Last month we did a Canada Day Spectacular show that focused on poutine, in which I argued that poutine would be better if it was served with the gravy on the side. (In my travels in Quebec -- poutine photos here -- I found that too often, poutine was so soaked in gravy that the flavor of the cheese curds was overpowered, and the fries were turned to mush.) That stance attracted some strong emotions from poutine lovers. Here are some highlights. My response is after the jump.
Vanessa in Montreal writes:I had to stop myself from yelling "that's preposterous!" in the bus at the most ridiculous idea you had about putting sauce to the side as opposed to on the fries. Let's put it that way: if you're having a plate of fries with cheese on top and sauce on the side, that's not poutine. That's fries with cheese on top and sauce on the side. Now about 45% of the time, you have some good points and I agree with you. But that idea of yours was just nonsensical. What's with you and this crispy thing? Did you have some sort of traumatic experience with something that was supposed to crispy but wasn't in a horrible way in your childhood? As you were trying to expound on your "improvement" idea, all I kept on thinking is that you were off your rocker. An improvement would be to suggest a topping that would normally not be considered as topping on a poutine like say, bacon. What you did was not improvement, it was an assassination attempt on the beautiful structure that is the poutine. But I'll forgive you for your folly Dan, because it's the Canadian thing to do.
Barry in Toronto sums up the opinion expressed by many others:
I must strongly disagree with Dan’s point about poutine and dipping into the gravy instead of covering the fries and curds with hot gravy. Once the gravy is removed, the dish ceases to be poutine.
As I've said in the past, when it comes to regional foods, I will defer to the region in determining definition, in deciding what does and does not qualify as that food. (For instance, since hardcore Philly cheesesteak places serve pizza steak sandwiches, I'll accept that as a form of cheesesteak, even though it seems dubious to me.) However, I will not shy away from suggesting improvements to a regional cuisine just because I don't happen to live in that region.
So how does this relate to poutine? I think we can all agree that if it doesn't have gravy, it's not poutine. But Canadians appear to be arguing that if you don't put gravy ON poutine, then it's not poutine. That seems an especially inflexible stance for a group that prides itself on its friendliness, but if I'm going to stay true to my position on regional foods and nomenclature, I must accept it. However, what I neglected to mention in the poutine episode is that I used a second technique to bring the gravy, fries, and cheese curds together. In some instances, rather than dipping the fries and cheese into the side dish of gravy, I spooned the gravy on to the poutine in sections, to avoid sogginess and to regulate ratios and preserve the glorious cheese curd flavor. With this technique, gravy is still being poured on to the fries and cheese before consumption. So as I see it, it meets Canadians' high standards for poutine construction, while still improving upon the dish. How could any friendly, polite Canadian reject a compromise like that? /dan
