The French typically eat pastries for breakfast, potatoes for lunch, and soups for dinner. France, like most developed countries, also has its share of meat eaters, vegetarians, and salty-and-sweet food enthusiasts.
The French eat at least three meals a day and usually in courses. They eat a lot of bread, but not cakes or pastries. They eat lots of cheese, around 25 kilos each year! The French eat more fish than meat.
French dinner courses can include: an apéritif (which is an alcoholic drink before the meal), hors d'oeuvres (which is typically soup, vegetables, or eggs), the principal plate (a meat, pasta, or crêpe), a salad (which is typically served separately from the principal plate), cheese (which is also served separately), ...
For the main dish, usually a combination of meat or fish will be presented, along with some vegetables and classic French pantry staples. Heavier meals like roast beef, lamb roast, boeuf bourguignon stew or a coq au vin are served in winter.
The French diet consists of real food
French women shop daily at local markets for fresh vegetables, fish, meats, fruits, and dairy products. These whole foods are usually grown by local farmers in soil that are naturally rich (what we would call organic food).
Usually more sweet than savory, le petit déjeuner, as the French say, is not a very big or important meal in France. In fact, many French people don't eat breakfast at all, waiting until lunch to eat.
A French breakfast is sweet. It is composed of slices of buttered bread and jam spread on it, sometimes croissants or other pastries and cereals. Usually, the drinks are coffee, orange juice or milk.
French people usually eat a smaller meal for dinner, such as a soup or salad with bread and a dessert (often a yoghurt or a slice of cheese). Considering French people famously don't snack, they must survive a long break between lunch and dinner. The solution is that lunch is the biggest meal of the day.
An usual French lunch will include: an appetizer (une entrée), such as a mixed salad, soup, terrine or pâté; main course, (le plat principal), choice of beef, pork, chicken, or fish, with potatoes, rice, pasta and/or vegetables; cheese course (from a local selection) and/or a sweet.
It's not uncommon to eat yogurt every day, especially with breakfast. Although walking down the aisle of a French supermarket is enough to see that almost every kind is consumed, le yaourt nature (plain yogurt) is highly esteemed and more readily available than in North American stores.
Most French people eat bread every day. It's not just a cliché, bread in France is a staple and something most people care about. French people take bread very seriously. In some countries bakers add nutritional supplements to their bread, or they add gluten to make the bread rise better.
Preparing and sharing food is one of—perhaps the essential—pleasure of French culture. Healthy food in France comes from moderation. There are no forbidden foods, only excess is looked down upon. The French have never been afraid of fat, so a small portion is often very satisfying.
A typical French breakfast is light, sweet, and fairly simple. It's usually made up of breakfast cereals, a tartine (slice of bread with topping) and a drink (tea, coffee, orange juice). It's usually eaten between 6 AM and 8 AM.
The traditional evening meal in France is considered a family affair - around a table, lots of chatter, more good food, and an all-round convivial experience that rolls along merrily for an hour or so. They usually run from roughly 7.30pm until 8.45pm.
The Average Daily Life in France
Adults and school-aged children are generally up by 7:00 a.m., allowing for the business and school day to begin promptly at 8:30 a.m. A typical workday begins at 9:00 a.m. However, lunchbreak in France can last up to two hours.
No! Most French people eat breakfast at home so don't eat fresh croissants from the 'boulangerie' on a daily basis. Croissants and pain au chocolat are popular on more relaxed days for example at weekends or on holiday. Many people also eat them for breakfast on the run.
French people will sometimes have eggs for breakfast. Eggs are usually cooked hard-boiled with salt and pepper. Soft-boiled eggs are also very popular, and you can even find them on restaurant menus for breakfast (and lunch).
Pasta consumption is high Considered as one of the most distinguished cuisines in the world, the French cuisine contains many flavors. In the French cuisine, where cooking is almost an art, average pasta consumption per person exceeds 8 kilograms.
It's how you eat them. Of the three, potatoes are the best — lowest in calories and highest in nutrients. French people might have potatoes four times a week.
In France, it's generally not scrambled eggs or an omelet like we might eat in the U.S. Eggs are more commonly seen as a non-breakfast meal option for the French. A typical French breakfast tends to be light and on the simpler side. That's because the French eat a heartier meal for lunch — especially on weekends.
The most popular fruit eaten in France are apples, with an average of 16 kg crunched per year per household.