flipCafé à la chicorée du Nord
Café à la chicorée du Nord
Why this dish? Charles de Gaulle was born in Lille, in the North, where chicory has been part of regional identity since the 19th century. Mixed with coffee or drunk alone, it evokes the General's northern origins and the frugal culture of Northern families, who used it to soften and stretch coffee.
A hot, dark, bitter drink: coffee blended with roasted chicory, as traditionally drunk in Northern France. Chicory, a roasted root, gives a mild bitterness and a licorice-like aroma, without caffeine.
I was born in Lille, do not forget, and in the North they know chicory better than anywhere else. My grandmother, in her house on Rue Princesse, would put a spoonful in the morning coffee: it fortified it, stretched it, and kept you warm in the winter cold. That bitterness, you see, is not unpleasant — it tastes of my country and my childhood. Drink it very hot, after the meal.
- •Ground coffee — one measure (base of the drink)
- •Ground roasted chicory — a spoonful (bitterness, length on the palate)
- •Boiling water — according to number of cups (infusion)
- •Milk, sugar — to taste (softening, optional)
Café à la chicorée du Nord
A hot, dark, bitter drink: coffee blended with roasted chicory, as traditionally drunk in Northern France. Chicory, a roasted root, gives a mild bitterness and a licorice-like aroma, without caffeine.
Why this dish? Charles de Gaulle was born in Lille, in the North, where chicory has been part of regional identity since the 19th century. Mixed with coffee or drunk alone, it evokes the General's northern origins and the frugal culture of Northern families, who used it to soften and stretch coffee.
I was born in Lille, do not forget, and in the North they know chicory better than anywhere else. My grandmother, in her house on Rue Princesse, would put a spoonful in the morning coffee: it fortified it, stretched it, and kept you warm in the winter cold. That bitterness, you see, is not unpleasant — it tastes of my country and my childhood. Drink it very hot, after the meal.
Ingredients (period version)
- Ground coffee — one measure (base of the drink)
- Ground roasted chicory — a spoonful (bitterness, length on the palate)
- Boiling water — according to number of cups (infusion)
- Milk, sugar — to taste (softening, optional)
Ingredients
- Ground coffee — 2 tbsp (base)
- Instant or ground roasted chicory — 1 tsp (mild bitterness, licorice notes)
- Simmering water — 50 cl (infusion)
- Hot milk — to taste (softening, optional)
- Sugar — to taste (optional)
Method
- Mix the ground coffee and ground chicory in the filter or coffee maker.
- Pour the simmering water (not rapidly boiling) and let it drip or infuse gently.
- Serve very hot in a bowl or cup, black to taste the bitterness, or topped with a little hot milk.
- Sweeten very lightly if desired: the chicory already brings a natural roundness.
How it was made : In Northern France, chicory became established in the 19th century as a substitute or supplement for coffee, which was more expensive. Roasted and ground from the root of industrial chicory, it was drunk with milk in the morning and remained an identity marker for working-class and bourgeois families in the Lille region.
The contemporary twist : Serve iced in summer: strong chilled coffee-chicory, ice cubes and a splash of milk, for a revisited 'bicerin of the North'.
Charles de Gaulle · Charactorium
