Many of our travelers have enjoyed private French cooking classes with Brigitte Dumant at her beautiful home in Normandy. Brigitte kindly agreed to answer some questions for us to help our readers get to know her a little better!

In this interview, she tells us more about her classes, and shares some of her best tips for cooking and sourcing the freshest ingredients

You may also like to browse our sample Gourmet Food Tours to get more inspiration for your next trip to France!

Brigitte and travelers in her garden after a cooking class
Brigitte with travelers Marcia, Elliot, Evelyn & Steve after a cooking class
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Marcia, Elliot, Evelyn & Steve

How did you learn to cook?

I learned from my mother, and my family owns six restaurants in Paris! I always loved cooking and having friends home for dinner - isn't it a good combination??

What's special about Norman cuisine?

In Normandy, you can find the best creamy ingredients: cream, cheese, the best apples, and the best Calvados (apple brandy) to flambé what you are cooking!!

Brigitte in her home kitchen, where she teaches her cooking classes
Brigitte in her home kitchen, where she teaches her cooking classes
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Brigitte Dumant

Where do you source your ingredients?

My husband is busy with the vegetable garden, which includes artichokes, zucchinis, eggplants, squash, tomatoes, and different herbs.

I go to a special farm to buy chicken and I buy local fish (such as scallops, sole, shrimps and crab) from fishermen’s wives at Trouville. They sell the fish their husbands have caught during the day or night directly from the boat, and of course, the fish is very fresh!

My favorite local markets are at Pont-l'Évêque or Deauville, where many local producers sell their products.

Fresh scallops from Normandy
"This morning, I went to the open market at Deauville and I bought scallops in their shells directly from the boat." - Brigitte
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Brigitte Dumant

Can you share your favorite cooking tip?

I love to teach travelers how to make sauces, to make dishes extra special. When I prepare a sauce, I always begin slowly and carefully. The secret is to cook it gently and slowly for a long time and not to do it too fast. No hurry!

What are your favorite cooking ingredients? 

I love to use different herbs, such as fresh oregano, chives, tarragon, thyme, and rosemary, to enhance the flavor.

Do you have a favorite restaurant in Normandy?

I go to restaurants to have fun with friends or family - this is the most important thing for me - so any restaurant with a special and good atmosphere! We usually go to Les Vapeurs in Trouville, which is a brasserie and an institution.

Brigitte's house in Normandy, where she teaches her cooking classes
Brigitte's house in Normandy, where she teaches her cooking classes
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Brigitte Dumant

We are very grateful to Brigitte for taking the time to answer our questions!

For us at France Just For You, it's important to us that our travelers have the chance to immerse themselves in French culture, with lots of opportunities to interact with local French people, like Brigitte.

We can arrange private tours with expert local guides; specialist activities like truffle-hunting; wine-tastings; and private cooking classes with local culinary experts, all of whom speak good English and will make you feel welcome in France.

If you would like to book one of our self drive tours in Normandy and include a cooking class with Brigitte, let us know - we would love to hear from you!

France Just For You

Experts in self-drive tours in France

Travelers Reviews

5.0
Jeanne & Michael from Australia
A Great Cultural Experience What we loved most about our wonderful trip was the special activities that FJFY hand picked and tailor made for our interests. We did an awesome cooking experience in Provence, a fun food and wine walking tour with in Nice and a very enjoyable and informative walk in Lagrasse with Carlos. We visited many local markets …
Don
We heard about Emilie from a friend who used her travel services twice. They spoke so highly of her we figured we had to visit France just to meet her. We traveled to the Loire Valley with another couple and she interviewed us separately to understand what we wanted to see and do and what we didn’t want to do. As a result, she designed a perfect …
Dan
I am a planner by nature and my wife and I found that Emilie at France Just For You exceeded all of our expectations for our trip to France. The daily itineraries the restaurant recommendations things to see and even things not to see. The B&B's we stayed at were outstanding. She even planned a few surprises for us on some of our activities. Do not …
Lynne & Jeff
In 2013 I had 2 big reasons to plan a trip to France: a new grand baby boy in Avignon, and I wanted to surprise my husband with a trip to Normandy. He absolutely loves anything and everything he can find to read or watch that is related to WWII. So, I started exploring online for a custom tour designer that could put together a great itinerary for …
Valerie
Emilie deserves every 5 (actually I give her 10!) star review since we never dreamed our 2 week trip through the Loire, Normandy and Paris could be so perfect. One of the many steps above and beyond was arranging a full-day private tour in Normandy since my husband's uncle (who is still alive) was there on D-Day. Our guide, Noémie, knew in advance …
Anthea
We have just returned from a road trip around France and with Emilie's help, we had one of the best trips we've ever had. We travel extensively and I normally do my own research and bookings because we don't like using formal , organised tours but we were looking for advice on self driving holidays in France. Emilie's attention to detail is …