12 Daniel Boulud Recipes From Easy-Peasy to Totally Worth the Effort

The legendary French chef has a recipe for every mood, from oh so cozy to ooh-la-la.

Crisp Paupiettes of Sea Bass in Barolo Sauce
Photo:

Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Ruth Blackburn / Prop Styling by Risha Carnes

Need a little ooh-la-la in your life? 1988 F&W Best New Chef Daniel Boulud has a recipe for you, no matter the occasion. Maybe you're in the mood for Steak with Shallots and Lyonnaise Potatoes and a few Gargantuan Gougères, or it's time for a light lunch of Red Snapper with Citrus and Fennel Salad. Could be that you're thinking ahead to a breakfast of homemade sausage links or about to flex for company with Crisp Paupiettes of Sea Bass in Barolo Sauce. There's a Daniel Boulud recipe that's about to become your favorite.

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Warm Camembert with Wild Mushroom Fricassee

Warm Camembert with Wild Mushroom Fricassee
© Frances Janisch

If you happen to have easy access to Vacherin Mont-d'Or to make this gloriously gooey appetizer, bien pour vous. But fret not — Daniel Boulud's mushroom and herb fricassee with walnuts is just as luscious atop much more widely available Camembert.

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Chilled Spring Pea Soup

Chilled Spring Pea Soup
© Quentin Bacon

Each spring, Café Boulud celebrates the bounty of the season with this fresh, vegetal soup — but fava beans are only fleetingly available and extremely labor intensive to boot. This sugar snap and frozen baby peas version of Daniel Boulud's dish is just as lovely and light, and accessible whenever you're craving a little bit of chilly bliss.

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Red Snapper with Citrus and Fennel Salad

Red Snapper with Citrus and Fennel Salad
© Frances Janisch

Daniel Boulud's simple broiled fish atop a bright salad of radishes, fennel, bell pepper, jalapeño, cilantro, chives, and mint would be pleasing enough, but a smack of acid from an orange, grapefruit, and lemon juice dressing pops it all over the top.

04 of 12

Orecchiette Bolognese with Chestnuts

Orecchiette Bolognese with Chestnuts
© Frances Janisch

Have you heard? Your orecchiette has been missing chestnuts this whole time. It takes a French chef like Daniel Boulud to get a little nutty with Bolognese, but this well-herbed meat sauce is the ideal companion to storebought pasta.

05 of 12

Steak with Shallots and Lyonnaise Potatoes

Steak with Shallots and Lyonnaise Potatoes
© Frances Janisch

In a steak and potatoes mood? Daniel Boulud has you covered with this butter-drunk and vinegar-kissed sirloin decked with sautéed shallots and seasoned Yukon Gold slices.

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Salt Cod Croquettes

Salt Cod Croquettes
© Stephanie Foley

Daniel Boulud knows that the ideal company for crisp and fluffy salt cod fritters is a tart Caipirinha. Serve these Portuguese bar snacks simply with lemon wedges.

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Gargantuan Gougères

Gargantuan Gougeres

© Lucy Schaeffer

The only thing better than a gougère is a giant one. Daniel Boulud's much-beloved Bar Boulud is known for its oversized and airy Gruyère puffs with a kick of Piment d'Espelette. Think of them as cheesy popovers, perfect as an appetizer, bread course, or a super-fancy afternoon snack.

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Crispy Monkfish with Capers

Crispy Monkfish with Capers
© Frances Janisch

Maybe you were in the mood for Wiener schnitzel? Daniel Boulud knows better. He swaps in thinly pounded monkfish for the traditional veal, breads it on a single side with panko, and balances it all beautifully with tangy capers, lemon, and tender-crisp asparagus.

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Bouillabaisse à l'Américaine

Bouillabaisse a l'Americaine
© David Malosh

There's bouillabaisse, and then there's Daniel Boulud's big, booming seafood soup with a gloriously rich broth of fish heads, bones, aromatics, and tomatoes, and heaped with saffron-laced potatoes, snapper and bass fillets, shrimp, and mussels. A sumptuous, garlicky rouille kicks it all onto overdrive.

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Quail Stuffed with Fresh Figs and Prosciutto

Quail Stuffed with Fresh Figs and Prosciutto
© James Baigrie

Sometimes you're in the mood for a dinner flex, and this Daniel Boulud dish delivers every time. Wrap seasoned fresh figs in prosciutto, stuff them into quails, and roast them for an achievable, elegant entrée.

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Breakfast Sausage Links

Breakfast Sausage Links
© Matthew Armendariz

You never saw such a hearty breakfast link as Daniel Boulud's pork belly, salt, sage, black pepper, and white pepper sausages. This recipe makes a pretty massive batch, but they freeze well for up to three months and are perfect poached, grilled, or pan-fried.

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Crisp Paupiettes of Sea Bass in Barolo Sauce

Crisp Paupiettes of Sea Bass in Barolo Sauce

Victor Protasio / Food Styling by Ruth Blackburn / Prop Styling by Risha Carnes

One of the hallmarks of Daniel Boulud's food is a sense of play paired with tradition. Before setting out to the United States to work at Le Cirque, he studied with the legendary chef Paul Bocuse, who'd used mullet encased in thin slices of potato to create a "new-age fish and chips." Boulud put his own spin on the dish with sea bass, and now challenges the team at his flagship restaurant Daniel to reinterpret it every six months. The original, though, is a symphony of perfectly tender fish swaddled in a thin, crisp layer of potatoes atop a luscious layer of melted leeks and rich red wine sauce.

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