CHAPTER FIVE
FISH
THE FRENCH are magnificent with fish. Not only is fresh fish abundant all year round, but the art of its cooking and saucing is accomplished with great taste and skill.
This chapter includes two fine recipes for scallops, one for tuna or sword-fish, three for lobster, and a group for mussels. But the main emphasis is on the important and typically French method of poaching filets of fish in white wine and serving them in a wine sauce, starting with the simplest type of sauce and ending with several of the most famous of la grande cuisine. These last, as you will observe, are fish veloutés (flour and butter roux simmered with the fish cooking liquid), which are then enriched with cream and egg yolks. They are all the same basic sauce described in detail in the Sauce chapter. Under numerous disguises and with various flavorings, this sauce appears throughout almost every phase of French cookery.
A NOTE ON BUYING FISH
Fish must be fresh smelling and fresh tasting. If it is whole, its eyes are bright and full, not filmed, opaque, and flat. Its gills are bright red, its flesh firm to the touch, its skin fresh and glistening.
Frozen fish should be bought from a dealer who has the proper facilities to ship and store it at a constant temperature of zero degrees. It should be solidly frozen. A block of frozen juices at the bottom of the package is proof that it has been thawed and refrozen. Before cooking, defrost it in the refrigerator, or under cold running water.
A beautifully sauced fish can well be considered as a separate course and needs nothing but French bread and a good wine to go with it. If it is a main course, include risotto or steamed rice for shellfish, boiled potatoes for other fish. A salad or vegetable should come afterward, so as not to disturb the harmony of the fish, the sauce, and the wine.
Most of the famous French dishes involving filet of sole center around fish poached in white wine and coated with a lovely, creamy sauce made from the poaching liquid. Although many types of American flat fish and fish filets are called sole, they are usually flounder because the true sole is not a native American fish. European sole is flown over to America, and can be bought, but it is rarely seen in the usual American market. The sole’s ease of skinning and filleting, and its close-grained yet delicate flesh make it ideal for poaching. The best substitutes for European sole are winter flounder or gray sole, Pacific petrale sole or brill. Each of these is a common sole filet in America, depending on where you live. Other worthy substitutes of a different nature are whiting or silver hake, dab, tilefish, fresh-water trout, and (if the filets are too thick, slice these horizontally to make them about ⅜ inch thick) halibut, cod, pollack, striped bass, monkfish. Any of the lean white fish, in other words, may be used in these recipes in place of sole; if they flake during poaching, plan to sauce and serve them in their baking dish.
FILETS DE POISSON POCHÉS AU VIN BLANC[Fish Filets Poached in White Wine]
For 6 people
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
A buttered, 10- to 12-inch, fireproof baking and serving dish, 1½ to 2 inches deep
2 Tb finely minced shallots or green onions
2½ lbs. skinless and boneless sole or flounder filets cut into serving pieces
Salt and pepper
1½ Tb butter cut into bits
1¼ to 1½ cups cold, white-wine fish stock made from heads, bones, and trimmings
OR ¾ cup dry white wine or ⅔ cup dry white vermouth plus ¼ cup bottled clam juice, and water
OR 1½ cups wine and water mixed
Sprinkle half the shallots or onions in the bottom of the dish. Season the filets lightly with salt and pepper and arrange them in one slightly overlapping layer in the dish. If filets are thin, they may be folded in half so they make triangles. Sprinkle the filets with the remaining shallots or onions, and dot with butter. Pour in the cold liquid and enough water so fish is barely covered.
Buttered brown paper or waxed paper (do not use aluminum foil—it will discolor the wine)
Bring almost to the simmer on top of the stove. Lay the buttered paper over the fish. Then place dish in bottom third of preheated oven. Maintain liquid almost at the simmer for 8 to 12 minutes depending on the thickness of the filets. The fish is done when a fork pierces the flesh easily. Do not overcook; the fish should not be dry and flaky.
An enameled saucepan
Place a cover over the dish and drain out all the cooking liquid into an enameled saucepan. (*) The fish is now poached and ready for saucing. It may be covered and kept warm for a few minutes over hot, but not simmering, water. Or set it aside, covered with its piece of paper, and reheat later for a few minutes over simmering water. Be very sure the fish does not overcook as it reheats. Before saucing the fish, drain off any liquid which may have accumulated in the dish.
Filets de Poisson Bercy aux ChampignonsBercy is the simplest of the white-wine fish sauces. The poaching liquid is thickened with beurre manié—a flour and butter paste—then enriched with cream. This combination of fish, mushrooms, and cream sauce is an informal version of sole bonne femme. Serve with it a white Burgundy, Graves, or Traminer.
For 6 people
¾ lb. or 3½ cups sliced fresh mushrooms
2 Tb butter
An enameled skillet
⅛ tsp salt
Pinch of pepper
Toss the mushrooms in hot butter over moderately high heat for a minute or two without browning. Season with salt and pepper, and set aside.
2½ lbs. filets of sole or flounder and the ingredients for poaching them in white wine (see preceding recipe)
A 2-quart enameled or stainless steel saucepan
Arrange the seasoned filets in a buttered baking dish as described in the master recipe. Spread the mushrooms over them. Pour in the liquids, and poach the fish. Then drain the poaching liquid into the saucepan. Preheat broiler.
Rapidly boil down the poaching liquid until it has reduced to 1 cup.
2½ Tb flour blended to a paste with 3 Tb softened butter
¾ to 1 cup whipping cream
Salt and pepper
Lemon juice
Off heat, beat the flour and butter paste into the hot liquid, then ½ cup of the cream. Bring to the boil. Thin out the sauce with additional tablespoons of cream until it coats the spoon nicely. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and drops of lemon juice.
¼ cup grated Swiss cheese
1 Tb butter cut into bits
Spoon the sauce over the fish. Sprinkle on the cheese, and dot with butter. Place dish 6 to 7 inches from a hot broiler for 2 to 3 minutes to reheat fish and brown top of sauce lightly. Serve as soon as possible.
(*) Dish may be prepared ahead and reheated as follows: After sprinkling on the cheese and butter, set aside. Before serving, reheat just to the simmer on top of the stove, then run for a minute or two under a hot broiler to brown the top of the sauce.
[Fish Filets Poached in White Wine and a Julienne of Vegetables]
This is the same recipe, but with a julienne of carrots, onions, celery, and mushrooms cooked in butter, then spread over the fish. It makes a pretty dish with a delicious flavor.
Ingredients for the preceding recipe, but use only ¼ lb. of mushrooms, and the following vegetables:
1 carrot
2 leeks, white part only; or 2 yellow onions
2 tender celery stalks
Cut the vegetables into julienne matchsticks 1½ inches long and ⅛ inch across. Keep the mushrooms separate. Cook the other vegetables slowly in butter for about 20 minutes in a covered saucepan, until they are tender but not browned. Then add the mushrooms and cook for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Spread the vegetables over the seasoned fish filets, cover with the liquids, and poach the fish. Make the sauce as in the preceding recipe.
Filets de Poisson Gratinés, à la Parisienne[Fish Filets Poached in White Wine; Cream and Egg Yolk Sauce]
In the following recipe, the fish poaching liquid is cooked with a flour and butter roux to make a fish velouté. The velouté is then combined with cream and egg yolks to produce a delicious, velvety sauce called a parisienne. Although it uses almost the same elements as the sauce Bercy, because of its cooked roux and its egg yolks, sauce parisienne is far more subtle in taste and texture. It is the basis for all the great fish sauces described later. When the sauce is to be used for a gratin, as in this recipe, the whole dish may be prepared ahead of time, and reheated later. Before the fish is sauced, it may be surrounded with various cooked shellfish as suggested at the end of the recipe. Serve with this a chilled white Burgundy, or an excellent white Graves.
For 6 people
Poach the fish in white wine as described in the master recipe. Drain the poaching liquid into an enameled saucepan and rapidly boil it down until it has reduced to 1 cup.
Sauce Parisienne (2½ cups)
A 2-quart, heavy-bottomed, enameled or stainless steel saucepan
3 Tb butter
4 Tb flour
A wooden spatula or spoon
The boiling fish-poaching liquid
¾ cup milk
A wire whip
Melt the butter, blend in the flour, and cook slowly, stirring, until they foam and froth together for 2 minutes without coloring. Off heat, beat in the boiling liquid, then the milk. Boil, stirring, for 1 minute. Sauce will be very thick.
Preheat broiler.
2 egg yolks
½ cup whipping cream
A 2-quart mixing bowl
A wire whip
A wooden spoon
More cream as needed
Salt and white pepper
Lemon juice
Blend the yolks and cream in the mixing bowl. Beat in driblets of hot sauce until a cup has been added. Beat in the rest of the hot sauce in a thin stream. Return the sauce to the pan. Set over moderately high heat and stir with wooden spoon, reaching all over the bottom of the pan, until the sauce comes to the boil. Boil and stir for 1 minute. Thin out with additional spoonfuls of cream until the sauce coats the spoon nicely. Season carefully to taste with salt, pepper, and drops of lemon juice. Strain.
2 Tb grated Swiss cheese, to help brown top of sauce
1 Tb butter cut into bits
Spoon the sauce over the fish. Sprinkle with cheese, and dot with butter.
(*) If not to be served immediately, set aside.
Just before serving, reheat slowly almost to simmer on top of the stove. Run under hot broiler to brown the top of the sauce.
SHELLFISH GARNITURES
Before saucing the fish in the preceding or following recipes, you may surround it with one or various types of cooked shellfish meat. Their cooking juices are added to reduce with the liquid in which your fish filets were poached, giving it even more character.
The following brief directions include the cooking of the raw shellfish, and then the warming of the meat in butter and seasonings to give it additional flavor. If you are using previously cooked or canned meat, it will need only the final warming in butter.
Steam the lobster in wine and aromatic flavorings as described at the beginning of the lobster Thermidor recipe. When the lobster is cool, remove the meat and dice or slice it. Sauté the meat for 2 to 3 minutes in 2 tablespoons of hot butter, 1 tablespoon of minced shallots or green onions, and salt and pepper. Stir in 3 tablespoons of dry white wine or dry white vermouth and boil for 1 minute until the liquid has almost completely evaporated. The lobster is now ready to be used.
Follow the preceding directions for lobster, but simmer the whole, unpeeled shrimp for 5 minutes only. Allow them to cool in the cooking liquid. Then peel them, and warm them in butter, seasonings, and wine.
These fresh-water shellfish are also called crayfish or crawfish, depending on what part of the country you come from. They look exactly like baby lobsters but are only 4 to 5 inches long. Prepare them like the shrimps in the preceding directions. Only the tail meat is used as a garnish. The chests and the rest of the shells may be ground up to make a shellfish butter.
Poach the oysters at just below the simmer for 3 or 4 minutes in their natural juices until they swell. Drain them, and they are ready to use.
Scrub and soak 1 quart of fresh mussels as directed. Then place them in a covered enameled or stainless steel saucepan with ½ cup of dry white wine or ⅓ cup of dry white vermouth, 3 tablespoons of minced shallot or green onion, 3 parsley sprigs, and a pinch of pepper. Boil rapidly for about 5 minutes, tossing several times, until the shells swing open. Remove the mussels from their shells, and they are ready to use.
SOME CLASSIC COMBINATIONS
The same cream and egg-yolk fish sauce described in the recipe for filets de poisson gratinés à la parisienne becomes even more rich and velvety if a fairly large quantity of butter is beaten into it just before serving. The more you beat in, the more delicious the sauce becomes. But as in all heavily buttered sauces, it cannot be kept warm once buttered or the butter will liquefy and either thin out the sauce, or rise up and float on top. Here in outline are some traditional combinations of poached fish filets and various shellfish garnitures to give you an idea of what you can do. You can, of course, make up your own selection. In each case, in the following recipes, the sauce takes on the name of the dish. Serve your finest white Burgundy with any of these, and they should be considered a separate course, accompanied only by hot French bread.
SOLE À LA DIEPPOISE[Fish Filets with Mussels and Shrimp]
This recipe is the model for the variations to follow.
For 6 people
Poaching the fish
2½ lbs. sole or flounder filets poached in whitewine
Arrange the poached fish filets on a lightly buttered serving platter and surround them with the mussels and shrimp. Just before serving, cover the platter and reheat the fish for a few minutes over simmering water. Drain off any accumulated liquid before napping the fish with the following sauce:
For 2½ cups of sauce
A 2½-quart enameled saucepan
3 Tb butter
4 Tb flour
The fish-poaching and mussel-steaming liquids combined and boiled down to 1 cup
¾ cup milk
2 egg yolks and ½ cup whipping cream blended in a 2-quart mixing bowl
Salt and pepper
Drops of lemon juice
Following the technique for sauce parisienne, cook the flour and butter slowly together until they foam and froth for 2 minutes. Off heat, beat in the hot fish cooking liquid, then the milk. Boil 1 minute. Beat the hot sauce by droplets into the yolks and cream. Return mixture to saucepan and boil, stirring, for 1 minute. Thin out with more cream if necessary, and correct seasoning. Strain. Film top of sauce with a tablespoon of melted butter if not to be served immediately.
Just before serving the fish, bring the sauce to the simmer. Then remove it from heat and beat in the butter 1 tablespoon at a time.
Final assembly
6 whole cooked shrimp in their shells
6 to 12 thin slices of canned truffles
Immediately spoon the sauce over the hot fish and shellfish. Decorate with the shrimp and truffles and serve.
The following are all constructed in exactly the same manner as the preceding sole à la dieppoise. Directions for poaching the fish are here; for the shellfish garnitures.
[Fish Filets with Shellfish and Mushrooms]
Follow the preceding recipe, but to the garniture add oysters, mushrooms, and écrevisses, if available. Decorate the sauced fish with whole shrimps or écrevisses, truffle slices, and croûtons (triangles of white bread sautéed in butter).
[Fish Filets with Shellfish and Truffles]
Same as the sole à la dieppoise, but the filets are garnished with écrevisses or shrimp, and lobster meat, and instead of beating plain butter into the sauce, use the shellfish butter. Decorate the sauced fish with truffle slices, and cooked lobster claws or whole shrimp.
[Fish Filets with Écrevisses]
Same as the sole à la dieppoise, but the fish is garnished with écrevisses, and shellfish butter, rather than plain butter is beaten into the sauce.
[Fish Filets with Mushrooms]
Poach the fish filets in white wine and sliced mushrooms as for the sole Bercy. Make the sauce following the recipe for the sole à la dieppoise. Garnish the sauced fish with 6 fluted mushroom caps, which have been stewed in butter and lemon juice.
[Stuffed Fish Filets]
Make 1 cup of the fish quenelle mixture. Mix into it ¼ cup of finely diced mushroom duxelles, and 2 to 3 tablespoons additional whipping cream. Place a spoonful in the center of each seasoned, raw filet, and fold or roll the filet to enclose the filling. Tie with white string. Poach, garnish, and sauce the filets following any of the preceding suggestions.
[Scallops and Mushrooms in White Wine Sauce]
Exactly the same sauce parisienne as that for the poached fish filets in the preceding recipes is delicious with scallops gratinéed in their shells. This dish may be prepared ahead, and gratinéed just before serving. A fine, chilled white Burgundy or a very good white Graves would go well with it. Scallops are usually served as a first course, or as a light luncheon dish.
For 6 scallop shells
1 cup dry white wine or ¾ cup dry white vermouth
½ tsp salt
Pinch of pepper
½ bay leaf
2 Tb minced shallots or green onions
A 2-quart enameled or stainless steel saucepan
Simmer the wine and flavorings for 5 minutes.
1 lb. washed scallops
½ lb. sliced fresh mushrooms
Add the scallops and mushrooms to the wine, and pour in enough water barely to cover ingredients. Bring to the simmer. Cover, and simmer slowly for 5 minutes. Remove scallops and mushrooms with a slotted spoon, and set aside in a bowl.
The sauce
Rapidly boil down the cooking liquid until it has reduced to 1 cup.
A 2-quart enameled or stainless steel saucepan
3 Tb butter
4 Tb flour
¾ cup milk
2 egg yolks
½ cup whipping cream, more if needed
Salt and pepper
Drops of lemon juice
Following the directions in sauce parisienne, cook the butter and flour slowly together for 2 minutes. Off heat, blend in the boiling cooking liquid, then the milk. Boil 1 minute. Blend the egg yolks and cream in a bowl, then beat the hot sauce into them by driblets. Return the sauce to the pan and boil, stirring, for 1 minute. Thin out with more cream if necessary. Season to taste with salt, pepper, and lemon juice. Strain.
6 scallop shells or pyrex or porcelain shells of ⅓ cup capacity
Cut the scallops into crosswise pieces about ⅛ inch thick.
½ Tb butter
6 Tb grated Swiss cheese
1½ Tb butter cut into 6 pieces
Blend two thirds of the sauce with the scallops and mushrooms. Butter the shells. Spoon the scallops and mushrooms into them, and cover with the rest of the sauce. Sprinkle with cheese and dot with butter. Arrange the shells on a broiling pan.
(*) Set aside or refrigerate until ready to gratiné.
Fifteen minutes before serving, set the scallops 8 to 9 inches under a moderately hot broiler to heat through gradually, and to brown the top of the sauce. Serve as soon as possible.
[Scallops Gratinéed with Wine, Garlic, and Herbs]
This good recipe may be prepared in advance and gratinéed just before serving. The following proportions are sufficient for a first course. Double them for a main course. Serve a chilled rosé, or a dry white wine such as côtes de Provence.
For 6 scallop shells
⅓ cup minced yellow onions
1 Tb butter
1½ Tb minced shallot or green onions
1 clove minced garlic
Cook the onions slowly in butter in a small saucepan for 5 minutes or so, until tender and translucent but not browned. Stir in the shallots or onions, and garlic, and cook slowly for 1 minute more. Set aside.
1½ lbs. washed scallops
Salt and pepper
1 cup sifted flour in a dish
Dry the scallops and cut into slices ¼ inch thick. Just before cooking, sprinkle with salt and pepper, roll in flour, and shake off excess flour.
2 Tb butter
1 Tb olive oil
A 10-inch enameled skillet
Sauté the scallops quickly in very hot butter and oil for 2 minutes to brown them lightly.
⅔ cup dry white wine, or ½ cup dry white vermouth and 3 Tb water
½ bay leaf
⅛ tsp thyme
Pour the wine, or the vermouth and water, into the skillet with the scallops. Add the herbs and the cooked onion mixture. Cover the skillet and simmer for 5 minutes. Then uncover, and if necessary boil down the sauce rapidly for a minute until it is lightly thickened. Correct seasoning, and discard bay leaf.
6 buttered scallop shells, or porcelain or pyrex shells, of ⅓ cup capacity
¼ cup grated Swiss cheese
2 Tb butter cut into 6 pieces
Spoon the scallops and sauce into the shells. Sprinkle with cheese and dot with butter.
(*) Set aside or refrigerate until ready to gratiné.
Just before serving, run under a moderately hot broiler for 3 to 4 minutes to heat through, and to brown the cheese lightly.
Tomatoes, wine, herbs, and garlic are a good contrast to tuna or swordfish, and this dish can be served either hot or cold. Boiled potatoes and green beans would go well, and a chilled rosé wine, or a dry white such as côtes de Provence, or Riesling.
For 6 to 8 people
3 lbs. fresh tuna or sword-fish cut into steaks ¾ inch thick (if fish is frozen, thaw it)
A 9- by 14- inch pyrex baking dish about 2½ inches deep
1 tsp salt
2 Tb lemon juice
6 Tb olive oil
⅛ tsp pepper
Remove skin, and cut fish steaks into serving pieces. Blend salt and lemon juice in baking dish, then beat in the oil and pepper. Arrange the fish in the dish, and baste with the marinade. Cover with waxed paper and marinate 1½ to 2 hours, turning and basting the fish with the marinade several times. Drain the fish and dry it thoroughly on paper towels. Discard the marinade, which will be strong and fishy.
3 to 4 Tb olive oil, more if needed
A skillet
Sauté the fish rapidly in very hot olive oil for a minute or two on each side to brown lightly. Rearrange the fish in the baking dish.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
1 cup minced yellow onions
3 lbs. fresh, ripe, red tomatoes peeled, seeded, juiced, and chopped
2 cloves mashed garlic
½ tsp oregano
¼ tsp thyme
¼ tsp salt
⅛ tsp pepper
Cook the onions slowly in the skillet for 5 minutes or so until tender but not browned. Stir in the tomato pulp, garlic, seasonings, and herbs. Cover skillet and cook slowly for 5 minutes. Correct seasoning, and spread the tomato mixture over the fish.
1 cup dry white wine or ⅔ cup dry white vermouth
Place a cover or aluminum foil over the baking dish and bring to the simmer on top of the stove. Then set in lower third of preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes. Pour in the wine and bake for 30 minutes more, turning oven down to 325 degrees as soon as fish is simmering.
A serving platter
Remove fish to a serving platter, scraping the sauce off the fish and back into the baking dish. Keep fish warm for about 5 minutes while finishing the sauce.
1 to 2 Tb tomato paste for added flavor and color
Optional: 1 Tb meat glaze, page no, for depth of flavor
Boil down the sauce over high heat until it has reduced to about 2 cups. Stir in the tomato paste and optional meat glaze. Simmer for a moment, and correct seasoning.
1 Tb flour blended to a paste with 1 Tb softened butter
2 to 3 Tb chopped parsley
Off heat, beat in the flour and butter paste, and bring again to the simmer for 1 minute. Stir in the chopped parsley, spoon the sauce over the fish, and serve.
(*) Fish may be set aside, then covered and reheated in the oven, but be careful not to overcook it.
Other Fish—Green cod or coalfish, ocean pollack, and halibut may be cooked in the same way. They need no marinating and require only 20 to 30 minutes of baking.
A NOTE ON DEALING WITH LIVE LOBSTERS
If you object to steaming or splitting a live lobster, it may be killed almost instantly just before cooking if you plunge the point of a knife into the head between the eyes, or sever the spinal cord by making a small incision in the back of the shell at the juncture of the chest and the tail.
[Lobster Thermidor-Gratinéed in its Shell]
So many steps are involved in the preparation of a really splendid lobster Thermidor, no wonder it costs a fortune in any restaurant! But it is not a particularly difficult dish to execute, and everything may be prepared in advance and heated up just before serving. This is an especially attractive recipe for lobster Thermidor because the meat is stirred in hot butter before it is sauced, and turns a rosy red. Buy lobsters weighing a good 2 pounds each, so the shells will be large enough to hold the filling.
For 6 people
Steaming the lobsters
A covered, enameled or stainless steel kettle with tight-fitting cover
3 cups dry white wine (or 2 cups dry white vermouth) and 2 cups water
A large onion, a medium carrot, and a celery stalk, all thinly sliced
6 parsley sprigs
1 bay leaf
¼ tsp thyme
6 peppercorns
1 Tb fresh or dried tarragon
3 live lobsters, 2 lbs. each
Simmer wine, water, vegetables, herbs, and seasonings in the kettle for 15 minutes. Then bring to a rolling boil and add the live lobsters. Cover and boil for about 20 minutes. The lobsters are done when they are bright red and the long head-feelers can be pulled from the sockets fairly easily.
½ lb. sliced fresh mushrooms
1 Tb butter
1 tsp lemon juice
¼ tsp salt
A covered enameled or stainless steel saucepan
The sauce
While the lobsters are steaming, stew the mushrooms slowly in the covered saucepan with the butter, lemon juice, and salt for 10 minutes.
When the lobsters are done, remove them from the kettle. Pour the mushroom cooking juices into the lobster steaming juices in the kettle and boil down rapidly until liquid has reduced to about 2¼ cups.
Strain into the saucepan and bring to the simmer.
5 Tb butter
6 Tb flour
A 1½-quart, heavy-bottomed, enameled or stainless steel saucepan
A wooden spoon
A wire whip
1 Tb cream
Cook the butter and flour slowly together in the second saucepan for 2 minutes without browning. Off heat, beat in the simmering lobster-cooking liquid. Boil, stirring, for 1 minute. Set aside. Film top of sauce with the cream.
A 3-quart mixing bowl
1 Tb dry mustard
2 egg yolks
½ cup whipping cream
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Split the lobsters in half lengthwise, keeping the shell halves intact. Discard sand sacks in the heads, and the intestinal tubes. Rub lobster coral and green matter through a fine sieve into the mixing bowl, and blend into it the mustard, egg yolks, cream, and pepper. Beat the sauce into this mixture by driblets.
4 to 6 Tb more whipping cream
Return the sauce to the pan and, stirring with a wooden spoon, bring it to the boil and boil slowly for 2 minutes. Thin out with tablespoons of cream. Sauce should be thick enough to coat a spoon fairly heavily. Taste carefully for seasoning. Set aside, top filmed with a spoonful of cream.
Sautéing the lobster meat
Remove the meat from the lobster tails and claws, and cut it into ⅜-inch cubes.
A 12-inch enameled or stainless steel skillet
4 Tb butter
⅓ cup cognac
Set the skillet with the butter over moderate heat. When the butter foam begins to subside, stir in the lobster meat and sauté, stirring slowly, for about 5 minutes until the meat has turned a rosy color. Pour in the cognac and boil for a minute or two, shaking the skillet, until the liquid has reduced by half.
Final assembly
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
Fold the cooked mushrooms and two thirds of the sauce into the skillet with the lobster meat.
A shallow roasting pan or fireproof serving platter
½ cup grated Parmesan or Swiss cheese
2 Tb butter cut into bits
Arrange the split lobster shells in the roasting pan. Heap the lobster mixture into the shells; cover with the remaining sauce. Sprinkle with cheese and dot with butter.
(*) May be prepared ahead up to this point and refrigerated.
Place in upper third of 425-degree oven for 10 to 15 minutes, until lobster is bubbling and the top of the sauce is nicely browned. Serve immediately on a platter or serving plates.
[Lobster Steamed in Wine with Herb Sauce]
This is not a variation of lobster Thermidor at all, but it fits well into this niche.
Ingredients for steaming 3 lobsters in wine, herbs, and aromatic vegetables as in the preceding Thermidor recipe
Steam the lobsters for about 20 minutes as described in the preceding recipe. Remove them. Rapidly boil down their cooking liquid until it has reduced to 2 cups. The sliced carrots and onions need not be removed.
1½ Tb flour blended to a paste with 1½ Tb softened butter
About 1 cup of whipping cream
Off heat, beat in the flour and butter paste. Then bring to the boil for 15 seconds. Reduce to the simmer and stir in the cream by tablespoons until the sauce is the consistency of a light cream soup. Correct seasoning and stir in the herbs.
3 to 4 Tb fresh minced green herbs: parsley, chervil, and tarragon, or parsley only
Split the lobsters in two, lengthwise. Remove stomach sacks in heads and intestinal tubes. Arrange the lobsters in a serving dish, pour the sauce over them, and serve.
Homard à l’américaine is live lobster chopped into serving pieces, sautéed in oil until the shells turn red, then flamed in cognac, and simmered with wine, aromatic vegetables, herbs, and tomatoes. In France, unless you are at a formal dinner, the meat is left in the shells and guests dig in, flanked by finger bowl and napkin. We have noticed that many Americans prefer that the meat be removed from the shells before the dish is served, which is too bad, as it makes more work for the cook.
The origin of homard à l’américaine is a subject for discussion. Some authorities call it à l’armoricaine, after the ancient province of Armorique in Brittany where lobsters grow. Others say armoricaine is nonsense because the tomato flavoring is quite untypical of Brittany and that the recipe is far more likely the product of a Paris chef with Provençal inclinations who titled his dish after an American client, or after the exotic origins of the tomato. In any case it is a splendid creation for fresh lobster, and though we are not partial to frozen lobster tails, it is one of the best ways we know to cook them.
Risotto simmered in fish stock, or steamed rice, and a dry white wine with body such as Burgundy, Côtes du Rhône, or Graves would make fine accompaniments.
For 6 people
Three 1½-lb. live lobsters (or 6 frozen lobster tails partially defrosted and cut in half lengthwise)
Split the lobsters in two lengthwise. Remove stomach sacks (in the head) and intestinal tubes. Reserve coral and green matter. Remove claws and joints and crack them. Separate tails from chests.
3 Tb olive oil
A heavy 12-inch enameled skillet or casserole
Heat the oil in the skillet until it is very hot but not smoking. Add the lobster pieces, meat-side down, and sauté for several minutes, turning them, until the shells are bright red. Remove lobster to a side dish.
1 medium carrot, finely diced
1 medium onion, finely diced
Stir in the diced carrot and onion, and cook slowly for 5 minutes or until almost tender.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Salt and pepper
3 Tb minced shallots or green onions
1 clove mashed garlic
⅓ cup cognac
1 lb. fresh, ripe, tomatoes, peeled, seeded, juiced, and chopped
2 Tb tomato paste
1 cup fish stock, or ⅓ cup bottled clam juice
1½ cups dry white wine or 1 cup dry white vermouth
Optional: ½ Tb meat glaze
2 Tb chopped parsley
1 Tb fresh tarragon or 1 tsp dried tarragon
Season the lobster, return if to the skillet, and add the shallots or green onions, and the garlic. With the skillet over moderate heat, pour in the cognac. Avert your face and ignite the cognac with a lighted match and shake the skillet slowly until the flames have subsided. Stir in all the ingredients to the left. Bring to the simmer on top of the stove. Cover and place in middle level of preheated oven. Regulate heat so lobster simmers quietly for 20 minutes.
While the lobster is simmering, force the lobster coral and green matter with the butter through a fine sieve into the mixing bowl and set aside.
When the lobster is done, remove it to a side dish. Take the meat out of the shells if you wish. Set skillet with its cooking liquids over high heat and boil down rapidly until sauce has reduced and thickened slightly. It will acquire more body later when the butter and coral mixture is added. Taste very carefully for seasoning.
(*) Recipe may be completed to this point, and finished later.
Return the lobster to the sauce and bring to the simmer to reheat the lobster. Beat a cupful of hot sauce by driblets into the coral and butter mixture, then pour the mixture into the skillet with the lobster. Shake and swirl the skillet over low heat for 2 to 3 minutes to poach the coral and green matter, but do not bring the sauce near the simmer again.
A ring of risotto or steamed rice
2 to 3 Tb minced parsley, or parsley and fresh tarragon
Arrange the lobster and sauce in the rice ring, decorate with herbs, and serve immediately.
Mussels, with their long, oval, blue-black shells and delicious pink-orange flesh are often called the poor man’s oyster. Clinging to rocks and piers along the seacoasts everywhere, they can be had for the picking at low tide. If you are gathering mussels yourself, take them only from places washed by clear, clean, sea water.
SCRUBBING AND SOAKING MUSSELS
Before they can be cooked, mussels must have a rather long and careful cleaning process to remove all possible sand from their interiors, and to rid the shells of any slime and dirt which might spoil the excellent juices they render as they steam open. Discard any mussels that are not firmly closed, or which feel lighter in weight than the rest. Discard also any too-heavy mussels, as they may be nothing but sand enclosed between two mussel shells. Scrub each mussel very clean with a rough brush under running water. Then with a small knife, scrape off the tuft of hairs, or beard, which protrudes from between one side of the closed shell halves. Set the mussels in a basin or bucket of fresh water for an hour or two so they will disgorge their sand and also lose a bit of their saltiness. Lift the mussels out of the water into a colander, wash and drain them again, and they are ready to cook.
Note: Some cooks add flour to the soaking water on the theory that while the mussels eat the flour and become fatter and more succulent, they are at the same time disgorging their sand more thoroughly. Use ⅓ cup of flour for each 2 quarts of water, beating the flour and a bit of water with a whip first, to mix it thoroughly. Then, after soaking the mussels, lift them into a colander, and rinse them in cold water.
Beware of sand if you are using canned mussels. If there is any sand at all in the juices at the bottom of the can, soak the mussels in several changes of cold water. Eat one, and if it is sandy, continue washing the mussels. Good quality canned mussels may be substituted for fresh mussels in all but the first two of the following recipes; the canned juices may be used as stock for your sauce. Simmer the juices with a bit of white wine or vermouth, and fill out the quantity of stock called for in your recipe with boiling milk.
[Fresh Mussels Steamed Open in Wine and Flavorings]
Here is the simplest version of this most typical of French methods for cooking mussels. They are steamed open in a big pot with wine and flavorings, and it takes only about 5 minutes. Then the mussels, shells and all, are dipped out into soup plates, and the cooking liquor is poured over them. Each guest removes the mussels one by one from their shells with fingers or a fork and discards the shells into a side dish. In addition to shell dish and fork, provide your guests with a soupspoon for drinking up the mussel juices, a big napkin, and a finger bowl. Along with the mussels serve French bread, butter, and a chilled, light, dry white wine such as Muscadet, dry Graves, or one of the Pouillys.
For 6 to 8 people
2 cups of light, dry white wine or 1 cup dry white vermouth
An 8- to 10-quart enameled kettle with cover
½ cup minced shallots, or green onions, or very finely minced onions
8 parsley sprigs
½ bay leaf
¼ tsp thyme
⅛ tsp pepper
6 Tb butter
Bring the wine to the boil in the kettle with the rest of the ingredients listed. Boil for 2 to 3 minutes to evaporate its alcohol and to reduce its volume slightly.
6 quarts scrubbed, soaked mussels
Add the mussels to the kettle. Cover tightly and boil quickly over high heat. Frequently grasp the kettle with both hands, your thumbs clamped to the cover, and toss the mussels in the kettle with an up and down slightly jerky motion so the mussels will change levels and cook evenly. In about 5 minutes the shells will swing open and the mussels are done.
½ cup roughly chopped parsley
With a big skimmer, dip the mussels into wide soup plates. Allow the cooking liquid to settle for a moment so any sand will sink to the bottom. Then ladle the liquid over the mussels, sprinkle with parsley and serve immediately.
[Mussels Steamed with Wine, Flavorings, and Bread Crumbs]
In this quite different method, bread crumbs cook with the mussels and give a liaison to the sauce. Here you must be sure that the mussels are most carefully washed and soaked so there will be no sand to mix itself with the crumbs.
For 6 to 8 people
Cook the onions slowly in the butter for about 10 minutes, until they are tender and translucent but not browned.
2 cups light, dry white wine or 1 cup dry white vermouth
1½ cups fine, dry, white bread crumbs from homemade type of bread
½ cup chopped parsley
⅛ tsp pepper
1 bay leaf
¼ tsp thyme
Stir in all the ingredients at the left, cover the kettle, and simmer very slowly for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, and making sure the mixture does not scorch. Remove bay leaf.
Add the mussels. Cover and toss them in the kettle. Set over high heat, tossing frequently until the mussel shells swing open. Ladle the mussels and sauce into soup plates, sprinkle with parsley, and serve.
[Mussels on the Half Shell, Gratinéed]
These are delicious as a first course. Serve them with French bread and a rather strong, dry, white wine such as Mâcon, côtes de Provence, white Chianti, or a domestic equivalent.
For 4 to 6 people
48 extra large, scrubbed and soaked mussels
For this recipe you may steam the mussels open as for moules à la marinière I, preceding, or you may open the raw mussels with a knife. We prefer the latter method. When the mussels are open, discard the empty shell halves. Arrange the remaining half shells holding the mussels in a shallow baking and serving dish, or individual fireproof dishes.
6 ounces or 1½ sticks of softened butter
A 2-quart mixing bowl
A wooden spoon
3 Tb finely minced shallots or green onions
1 to 3 cloves mashed garlic, depending on your love of garlic
¼ cup minced parsley
½ cup fine, white, dry bread crumbs
Salt and pepper to taste
Beat the butter in the mixing bowl until it is light and creamy. Beat in the rest of the ingredients and taste for seasoning. Spread a bit of the mixture over each mussel.
(*) May be prepared ahead of time to this point. Cover the mussels with waxed paper and refrigerate.
About 2 or 3 minutes before serving, run the mussels under a very hot broiler until the butter is bubbling in the shells and the crumbs have browned lightly. Serve immediately.
[Mussels Marinated in Oil and Herbs]
2 cups of cooked, fresh mussels (or canned or frozen mussels)
Steam fresh mussels open as directed in moules à la marinière I. Discard shells.
4 Tb light olive oil or salad oil
1 Tb dry white vermouth and 1 Tb lemon juice
2 Tb finely minced shallots or green onions
3 Tb minced parsley or a mixture of fresh green herbs
Pinch of pepper
Toss the mussels in a bowl with the ingredients at the left and allow them to marinate half an hour before serving. They may be served just as they are, or you may drain them and fold into them half a cup of mayonnaise. Place them in a bowl or individual shells.
MOULES EN SAUCE[Sauced Mussels Served in Scallop Shells]
This is a more formal recipe for mussels. They are steamed open with wine and flavorings, then a rich, creamy, buttery sauce is made with their cooking liquid. This is the same heavily buttered sauce parisienne found, but with a quite different flavor. If the mussels are served on the half shell, as they often are in Brittany, they are called mouclades. We have suggested in the following recipe that they be shelled, sauced, and served in scallop shells; done this way they may be prepared ahead of time. There are naturally many versions and flavorings for mussels served in a sauce. For instance, if you omitted the curry, garlic, and fennel in the recipe, and substituted ½ cup of mushroom stems, your mussel dish would be à la poulette. Also, if you omitted the special flavorings, and the cream, egg yolks, and butter enrichment, then stirred a cup of béarnaise sauce into your velouté just before serving, you would have moules à la béarnaise.
For 6 people
5 to 6 quarts scrubbed, soaked mussels. (A 2-hour soaking is advisable here to rid the mussels of as much salt as possible)
The wine and flavoring for moules à la marinière I plus:
¼ tsp curry powder
A pinch of fennel
1 clove mashed garlic
Steam the mussels open in wine and flavorings, following the method for moules à la marinière I. Shell the mussels and place them in a bowl. Strain the mussel cooking liquor into an enameled saucepan and rapidly boil it down over high heat to concentrate its flavor. Taste it frequently as it boils; you may find that if you reduce it too much, the salt content will be overpowering. Measure out 1½ cups of the concentrated liquor to be used in the following sauce:
3 Tb butter
4 Tb flour
A 2-quart, heavy-bottomed enameled saucepan
A wooden spoon
Stir the butter and flour over low heat in the saucepan until they foam and froth together for 2 minutes without coloring. Remove roux from heat.
Strain the hot mussel cooking liquor into the flour and butter roux, being sure not to add any sand that may have collected at the bottom of the mussel kettle. Beat roux and liquid with a wire whip to blend thoroughly. Bring to the boil, stirring, for 1 minute. Sauce will be very thick.
2 egg yolks
½ cup whipping cream
A mixing bowl
A wire whip
A wooden spoon Salt and pepper
Drops of lemon juice
Blend the egg yolks and cream in the mixing bowl. Gradually beat in the hot sauce, in a thin stream of droplets. Pour the sauce back into the pan. Set over moderately high heat and stir with a wooden spoon, reaching all over the bottom of the pan, until the sauce comes to the boil. Boil 1 minute, stirring. Remove from heat and taste carefully for seasoning, stirring in salt, pepper, and drops of lemon juice if necessary. Fold the mussels into the sauce.
(*) If not to be served immediately, clean sauce off sides of pan and film top of sauce with milk. Set aside uncovered, and reheat to simmer when ready to use.
4 to 8 Tb softened butter
6 buttered scallop shells or porcelain or pyrex shells of ½ cup capacity
Parsley sprigs
Just before serving, and off heat, fold the butter into the hot sauce and mussels 1 tablespoon at a time. Fold until each bit is absorbed before adding the next. Heap the mixture into the shells, decorate with parsley, and serve immediately.
[Sauced Mussels in a Rice Ring]
Prepare and sauce the mussels exactly as in the preceding recipe, but serve them in a ring of risotto.
[Mussel Soup]
The very same recipe may also be turned into a mussel soup. After enriching the sauce with cream and egg yolks, thin it out to a cream soup consistency with several cups of boiling milk. Then add the mussels, and bring just to the simmer. Off heat, and just before serving, fold in 2 tablespoons of butter, one by one. Decorate with minced parsley or chervil.
Fish Recipes Appearing in Other Chapters
FISH SOUFFLÉS
Flounder Soufflé with sauce mousseline sabayon
Fish Soufflé Baked on a Platter
Shellfish Quiche, open-faced tart
Gratin of Canned Salmon or Tuna, or of Fish Leftovers
Sauces for Boiled or Baked Fish
Mock Hollandaise and Variations
White Butter Sauce and Lemon Butter Sauce
Sauce Chivry, white-wine herb sauce
Sauce Alsacienne, herbal mayonnaise with soft-boiled eggs
Sauce Ravigote, vinaigrette with herbs, capers and onions
Sauces for Sautéed or Broiled Fish
Sauces for Cold Fish