Moules Marinières (Mussels in White Wine)
Fresh mussels steamed open in minutes with white wine, shallots, garlic, butter and herbs. Serve with crusty bread or fries to soak up every drop of the juices.
Servings
Ingredients
Nutrition
Per serving
Steps
Clean the mussels
Rinse the mussels in plenty of cold water. Pull off the stringy 'beards' and scrape off any barnacles. Throw away any with broken shells, and any open ones that don't close when you tap them on the counter.
Soften the shallots
Melt the butter in a large pot with a tight-fitting lid over medium heat. Cook the shallots and garlic for 2 minutes, until soft but not brown.
Add the wine and herbs
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Steam the mussels
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Serve
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Clean the mussels
Rinse the mussels in plenty of cold water. Pull off the stringy 'beards' and scrape off any barnacles. Throw away any with broken shells, and any open ones that don't close when you tap them on the counter.
Soften the shallots
Melt the butter in a large pot with a tight-fitting lid over medium heat. Cook the shallots and garlic for 2 minutes, until soft but not brown.
Add the wine and herbs
This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.
Steam the mussels
This step is part of Foodie Premium. Subscribe to unlock the full method, cooking mode and every recipe in the library.
Serve
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The Story Behind the Dish
'Marinière' means 'in the sailor's style': a quick way to cook freshly caught shellfish on board or at the harbour, with whatever wine and herbs were at hand.
France's Atlantic coast is famous for mussels grown on bouchots, tall wooden posts planted in the tidal mudflats. In the north of France and Belgium, a big pot of moules with a cone of fries, moules-frites, is practically a national dish.
⭐ Why It's Famous
Ready in 10 minutes, it is one of the easiest and most impressive seafood dishes you can make, and the wine-and-butter juices are irresistible.
💡 Fun Fact
According to local legend, an Irish sailor shipwrecked near La Rochelle in 1235 invented bouchot mussel farming when he noticed mussels growing on the posts of his bird-catching nets.
Atlantic coast (Charente-Maritime, Brittany and Normandy)
46.28°N, -1.17°W
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