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Baked and breads

Quiche Lorraine

An open tart of egg custard and smoked bacon from Lorraine; cheese is a later and much debated addition.

Quiche Lorraine is a pastry case filled with eggs, cream and smoked lardons, baked until just set. It comes from Lorraine in north-eastern France, close to the German border, and the word quiche is thought to come from the German Kuchen, cake. Most versions made today add grated Gruyère or Comté, though purists object.

What goes in

Gruyère or Comté: 14%14%Eggs: 23%23%Cream: 23%23%Smoked lardons: 14%14%Shortcrust pastry: 23%23%Nutmeg and pepper: 5%6parts
  • Gruyère or Comté314%, Optional, and debated.
  • Eggs523%, Set the custard.
  • Cream523%, Crème fraîche or double cream.
  • Smoked lardons314%, Browned first.
  • Shortcrust pastry523%, Blind baked.
  • Nutmeg and pepper15%, Seasoning.

Rough parts by weight. The ring shows each ingredient's share of the dish.

Made step by step

Each drawing shows the operation for that step. Quantities and timings differ from house to house; this is one traditional way, in outline.

  1. Step 1: Rest Line a tart tin with shortcrust and let it rest in the cold.
  2. Step 2: Bake Blind bake the case until pale gold.
  3. Step 3: Fry Brown the lardons and drain them.
  4. Step 4: Grate Grate the cheese, if using, and scatter it with the lardons over the base.
  5. Step 5: Layer Whisk eggs and cream with nutmeg and pour over.
  6. Step 6: Bake Bake gently until the custard is just set and lightly browned.
  7. Step 7: Serve Rest for a few minutes, then serve warm with salad.
  8. Gruyère or Comté: 14%14%Eggs: 23%23%Cream: 23%23%Smoked lardons: 14%14%Shortcrust pastry: 23%23%Nutmeg and pepper: 5%
    Finished Quiche Lorraine, by share.

The cheese question

Traditional Lorraine recipes use only eggs, cream or milk, and bacon. Cheese appears in many twentieth-century versions, especially outside the region, and is now so common that most people expect it. Cooks from Lorraine often insist that a quiche with cheese is no longer a quiche Lorraine. Here it is included because the cheese version is the one most of the world knows.

The custard

The filling should be soft and barely set, wobbling slightly at the centre when it leaves the oven. Older recipes used bread dough for the base; shortcrust is usual now. The pastry is often blind baked first so it stays crisp. Quiche is eaten warm or at room temperature, with a green salad, for lunch or a light supper.

Where it is used

Light lunchPicnic

The cheeses in it

GruyèreThe usual cheese in modern versions.ComtéA French alternative.

More on EveryCheese

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Sources and further reading

About this page

Original text and drawings by the EveryCheese desk, written with AI assistance and checked against the sources above. The shares are a rough, illustrative ratio, not a recipe: every family and kitchen makes it differently. If we have something wrong, tell us.

Photo credits on this page

The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.

The weekly digest

Every Monday: seven cheeses you may not know, the cheese days of the week ahead, and one dish explained step by step.