I was having a conversation with a close friend about seafood. He mentioned that back in the 80’s he had steamed mussels with a white (milky) “kinda garlicky” sauce in Venice, Ca. He is picky about seafood, but I like him and so would like to surprise him with a replication of that dish. Unfortunately I have not had mussels prepared in this manner and so am throwing myself on the culinary elite who visit this particular corner of The Dope. Is anyone familiar with the sauce my friend remembers, and if so, would you please share?
Pretty simple:
Saute some garlic and shallots in butter with salt and pepper, pour in about a cup of good white wine and add the mussels. Cover and let the mussels steam about 5min or so. When they’re done remove from heat and add a splash of heavy cream. Top with some fresh chopped herbs, and serve with warm, crusty, French bread.
Don’t forget to clean the mussels before cooking, and discard ones that don’t close before cooking, and don’t open after cooking.
I have had mussels in a sauce that was somewhat creamy, not clear, and I would guess it was made with butter, cream, garlic, white wine and various spices (thyme, tarragon, black pepper, etc.) that was incredibly tasty, but I wouldn’t know how to prepare it, although I bet you could just wing it and still come up with something that would be excellent…
Wow, thanks! That was fast! This sounds exactly like the sauce he is describing, so I will pick up the ingredients and make this next week.
What do you think about adding tiny steamer clams to the mussels?
Oooh, I would like to do this as well. How much butter should be used?
Don’t stop at clams. Get some scallops and shell-on shrimp in there too. Crab legs would be good too.
It’s impossible to use too much. I’d say a couple of tablespoons, enough to make the garlic and shallots happy.
Sadly scallops send him over the edge. More for me! I have access to shrimp as well as mussels and steamers, but the only crab in my freezer is king crab, and that might be over the top… wait, who am I kidding!
I’d suggest removing the shellfish once they are open, then adding the cream to the broth and cooking it down slightly to thicken it. Then pour this over the shellfish.
I would NOT add king crab. It’s too strong and salty, and might overwhelm the other ingredients.
Heresy! Digging them out is half the experience.
I really do agree, dungeness or snow crab would be good, but I think mussels, steamers and some shrimp would make for an over the top yummy supper, some crusty bread for dipping in the sauce would complete the meal. Perhaps some fresh berries or sliced melon the best dessert. Which sounds like tomorrow’s evening meal to me. I’ll save the red crab for another time.
I am appreciating these comments a lot, please keep them coming!
What will you be drinking with your meal?
I wonder if a bottle of inexpensive Cava (the Spanish take on Champagne) would be a nice pairing, as it generally is excellent with seafood, although I am not sure how it would match with a creme-based sauce…
Maybe a good German Riesling?
Cava sounds good, I will look for it while shopping. Thanks for the recommend!
I’d suggest drinking what ever wine you put in the sauce. Just needs to be a simple white, probably Viognier instead of Riesling.
Chablis would, of course, be you purist pairing with shellfish.
Alternatively, you could go Pinot Gris or Muscadet.
I’d just pick a nice mineral white.
Be aware that tarragon will change the flavour from just garlic to liqourice and garlic- not to everyone’s taste.
Ooh, thanks for the tarragon tip, I was considering tarragon and thyme. So, thyme and…? I tuned down his suggestion of fennel because of the licorice-y taste. Fresh julienne basil? A touch of rosemary? He loves cilantro; I like flat leaf parsley. I wish I was still in Alaska and had easy access to beach lovage.
Also, any opinions on a nice moscato?
Pretty sure his recommendation was so the shellfish don’t get overcooked and rubbery. They should be removed immediately after they open, if one plans to cook the broth further. Then place the mussels in bowls and ladle the broth/sauce over them.
I myself would put it over linguini.
Personally I’ve never found this broth thick to stick well to linguini, which is why I usually go for dipping bread. This is where I’d follow sh1bu1’s suggestion of removing the mussels, adding cream, then reducing the broth as thick as you can get it. A little (or a lot) of parm will help tighten it at the end.
Some curry powder and ginger are a nice addtion to this broth. Kaffer lime leaves add to this as well.
emacknight’s sauce with some diced tomatoes is good as well.
Alton Brown suggests taking the meat from two or three of the mussels and using a hand blender to puree them into the broth to thicken it. I haven’t had great luck with this method myself.