Moules marinière
The classic French way to cook mussels: white wine, shallot, garlic, parsley and nothing else. No cream, no leek, no celery, those came later. The skill is in the details: shallot instead of onion (finer, less sharp), a fresh bundle of herbs, and mussels you clean with care. Put out a tray for the empty shells, a bowl of fries on the side and a baguette on the table to mop up the sauce. That's how it should be.
- 2 kg fresh mussels
1 Rinse the mussels in a colander under cold running water. Pull off the beards and tap any open mussels on the edge of the worktop. If they don't close within 10 seconds, throw them away. Also remove any broken ones.
- 50 g butter
- 3 shallots
- 3 garlic cloves
2 Finely chop the shallots and garlic. Melt the butter in the Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Soften the shallot and garlic for 4 to 5 minutes. Don't let them brown.
- 1 sprig thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 5 sprigs flat-leaf parsley (stalks)
3 Make a bundle: tie the thyme, bay leaves and parsley stalks together with kitchen string. Add to the pan.
- 250 ml dry white wine (Muscadet or dry Chardonnay)
4 Pour in the wine, bring to the boil and boil for 2 minutes to cook off the alcohol.
5 Add the mussels, turn the heat up high and put the lid on. After 2 minutes, give the pan a good shake so the mussels swap places. Cook for another 2 to 4 minutes until all the mussels are open. Closed mussels are not cooked, so throw those away.
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- parsley leaves, roughly chopped
6 Take out the herb bundle. Taste the liquid and season with pepper (you usually don't need salt). Spoon the mussels into deep plates and pour the liquid over them. Scatter the parsley on top and serve straight away.
Ingredients
Step 1
- 2 kg fresh mussels
Step 2
- 50 g butter
- 3 shallots
- 3 garlic cloves
Step 3
- 1 sprig thyme
- 2 bay leaves
- 5 sprigs flat-leaf parsley (stalks)
Step 4
- 250 ml dry white wine (Muscadet or dry Chardonnay)
Step 6
- salt and freshly ground pepper
- parsley leaves, roughly chopped
Method
- 1 Rinse the mussels in a colander under cold running water. Pull off the beards and tap any open mussels on the edge of the worktop. If they don't close within 10 seconds, throw them away. Also remove any broken ones.
- 2 Finely chop the shallots and garlic. Melt the butter in the Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Soften the shallot and garlic for 4 to 5 minutes. Don't let them brown.
- 3 Make a bundle: tie the thyme, bay leaves and parsley stalks together with kitchen string. Add to the pan.
- 4 Pour in the wine, bring to the boil and boil for 2 minutes to cook off the alcohol.
- 5 Add the mussels, turn the heat up high and put the lid on. After 2 minutes, give the pan a good shake so the mussels swap places. Cook for another 2 to 4 minutes until all the mussels are open. Closed mussels are not cooked, so throw those away.
- 6 Take out the herb bundle. Taste the liquid and season with pepper (you usually don't need salt). Spoon the mussels into deep plates and pour the liquid over them. Scatter the parsley on top and serve straight away.
