Friday, February 10, 2006

Moules Marinières


At the market Saturday morning, we'd been down and back up again, and the man who sells oysters gave us a super price on a couple of pounds of mussels - we took him up on it immediately because we know him well and eat his oysters all the time. Loic gave them a scrape and a scrub while I minced the shallots and prepared the ingredients, and in no time we were deep into a platter of steaming hot delicious mussels. For a batch of 3-4 pounds of mussels:

Moules Marinières

3-4 pounds of mussels
2 big shallots
1 clove of garlic (optional)
1 bouquet of thyme, bay leaf, and a sprig of tarragon
25 grams butter
freshly ground black pepper
25 cl (a glass) of dry white wine
juice of two lemons
1/2 a bunch of parsley

Brush and wash the mussels under running water, eliminate the mussels that don't close up during the process. Peel and mince the shallots and garlic, wash and mince the parsley.

Melt the butter in the bottom of a pot that will eventually hold all of the mussels. Add the shallots and garlic, and saute it over medium heat until it's soft, without browning it. Add the white wine, the lemon juice, and plenty of pepper. Add the herb bouquet, bring to a rolling boil, and let boil for 3 minutes.

Toss the mussels into the boiling liquid, cover, and let cook for 4 minutes, shaking the pot to mix a few times. As soon as the moules have opened, remove from the heat.

Remove the bouquet garni, and with a large slotted spoon, transfer the mussels to a platter. Use a soup ladle to top them with the cooking liquid, , being careful not to stir up any sediment that may be on the bottom. Dust liberally with minced parsley and serve immediately. (don't leave out the parsley, it really adds to the experience!)

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2 Comments:

Blogger RachelD said...

I can't imagine how this came to the top of my index on my blog, but I looked in to get your recipe to prepare these for Chris before the cold evenings are gone.

I even went on to re-read the Ski Picnic, which I remembered pleasantly from first reading long ago---your work and photos are all well worth repeating. Would that we all could relive a cold crisp day like that, with a good friend, muscles vibrant with the energy of youth and exercise, and a perfect, memorable sandwich to share in the sun.

I remember even a PEAR from a Summer picnic---they were home-grown ones from a friend's backyard tree, and needed a spoon, I think. We ate all around the cores, with the juices dripping from our elbows and chins, as we laughed at our childish feast.

I can still smell the sweet, fruity air and the scent of the Summer grass, just thinking of it.

7:26 PM, March 14, 2010  
Blogger Denise | Chez Danisse said...

This looks so simple and perfect. It makes all the difference when you know and trust your vendor.

3:30 AM, March 17, 2010  

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