Lyon: Fraises des bois

After reading David Lebovitz’s (who has a wonderful blog, btw, and pretty foodproof recipes!) post on fraises des bois a few weeks ago while still in Lyon, I decided that I had to get some for myself when I saw them at the St. Antoine market. I have had these little miniature strawberries before; while staying in the Annecy area, we sometimes came across them while hiking in the mountains. But they were rare on the often-trekked hiking trails, so one had to wander off the beaten path to find them (and in fact, once I got lost in the woods chasing after these elusive red fruits!).

Box of wild strawberries

But a whole box of fraises des bois may have been…too much of a good thing? When bumping across them in the wilderness, a surge of excitement and self-satisfaction accompanies their consumption, but when they’re already all boxed up, that aspect is lost. Fraises aux bois are more tart than typical strawberries and sometimes even bitter, and the roughness of the surface seeds adds an extra dimension to them. Truth be told I think I prefer steroided strawberries, which are sweeter and has more traditional strawberry flavour. Or maybe I just don’t have selective enough a palate to enjoy them.