I had only rarely eaten muscles before I came to France. It was here that I tasted for the first time les moules marinated in vin blanc with shallots and fresh parsley grilled on the BBQ. It was here that I swallowed down Moules Frites (muscles and fries) with a pint of cider sitting on the North coast of France one rainy afternoon in March.
In France, if you were to go to a restaurant – like the chain Leon de Bruxelle, you usually have the choice between several marinades to go with your muscles: there’s Provençale (tomatoes, onions, black olives and Herbes de Provence), garlic and olive oil, fresh cream and mushrooms, mustard and white wine, shallots and white wine… and on and on.
It was only this past year, however, that I learned how to make muscles at home. It’s so simple; it’s so very delicious!
The recipe I have for you today is the latter: Shallots in white wine.
You’ll need:
- 1 kg of fresh muscles
- 1/2 a bottle of dry white wine
- 1/2 stick of salted butter
- 6 shallots chopped or 1 large white onion chopped
- Sea salt
- Fennel seeds
Sauté your shallots in the butter in a large pot on medium high heat until the onions are transparent.
Wash your muscles, then add them to the onions.
Pour in the wine.
Salt to taste (3 tbsp) and fennel seeds (1 tbsp). Give the whole a good stir.
Cover and leave the muscles to steam on medium heat until they are all open (a few might not open but that’s no big deal. You want to heat them until most are open.) About 30 minutes.
Serve. And eat right away while they are warm!
Bon appetit!
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