Moules-Frites (mussels with French fries)

71 comments - 10.21.2013

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I fell madly in love with mussels in France when I was cooking with a French chef, who prepared moules de bouchot, small mussels which have protected AOP status in France. After cooking all day, that evening was sat around a big pot of moules à la marinière, which we all heartily dug into for dinner, extracting the tasty mussels out of their shells, cooked in a garlicky broth, then popping them in our mouths.

I love mussels, and not just because they are invariably accompanied by French fries in France. Although Moules-frites are widely known in Belgium, one of the best meals I’ve had in France was at a nondescript café near a bus station in Provence.

Most of the fellows standing around the bar had obviously been drinking for a few hours prior to our arrival for lunch (and it was barely noon.) A quick scan of the menu made me skeptical that the food was going to be notable, so we ordered the Moules-frites, which everyone else seemed to be ordering as well.

Bingo!

They were amazing, as were the fries, and now it’s one of my default dishes in France because everyone seems to do them well. But you don’t need to go out for them as they’re so easy to make at home. Moules à la marinière are mussels cooked in a simple broth of dry white wine with a base of garlic and shallots fried in butter. You can add some fresh parsley and perhaps some other herbs, dump in the mussels – and you’re good to go after about five minutes of steaming.

Variations abound, including versions with cream, saffron, cider (moules à la Normande), mussels with curry, or even with bits of Roquefort cheese melted into the sauce. But no matter how you prepare them, a bottle of very cold white wine or sparkling cider, is pretty much de rigeur alongside.

When I got a copy of Bountiful, a gorgeous cookbook from my friends Todd and Diane of White On Rice Couple, I was insanely jealous of their backyard garden, which figures prominently in the photos as well as being inspiration for the recipes in the book. I saw their recipe for mussels steamed with herbs, which they cultivate in their garden. And since it was mussel season, I picked up a big bag at the market and brought them home.

Following their lead, I kept it simple, although I couldn’t resist accompanying them with a big batch of frites as well.

Moules-frites

Adapted from Bountiful

This is a great dish for entertaining as you can do pretty much everything in advance, up to where you add the wine to the pot. A few minutes before serving, simply reheat the herb-flecked wine and add the mussels. I make my French fries in my airfryer, but I’ve linked to some recipes below if you’d like to tackle deep-fried homemade French fries.

This version is called Moules à la marinière. If your mussels need to be cleaned and debearded, rinse the mussels under cold water to remove dirt or other debris, using a brush if necessary. Then pull off any beards, the stringy bits dangling from between the shells. After cooking, discard any mussels that don’t open before serving. If you don't want to use wine, you can use sparkling (apple) cider. If so, find one that's dry. (Martinelli's cider, in the U.S., is non-alcoholic, but is on the sweet side so you may want to add a squeeze of lemon juice.)

The recipe can also be halved if you’re just serving two. The traditional way to enjoy mussels is to use the empty mussel shell from the first one you eat as pinchers to extract and remove the subsequent mussels. Serve with cold white wine, and bread with some heft to soak up the sauce.

Course Main Course

Cuisine French

Keyword french fries, frites, moules, mussels, seafood

Servings servings

4 tablespoons (60g) unsalted or salted butter
1/2 cup (55g) peeled and finely chopped shallots
6 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
pinch of salt
3 cups (750ml) dry white wine, (see Note, below)
1/4 cup (15g) chopped flat-leaf parsley
4 pounds (1.8kg) mussels, cleaned and debearded

In a large pot or Dutch oven, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the shallots, garlic, and salt, and cook, stirring frequently, until the shallots and garlic are soft and wilted, 1 to 2 minutes.
Add the wine and parsley and bring to a boil. Add the mussels to the pot, stirring them a few times, then cover and steam for about 5 minutes until the mussels open, lifting the lid midway during cooking to give them a stir.
Remove from heat and serve the mussels with French fries and bread to soak up the liquid.