French cuisine · Fish & Seafood

Moules Marinière

Mussels opened in a pot with shallots, white wine and parsley, finished bound with cold butter.

Ingredients · for 4 servings

• 2 kg mussels
• 3 shallots
• 3 cloves garlic
• 300 ml dry white wine
• 1 bunch flat-leaf parsley
• 60 g cold butter
• 2 sprigs thyme
• 1 bay leaf
• Salt, pepper

Instructions

1. Scrub the mussels thoroughly under cold running water, pull off the beards and discard any already-open mussels that don't close when tapped.
2. Finely dice the shallots and garlic, and roughly chop the parsley including the tender stems.
3. Melt 20 g of the butter in a very large pot and sweat the shallots with garlic over medium heat for 3 min. until translucent, without letting them color.
4. Add the white wine, thyme, bay leaf and half the parsley, bring to a boil once and add the mussels.
5. Cook covered over high heat for 5-6 min., shaking the pot vigorously twice, until all the mussels are wide open - discard any that stay closed.
6. Divide the mussels among deep bowls, swirl the remaining cold butter in flakes into the broth until it binds creamy, season with pepper, pour over the mussels and serve with the remaining parsley and baguette.