Cornichons

Few French restaurants would think of putting a coarse-textured terrine on the table without a crock of cornichons — baby pickled cucumbers — complete with little wooden tongs to remove them to the plate. They are as automatic an accompaniment as bread. The only dif ficult bit is finding them fresh in this country. They should be unripe and firm, no larger than 3.5 cm / 1½ inches long and, from a cosmetic point of view it is nice if they still have some stem attached.

European ones