nouvelle cuisine

noun

Definition of nouvelle cuisine

: a form of French cuisine that uses little flour or fat and stresses light sauces and the use of fresh seasonal produce; also : a national or regional cuisine that stresses lightness and freshness in preparation

American nouvelle cuisine

See nouvelle cuisine defined for English-language learners

Recent Examples of nouvelle cuisine from the Web

This is the food from which nouvelle cuisine sprang, as both inspiration and opposition.

— brett martin, GQ, "Lyon Is the Real Capital of French Food," 12 Mar. 2018
In the 1960s and '70s, Bocuse was identified with the modern, lighter nouvelle cuisine and its use of fresh, local ingredients but later criticized some chefs' practice of it.

— carol deptolla, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Menu items at Buckley's to honor Bocuse," 26 Jan. 2018
The groundswell for nouvelle cuisine transformed Mr. Bocuse into the international face of French cooking.

— william grimes, New York Times, "Paul Bocuse, Celebrated French Chef, Dies at 91," 20 Jan. 2018
The groundswell for nouvelle cuisine transformed Mr. Bocuse into the international face of French cooking.

— william grimes, The Seattle Times, "Paul Bocuse, globe-trotting master of French cuisine, dies," 20 Jan. 2018
Paul Bocuse was the most celebrated French chef of the postwar era and a leading figure in the pathbreaking culinary movement known as nouvelle cuisine.

— kansascity, "Final Chapters for Jan. 28, 2018 | The Kansas City Star," 27 Jan. 2018
In 2005, Alain Senderens, a founder of the nouvelle cuisine movement, decided to close Lucas Carton, his Art Nouveau restaurant on the Place de la Madeleine in Paris and abandon his three stars.

— dan bilefsky and elian peltier, New York Times, "Acclaimed French Chef to Michelin: Take My Stars, Please," 21 Sep. 2017
The Montecito Cafe, 1295 Coast Village Rd., Santa Barbara, 805-969-3392: Ladies who lunch come for the California nouvelle cuisine in the restaurant of the Spanish inn that Charlie Chaplin built in 1928 as a getaway from Hollywood.

— david keeps, ELLE Decor, "ELLE DECOR Goes to Coastal California," 11 May 2011

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'nouvelle cuisine.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of nouvelle cuisine

borrowed from French, literally, "new cuisine"

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1975

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year