Steamed mussels and fries (Moules frites)

To clean the mussels, simply give the shells a bit of a scrub under running water, and pull out their wispy beards. The Chefs' Line

• serves

  2

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  15 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 1 kg large sebago potatoes, cut into 1 cm fries
• Vegetable oil, for deep-frying
• 80 g unsalted butter
• ½ cup French shallots, finely sliced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp thyme leaves, chopped
• 1 kg mussels, de-bearded and scrubbed
• 250 ml (1 cup) dry white wine
• ½ cup sea parsley, picked
• Salt, to taste
• 1 tsp Espelette pepper

Aioli 

• 1 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 egg yolk, at room temperature
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 250 ml (1 cup) canola oil
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• ½ tsp salt

Instructions

Place the sliced potatoes into a large saucepan and cover with cold water. Place over high heat and bring to the boil. Drain.

For the aioli, whisk the mustard, egg yolk and garlic in a large bowl. Whisking continuously, gradually add the oil, drop by drop at first, then in a thin steady stream until emulsified. Whisk in the lemon juice and salt. Spoon into a serving dish and set aside.

Heat the oil for deep-frying in a large saucepan or deep-fryer to 150˚C. Fry the potatoes for 5 minutes, then drain and spread out on a tray to cool. Increase the oil temperature to 180˚C.

Melt the butter in a large heavy-based saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the shallots, thyme and bay leaves and stir for a few minutes or until softened. Add the mussels and wine. Cover and cook, shaking the pan occasionally for 5 minutes or until all mussels are just opened.

Meanwhile, deep-fry the blanched fries for 3-4 minutes or until golden and crisp. Drain on paper towel and season with salt.

Drain the mussels into a colander, reserving the cooking liquid. Divide the mussels between 2 large bowls. Return the cooking liquid to the pan, add the sea parsley and season with salt and espelette pepper to taste. Pour the sauce back over the mussels and serve immediately with fries and aioli.

This recipe is from Series 2 of The Chefs' Line airing weeknights at 6pm on SBS. Episodes will be available after broadcast via SBS On Demand. Join the conversation #TheChefsLine on Instagram @sbsfood, Facebook @SBSFood  and Twitter @SBS_Food. Check out sbs.com.au/thechefsline for episode guides, cuisine lowdowns, recipes and more! 

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.