The top 10 gastronomic must-try in the Gers

The Gers is renowned for its authentic local products, its traditional recipes and its gourmet specialties. Whether you are a fan of family and peasant cuisine or a fine gourmet, the typical Gers dishes will seduce you with their generosity.

When it comes to French gastronomy, the Gers holds pride of place. Normal! This country territory has many assets to supply large tables and our small kitchens. Nicknamed "Little Tuscany", this rich and generous land, bathed in water and sun, is a "land of plenty". Between fields, meadows and vineyards, the landscape is marked by this fertility. The peasant culture and the Gascon traditions are well anchored there and are underlined by the incomparable kindness of its inhabitants. Great chefs have reinvented and modernized its local dishes, for unique flavors.

Did we make your mouth water? So much the better! We take you for a gastronomic getaway, to discover Gers specialties. A good opportunity to explore this magnificent region, to meet atypical personalities and to delight our taste buds, during gourmet stops.

Foie gras, the star of the Gers!

Foie gras is quite a story in the Gers. Made from goose or duck, it is eaten as a starter, enhances typical Gers dishes and blends wonderfully into a sauce. Traditionally, it is served either cold, half cooked or cooked; either hot, just pan-fried.

Duck foie gras is a product of character, with a pronounced taste. It goes well with fig or onion jam. It can also be cooked very well, in sauce to enhance red meat, duck or pasta. Goose foie gras is finer in the mouth. More delicate, we prefer it as a cold starter, simply sprinkled with a fleur de sel or a good pepper.

• To find out more, the Gers association for the promotion of foie gras provides you with all kinds of information, recipes and addresses.
• To find a good liver, go to a fat market. The Gers tourist office lists them on this page (fr). The atmosphere is really special and lively. If you prefer a quieter visit, in contact with nature and animals, the producers welcome you directly to their farms.
• You can also go to Gimont, a village renowned for its gastronomy.
• A nice visit to do next door: In Aubiet, there is a place to discover permaculture. The original concept of the La Nourrice garden is to combine the vegetable garden, the habitat and the pleasure.

The other Gers poultry

The land is rich and the resources abundant, but there are not only fatty poultry in the Gers! If you like white meats or if you want to lighten up your meal, there are many other poultry to taste: chicken, chicken, capon, guinea fowl, turkey, quail... We think less about it, but almost everything is eaten in poultry: stuffed goose neck, pâté, gratons, confits, sleeves… There are so many products to discover!

• To find poultry farms, it's here.

Bœuf de Gascogne

Tender, juicy, delicately marbled! This is how we define Bœuf de Gascogne. Such meat must be earned! From breeding to the plate, it is an ancestral know-how that is passed on from generation to generation among producers, butchers and restaurateurs...

• Here is our page on farms and meat producers.

To appreciate it at its true value, nothing beats the advice of a professional. In the Cugini butchers, we will help you choose the best piece, we will prepare it with delicacy and you will surely have some tips for simmering it. You can also let the specialists do it: the Betty Beef restaurant in Mascaras will make you appreciate it, without spending hours in the kitchen...

The lambs of the Pyrenees

Between pasture in meadows and summer on Pyrenean lawns, the “natural balcony of the Pyrenees” is an ideal environment for raising lambs. Transhumance is a tradition that continues, but it is also a real way of life. These shepherds, sometimes itinerant, welcome you to farms or shepherds' huts and share their passion for the mountains with you. An idea for cooking it:

Lou Béthêt rosé veal

The Gers veal is still unknown, but the association of veal breeders makes you discover these producers who highlight the quality of "rosé veal from Gers". Protected by the “Lou Béthêt” brand and its charter, it is a guarantee of quality and guarantees you calves born, raised under the mother and slaughtered in the Gers.

Bigorre black pig

The black pig of Bigorre is a very old breed in the region. But it was extinct in the 20th century. Reintroduced and protected by passionate breeders, it is now recognized by the “Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée”. This very fatty pork gives a meat with an inimitable taste and very appreciated by gourmets. In the Cugini butchers, you will find these exceptional meats and good tasting advice.

Tarbais beans

The Tarbes bean is located in the southwest in the 18th century, along with corn. It benefits from recognition as a “Protected Geographical Indication” and from the “Label Rouge”. It is characterized by a very thin skin and a soft flesh. Above all, it is not floury and adapts perfectly to typical Gers dishes based on duck in particular.

Saint-Clar garlic

Garlic has exceptional properties and its benefits for our health have been recognized since the dawn of time. It was the Romans who won with them in their conquest of Europe. The Gauls are fond of it and put it in the spotlight in their recipes. Since then, he has given a southern accent to these warm dishes from Occitania and Provence.

Grown at the gates of Gascony, white garlic from Lomagne is tasty and digestible. Its reputation goes back a long way and led it to official recognition as a “Protected Geographical Indication” in 2009. In Saint-Clar de Lomagne, you will learn everything you need to know about this precious clove in La Maison de l'Ail…

Garlic is much more than a condiment, many recipes make it a main ingredient: garlic soup, blanched turin... but also garlic cream to spread or garlic to squeeze on meat! The rural homes of the Gers give you ideas and recipes to make it a star of your menus.

More original, in Lectoure, you can visit an organic black garlic farm: La Panacea bio.

The adour kiwi

The Adour kiwi takes advantage of the sunny lands at the foot of the Pyrenees, between the Landes and the Gers. It is recognized as a “Protected Geographical Indication” and the “Label Rouge”. Its high sugar level gives it a very significant sweet flavor.

Lectoure's Melon

At Lectoure, culture melon begins in the 19th century. These are Charentais species that are produced. With a "Floc de Gascogne", it's a real treat!

Our other good addresses

• To cook all these good products, here are our cooking recipes.
• You need help? Meet in Auch, at the Atelier de cuisine en Gascogne or in Gimont, for Pierre Dubarry's cooking classes.
• To feast effortlessly, here is our selection of restaurants and a list of farm inns.

If you are looking for a good opportunity to play sports, while enjoying the good little dishes of the country, the “Ronde des foies gras” is made for you. It's a half-marathon with supplies on foie-gras farms. This is an original sporting activity and a good way to explore the region in a different way.

Our gourmet getaway ends. But don't worry, the Gers has many treasures. We certainly have n't revealed all of its secrets to you...   Many other surprises await you there.

We hope that you have given you some good ideas to fully enjoy your gourmet stay in the Gers. If you want to know more about its different territories, consult our page on the Gers, land of gastronomy, heritage and sweets.

To organize your stay more easily, discover our “Around me” option: Our geolocation service helps you find nearby visits and activities, a restaurant, or your accommodation

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Article written by Stéphanie Tempier for the Guide du Gers.