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Rhône-Alpes
These small squares of buckwheat or wheat-flour pasta form the basis of Savoyard mountain cuisine — baked as a gratin with Beaufort and cream, they become the emblem of Alpine comfort.
Cereal from Rhône-Alpes.
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The word ‘crozet’ comes from the Savoyard patois ‘croé’, meaning ‘small’. Small squares of pasta, they were historically prepared at home, from buckwheat flour, eggs, salt, and water; today they are also found made from durum wheat flour. Crozets thus embody two traditions — buckwheat pasta and wheat pasta — sometimes combined in the same production.
Their history retains a well-documented record of mechanisation around Moûtiers (Savoie): in the Eau Rousse valley, in Pussy, Bonneval, or Celliers, crozets were the traditional dish for Sundays, celebrations, and weddings. In 1968, the Fraissard family, based in Moûtiers, made 300 kilograms by hand in keeping with tradition; by 1969, the first crozet-cutting machine was born, soon followed by others. In 1990, production approached 62 tonnes, or nearly 620 million crozets.
Crozets remain an artisan pasta without an official PGI or PDO label. Their tradition remains alive: artisan pasta-making families, small workshops, recipes handed down from generation to generation — exemplified by Alpina Savoie, a miller and pasta maker founded in 1844 in Chambéry, which perpetuates this craft on its historic site.
Buckwheat crozets are the oldest and most sought-after: historically, they were the ones made at home, from buckwheat flour, eggs, salt, and water. Buckwheat, incorrectly called ‘blé noir’, is not a true cereal but a gluten-free pseudo-cereal — yielding a greyish flour, a subtly nutty and earthy flavour, and a grainy texture.
Durum-wheat crozets (or wheat crozets), made from soft wheat or durum wheat flour, are an equally widespread version today. They produce a smoother pasta with a neutral taste and the standard shelf life of dried pasta.
Appearance
Small 2–3 cm squares, grey-brown (buckwheat) or chamois (wheat) in colour, slightly rough surface
Aroma
Mild, slightly woody (buckwheat); neutral (durum wheat)
Taste
Subtle nuttiness, slightly earthy (buckwheat); neutral wheat (durum wheat)
Texture
Firm and brittle when raw; tender once cooked, more or less al dente depending on the cooking time chosen
pronounced taste, grainy texture, the historic variety
(wheat) — smoother pasta, neutral taste
the same buckwheat/plain variations, produced according to organic specifications
buckwheat or wheat depending on the desired variety.
grinding into flour, in an artisan or industrial mill depending on the manufacturer.
flour, water, salt (and eggs in traditional recipes), for a supple dough.
by hand or in a kneader, until a homogenous dough is obtained.
slow, at low temperature, to preserve flavour and firmness during cooking.
bags or boxes depending on the manufacturer.
in a dry place, protected from moisture — long shelf life, like all dried pasta.
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Crozets are first and foremost a dish, not an ingredient — Savoyard tradition has it that they are enjoyed as a gratin. According to Wikipedia, they are mainly used to prepare two regional dishes: croziflette (a variation of tartiflette) and crozets aux diots (Savoyard sausages).
Gratin de crozets au Beaufort — the crozets are plunged into boiling salted water for 15 to 20 minutes, then drained. They are mixed with crème fraîche and grated Beaufort, then baked in the oven until the cheese melts and browns. As an accompaniment, Savoie white wines such as Roussette de Savoie or Chignin Bergeron are recommended.
Croziflette — a variation inspired by tartiflette, where crozets replace potatoes: lardons or Savoie cured ham, onion, Reblochon, and crème fraîche.
Crozets aux diots — the other great Savoyard classic: crozets accompany diots (Savoie sausages) cooked separately.
Plain crozets (cooked on their own) can also be enjoyed simply, buttered or drizzled with a little olive oil.
Crozets de Savoie do not currently benefit from any official PGI (IGP) or PDO (AOP) label — no recognition procedure has been identified with the INAO to date.
Artisanal food manufacturer
Artisan — Savoyard charcuterie, pasta and terrines
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Alpina Savoie describes itself as a French pasta maker and miller since 1844. The company champions a philosophy of "cultivating the genuine" — respecting nature and people, and perpetuating authentic savoir-faire. It produces crozets, which it describes as "the little square of pasta straight from the Alps", as well as polenta, couscous, flour, and a wide range of dried pasta (small pasta shapes, gourmet pasta, vegetable-based pasta, organic range).
| Address | 209 rue A. Bergès — CS 59441, 73094 Chambéry |
| 04 79 68 54 00 | |
| accueil@alpina-savoie.com | |
| alpina-savoie.com | |
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Part of the production is certified organic, since 1997. |
Artisan — Savoyard charcuterie, pasta and terrines
Maison Rullier, trading under the name Le Père Rullier, states that it was founded in 1920: butchers Marius and Marie Rullier founded the company bearing their name and opened a shop to sell their meat. Around 1945, their son Robert Rullier expanded the business into meat curing and the artisan production of terrines; around 1980, his own son Bernard Rullier joined him, before taking sole charge around 1995 and launching the production of crozets, a speciality he chose to develop.
In 2012, with no family successor, Bernard Rullier sold the business to two quality food enthusiasts, Bruno Parisio and Céline Charignon. In the autumn of 2022, the house began the construction of a new building in Bourg-Saint-Maurice; work was completed at the end of May 2023, and production started there in June 2023.
The house describes itself as an artisan workshop that produces, in the heart of the Tarentaise, a wide range of Savoyard specialities: crozets and penne, charcuterie and cured meats, terrines, jams, caramels, soups and slow-cooked dishes, sweet and savoury biscuits, miel de Savoie, polenta and house-made sauces. Its crozets are made without wheat semolina, using soft wheat flour from the Rhône-Alpes region, whole eggs and salt, following a recipe it claims is faithful to the invention of the crozet in the 17th century; the range is available plain, with buckwheat, ceps, hazelnuts, walnuts, chanterelles, or as a medley (méli-mélo), alongside an organic range (plain, buckwheat, chestnuts, méli-mélo, wild garlic). The buckwheat crozets were cited by the Gault & Millau guide.
The crozet production workshop can be visited: viewing facilities allow visitors to observe production through glazed screens, with an on-site tasting — around 600 visitors a year according to the company. In 2024, the house launched a second venture, the biscuit factory B&C Biscuiterie, also based in Bourg-Saint-Maurice. Its cured meats won medals at the Concours International de Lyon 2025 (gold for dried cured beef and pancetta, silver for coppa), and its terrine campagnarde received a silver medal at the same competition in 2026.
| Address | 48 Rue de l'Édelweiss, 73700 Bourg-Saint-Maurice, France |
| 04.79.22.40.03 | |
| contact@maisonrullier.fr | |
| lepererullier.fr | |
| Facebook page | |
| @maisonrullier | |
| Visits | Yes — shop in Bourg-Saint-Maurice (Quartier Alpin) |
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Part of the production is certified organic, since 2017. |