2021 Tour de France - Stage 1: Brest to Landerneau
Bienvenue au Tour de France! I am back with another culinary ridealong. Last year, the Tour’s route didn’t hit much of the northern half of France. This year, the route starts by crossing the country in a southeastern direction. The tour starts with 4 stages in Brittany (the NW reaches of France), so we will all be minor regional experts in no time. Since the region is bordered to the north, west, and south by water, and Brest is positioned along the narrows of the Iroise Sea, I figured a good, regional entry for the first stage is an order of Mussels and Fries...ah, ah, ahhhhhh, en Francais!
Moules Frites
Mussels
2 lb bag of mussels
2 tbsp butter
1 large shallot, minced
3 cloves of garlic, minced
Fistful of parsley leaves, minced
1.5 cups dry white wine
Lemon
Frites
Frozen, shoestring french fries
Truffle-infused olive oil (or evoo)
2 cloves minced garlic
2 tbsp minced fresh herbs
Grated Pecorino Romano cheese
Heat 2 cloves of minced garlic in 2 tbsp of truffle oil in a small skillet, until fragrant, about a minute. Stir and remove from heat, reserve.
While you clean your mussels, preheat your deep fryer or pot full of oil for the fries, per instructions on the bag.
To clean the mussels, place them in a large colander under running water. If any shells are broken or do not close, discard them. With the remaining live mussels, use a knife to pull/remove any beard (wiry strands) from the shell. Then, use a brush to scrub the shells and place in a separate bowl from the uncleaned mussels. Do NOT soak the mussels in tap water. When all of the mussels are cleaned, place them back in the cleaned-out colander, rinse, and continue to set under running water.
In a large pot, melt the butter over medium heat. Toss in the shallots and garlic and saute for a few minutes, until softened. Then stir in the parsley and wine; bring to a boil. Once at a full boil, add in the cleaned, drained, mussels and give a good stir, to ensure the mussels are fully coated in broth. Cover the pot and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring mid-way through.
Once you put the top on the mussels, drop your fries in the oil and fry for about 4 minutes. Then drain quickly and sprinkle with salt. Throw the fries into a bowl and toss in the garlic-truffle oil, adding the herbs, cheese, and more salt as needed. Toss well with some black pepper and set aside briefly to cool.
While the fries are cooling, pour the cooked mussels and broth into a large bowl (or individual bowls) and sprinkle with some lemon juice; top with any remaining herbs from the fries. Serve with the fries, a baguette to soak up the broth, and some white wine.
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Copyright 2021, Brendan McCann, All Rights Reserved.
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