Les Daubes et les Estouffats

Daubes and estouffats – the names are interchangeable – were invariably cooked very slowly and for a long time. This poses the first problem for English cooks: how to keep the heat low enough. We tend to cook our stews at a higher level and the whole operation is over in two or three hours. A daube should barely simmer; the very lowest flame in a gas oven, well below Mark ¼ and almost at the point when the gas goes out altogether, will be quite high enough, once the dish has been brought to simmering temperature. Owners of a solid-fuel cooker such as an Aga are in a better position for this type of slow cooking.