A few days ago, my wife asked me what was the difference between these two terms used in Culinary Science, Croquant and Tuile. Tuile literally means tile in English. Croquant, an adjective or a name (masc.) in French means crispy or crunchy in English.
Here is the explanation I gave (correct me if I am wrong...) :
"Croquants and tuiles are generic terms. The difference stands in the thickness of the preparation.
A croquant is thicker than a tuile (generally > 3mm). Its name means that it has a crunchy texture (croquer = to munch).
When eating, the texture in mouth is therefore different, the first being more resistant than the second. Croquant can be used as a base on which we add whipped or pastry cream for example and/or fruits or icing or frosting. The base would easily hold, nor breaking neither becoming soggy.
A tuile is 1 mm thin and therefore very fragile. It is light and doesn't resist at all in your mouth (and even sometimes on the way to...). It is generally used when plating as a decoration on a dessert (e.g. chocolate tuile) or on a savory dish, like a parmesan tuile on a fish fillet.
To thank you for having the patience of reading that very educational post, here is a flavorful tuile recipe ...
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Tuiles with thyme
- 130 gr confectioner sugar (sucre glace)
- 85 gr soft butter (en pommade)
- 60 gr flour
- 60 gr honey
- 2 TBS dry thyme
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