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Mussels Mariniere

For 6 People

Ingredients

Conversions to European measurements can be found here!

4 pounds fresh mussels
8 tablespoons butter
4 large shallots, minced
1 bay leaf
1 sprig fresh thyme
1/4 cup parsely, minced
1 1/2 cup dry white wine
(optional)
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1/2 cup finely chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Procedure

In a large sauce pot melt 4 tablespoons butter and add the shallots. Sweat the shallots for 10 minutes then add the bay leaf, thyme, 1/2 the parsely, and the wine. Bring the liquid to a boil and drop in all the mussles at once. Cover the pot with a tight, heavy lid cook the mussels for 2-4 (or untill all the mussels have opened) shaking the pan occassionally.

Remove the cooked mussels from the pot and place them into a serving dish.

Remove the herbs from the cooking pot and return the pot to the stove. (You might also strain the cooking liquid at this point if you see a large amount of sand or grit in the sauce. Use a large colledar and line it with some cheese cloth to make a quick easy seive.)

Return to a boil and allow the liquid to reduce for several minutes. Add the remaining butter and incorporate with a wisk.

If you so choose you can add the vinegar and/or the cayenne at this point.

Pour the liquid over the mussels and sprinkle the remaining parsely over the mussles.

Notes

I have had the hardest time finding a fish market that will sell mussels with their beards on. As I mentioned above once a mussel is de-bearded it starts to die. I can understand a fish merchant wanting to make his/her products look their best but not at the expense of quality. The trouble is I have no way of knowing how long ago that mussel was de-bearded. So I don't know how long the mussel has been dying. And that's bad....