Quiche Lorraine is the most internationally traveled of French tarts — recognizable in café cases and home kitchens across the world. The dish has been adapted so extensively (quiche with every possible filling, from broccoli to salmon to caramelized onion) that the original version, which is deliberately simple, has been somewhat obscured by its offspring.
The original Quiche Lorraine from Lorraine is not complicated and is not loaded with cheese and vegetables. It is an egg and cream custard with small pieces of salt-cured pork (lardons), in a short pastry shell. The simplicity is the point.
The Custard Ratio
The single most important technical detail in quiche-making is the egg-to-cream ratio. Too many eggs produces a rubbery, soufflé-like filling; too few produces a wet filling that doesn't set. Too much milk instead of cream produces an inferior texture. The correct proportion:
3 large eggs : 300ml heavy cream (double cream)
This ratio consistently produces a custard that sets to a smooth, slightly trembling consistency — set enough to slice cleanly, soft enough to melt on the palate. The quiche should still wobble slightly in the center when removed from the oven; it sets fully as it cools.
Milk vs cream: Many recipes substitute milk for some or all of the cream. The result is thinner, less rich, and less stable. The original uses heavy cream (crème fraîche épaisse in France, or double cream). A mixture of 60% cream and 40% whole milk is the practical compromise that still produces good results.
The Shell
Pâte brisée (short pastry) is the correct shell for quiche — a butter-enriched, crumbly pastry with no egg (unlike the similar pâte sablée, which has egg and is sweeter). Ratio: 200g flour : 100g cold butter : 3–4 tablespoons cold water.
Blind baking is essential: The pastry shell must be pre-baked (blind-baked) before the filling is added. An unbaked shell filled with wet custard produces a soggy bottom. Blind bake by:
- Press pastry into the tart pan; refrigerate 20 minutes
- Line with parchment; fill with dried beans or pie weights
- Bake at 190°C, 15 minutes
- Remove beans and parchment; bake another 5 minutes until the shell is pale golden
Only then add the filling.
The Complete Recipe
Makes: one 23–25cm tart | Serves: 6–8 | Time: 1.5 hours
Pastry (Pâte Brisée)
- 200g all-purpose flour
- 100g cold unsalted butter, cubed
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 3–4 tablespoons cold water
Method: Rub cold butter into flour and salt with fingertips (or pulse in a food processor) until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs. Add cold water a tablespoon at a time, mixing just until the dough comes together. Form a disc; wrap; refrigerate 30 minutes. Roll out to 3–4mm; line a 23cm fluted tart pan; trim edges; refrigerate 15 minutes.
Blind bake: Prick base with a fork; line with parchment; fill with beans. Bake at 190°C, 15 minutes. Remove beans and paper; bake 5 more minutes. Cool slightly.
Filling
- 200g lardons (thick-cut bacon, cut into small pieces) — OR the same weight of pancetta cubes
- 3 large eggs
- 300ml heavy cream (or 200ml cream + 100ml whole milk)
- ½ teaspoon nutmeg, freshly grated
- Salt and white pepper (taste before adding salt — the lardons are salty)
Method:
1. Fry lardons in a dry pan until lightly golden; drain; set aside.
2. Whisk eggs and cream together. Add nutmeg, a pinch of salt, and white pepper.
3. Scatter lardons evenly over the blind-baked shell. Pour custard mixture over the lardons.
4. Bake at 175°C (350°F), 25–30 minutes. The filling is done when the edges are set and the center has a slight wobble when the pan is moved.
5. Cool at least 10–15 minutes before cutting — the custard continues setting as it cools.
Serve: Warm or at room temperature, with a simple green salad.
Related reading: Crêpes French Guide | Boeuf Bourguignon French Beef Braise Guide | French Onion Soup Guide
The full recipes live in the book.
Get Tokyo Meets Tuscany on AmazonPaperback $24.99 · Hardcover $34.99 · eBook $9.99