Although the cooking technique is probably older, the word dates from the 18th century and derives, as do many other appellations in French cuisine, from the aristocratic employer of the cook credited with establishing and stabilizing it: in this case,
Charles-Pierre-Gaston François de Lévis, duc de Lévis-Mirepoix (1699–1757), French field marshal and ambassador and a member of the noble family of Lévis, lords of
Mirepoix, Ariège in
Languedoc (nowadays in the department of
Ariège) since the 11th century. According to
Pierre Larousse (quoted in
The Oxford Companion to Food), the Duke of was "an incompetent and mediocre individual ... who owed his vast fortune to the affection
Louis XV felt toward his wife and who had but one claim to fame: he gave his name to a sauce made of all kinds of meat and a variety of seasonings". The term was not encountered regularly in French culinary texts until the 19th century, so it is difficult to know what a dish was like in 18th century France.
Antoine Beauvilliers, for instance, in 1814, gives a short recipe for a which is a buttery, wine-laced stock garnished with an aromatic mixture of carrots, onions, and a .
Marie-Antoine Carême, in 1816, gives a similar recipe, calling it simply "Mire-poix". By the mid-19th century,
Jules Gouffé refers to as "a term in use for such a long time that I do not hesitate to use it here". His is listed among essences and, indeed, is a meaty concoction (laced with two bottles of
Madeira), which, like all other essences, was used to enrich many a classic sauce. By the end of the 19th century, the had begun to take on its modern meaning, although it still regularly included meat.
Joseph Favre, in his (, reprinted 1978), uses the term to describe a mixture of ham, carrots, onions, and herbs used as an aromatic condiment when making sauces or braising meat. The is very similar to the , except that the is designed to be brought to the table and eaten with the dish or alone as a side dish. is sometimes called a (although strictly speaking this term more accurately merely designates the technique of dicing with a knife). A contains diced ham or pork belly as an additional ingredient. Similar combinations, both in and out of the French culinary repertoire, may include leeks, parsnips, garlic, tomatoes, shallots, mushrooms, bell peppers, chilies, and ginger, according to the requirements of the regional cuisine or the instructions of the particular chef or recipe. The analogous (frequently containing parsley) is the basis for many traditional dishes in classic Italian cuisine, and the serves a similar purpose in Spanish cuisines. Traditionally, the weight ratio for is 2:1:1 of onions, celery, and carrots; the ratio for bones to for stock is 10:1. When making a white stock, or , parsnips are used instead of carrots to maintain the pale colour. ==International versions==