Plaice with Moules Marinière Broth

Sounds complex – but it’s not…

A delicious take on the French classic – Moules Marinière. Plaice is a gentle flavoured fish which accompanies the creamy Moules Marinière Broth so well…have it with home made chips and simple carrots…
You wouldn’t normally associate a fish dish with The North Yorkshire Dales, as it’s about as far from the sea as you can get in this part of the country… but every Tuesday the fish man, John, comes to the Hawes market and it’s the only time of the week fresh fish can be bought. So Tuesday night is fish night. This is one of my own takes on the French classic – Moules Marinière.

Ingredients:

For 2 people…

2 fillets of Plaice
1/2 kilo mussels
1 med onion coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic
Double cream
Glass of White Wine
One fresh lemon

Method:

De beard, wash and clean the mussels in cold water if necessary – discard any that are already open – if in doubt throw it out!
(top tip– mussels need to breath and be cold, so they must be kept in a fridge, in a bowl with a piece of damp kitchen roll over the top. Do not put them away in a plastic bag. They will die.)

Cooking:

Phase 1:

In a large pan melt a small knob of butter and some oil
Add the chopped onion and garlic and gently fry, being careful not to burn the garlic
Turn the heat up- add the wine
Add the mussels
Put the lid on and cook for no more than 3 minutes
The mussels will open

Phase 2 the sauce:

Remove from the heat
Pass the mussels etc. through a cullender – reserve the cooking liqueur in a bowl
Pour the cooking liqueur into a pan
(top tip – do not pour all the liqueur in. You will notice that in the bottom of the bowl there will be a small collection of sand etc. which you don’t want in your sauce)
Add the cream
Remove the mussels for their shells and add to the sauce
Simmer the sauce gently

Phase 3 the fish:

Simply fry the fish or grill as you prefer until done

Serving

Place the fish on a heated plate spoon over the Moules Marinière Broth, and a small squeeze of lemon
Serve with the classic home made thin chips (Moules et frites) and some simply cooked good carrots

This is one of my favourite recipes