
Mussels and French Fries
Mussels in White Wine Sauce (Moules Marinières) with French Fries a favorite ‘go to’ meal for me in the USA and in France. In France, we always wait until the beginning of June when the bouchots are available. They are small and oh so tasty!
Unfortunately, we don’t have bouchots here in the USA, but all is not lost…especially since you don’t have to wait until June. If you shop Costco, you will find them in the fresh seafood. … beautiful PEI (Prince Edward Island) mussels from Canada. One of the bags (5 lbs or so) from Costco will feed 4-5 reasonable people. Reasonable? Who is reasonable when it comes to mussels?

Mussels in White Wine Sauce.....Moules Marinières
Quick, Easy and Foolproof!
Ingredients
- 5-6 LBS MUSSELS
- 3-4 TBSP BUTTER
- 3/4 - 1 CUP SHALLOTS, MINCED
- 3 LARGE CLOVES GARLIC, MINCED
- 1 BAY LEAF
- 1 1/2 TBSP. FLOUR
- 1 CUP++ WHITE WINE
- 1/2 CUP CREAM
- 1/2-3/4 CUP FRESH PARSLEY
- LEMON JUICE
Instructions
- Rinse mussels quickly in 2 changes of cold water. Do NOT leave in water. Trim off barnacles and beards. Discard those that are open and won't close when squeezed.
- In a large wok with lid, sauté shallots in butter. Add pressed garlic, salt, pepper and bay leaf. When shallots are translucent, sprinkle on flour. Stir to combine. Add white wine, cream and parsley. Whisk. Cover. You do not want the liquid to evaporate. Cook gently for 5 minutes or so..add another 2-3 tablespoons white wine. Cook again, covered, for 5 minutes or so. Add a small squeeze of lemon juice. Stir. (this can be done 1-2 hours ahead if you want)
- Add mussels to hot sauce. Cover and steam just until open, tossing gently once. The sauce is somewhat thick when the mussels are added but the juice from the mussels thins the sauce to the right consistency and obviously adds flavor.
- Remove from heat and serve! Discard those that did not open. Don't leave on the heat...they will overcook. Reheat to serve a second round.
Notes
Mary James dishes it out: When buying mussels, always check the date when they came out of the water. By law, the retailer is required to leave this tag with the mussels. But, sadly, this is not always being done. So, look at the 'sell by' date and only buy those that are at least 5-6 days from this date.