When the French Stormed my stomach, or my first time preparing moules marinieres
Bonjour! It was Bastille day last week and I celebrated the French by making moules marinieres and being smug. Disdainfully delicious!
Since this was my first time preparing mussels, I wanted the easiest recipe I could find. Turns out, they’re all pretty easy and varied only slightly (butter v. olive oil, more herbs v. less herbs). So, factoring in the variables and cross-referencing web results, my conclusion resulted in a complexity of flavors on my palate. Actually, constructing that sentence was way more time consuming than making this dish. Cook time, about 5 minutes. Prep time…well…
So I gave those moules a bathing the French could never comprehend. I took extra super duper care that I scrubbed each mussel squeaky clean. I de-bearded and scraped with a knife and loved them and held them and squeezed them about 45 minutes worth, all the while realizing that restaurants most definitely do not give this kind of TLC and I should probably stop thinking about it lest I never eat out again. Anyhow, long story long, the next day, I consulted some foodie friends of mine who are well-tasted in the art of shellfish and they said that besides the de-bearding (pulling out the hipster strands that some of them have [and if they didn’t all die a delectable death, the ripping of the beard would surely be a bloggable offense]), all I really needed to do is give them a good rinse.
OK, let’s fast forward to the actual cooking: Big pot. Butter. Shallots. Garlic. White wine. Parsley. Mussels. Lid. Steam. Baguette. Voila!
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Moules Marineres
This is just a super basic recipe. There are fancier ones, but I chose to disregard them as is the way of the French. Everything is eyeballed so these measurements are estimated.
2lbs. Mussels
1/2 stick butter
3-4 cloves garlic, chopped
4 shallots (or half an onion) diced
1 handful of parsley, chopped
1 C. dry white wine
Crusty baguette (to soak up the delicious broth)
Clean and prepare mussels. Set aside. Chop garlic, shallots and parsley. In a pot on medium heat put butter in and melt. Remember that the mussels will open up, so make sure the pot you use is large enough to accommodate. Add shallots and let it sweat until translucent. Add garlic and half the parsley and put the lid back on for a minute or so. Turn the heat to medium high and add wine. Let it cook for a minute or two and come up to a bubble. Add mussels and close the lid. Give the pot a shake. 3 minutes, maybe 4, they should be open and steaming. Add the rest of the parsley and stir. Some recipes say that you should remove the mussels and let the sauce cook down for a little longer. I didn’t do that and they were still delicious. Serve with a crusty baguette. Bon appetite!
