', in Englis
''Ville de Bar-le-duc, France''
August 2009.

External links

House of Dutriez Confitures à la Lorraine
(House of Dutriez).
Homepage of the City of Bar-le-duc, France
in French. {{Grocers Spreads (food)

Examples

See also

Notes

References

External links