Jumping fish

Seafood fruits de mer platter

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  • 6 persons
  • cooking time: 60 min
  • difficulty

Ingredients

  • 1 l court-bouillon
  • 200 gr cockles, cleaned
  • 250 gr mussels, cleaned
  • 200 g whelks, cleaned
  • 1 cooked lobster, 500-700 g
  • 500 gr cooked crab legs
  • 24 oysters
  • 8 langoustines
  • 250 cooked, unpeeled shrimp
  • 1 shallot, finely chopped
  • 1 dl red wine vinegar
  • 4 lemons
  • 1 dl mayonnaise
  • pepper

How to prepare

I’ll prepare the ultimate seafood dinner for you: a ‘Plateau Fruit de Mer’. A classic, low fat and gluten free recipe! I absolutely love this dinner, because it is great fun to gather around the platter with your family and friends and everyone has to get their hands dirty. The platter will look gorgeous on your Christmas table and is really convenient, because it can be prepared almost entirely beforehand. For a stress-free Christmas dinner, this seafood platter is perfect. Feel free to use whatever shellfish and crustaceans you might like to fill up your platter.

Preparation

  • 1 Put all the ingredients for the stock in a pan and bring it to a simmer, for 20 minutes without the lid on the pan.
  • 2 While the stock is simmering, start opening the oysters. While opening oysters, always remember to take your time and use a tea towel for your own safety. Fold the towel over the oyster, with the flat side of the oyster on top. Insert the tip of the oyster knife in the hinge of the oyster, as soon as you feel it is inside the shell, twist your knife. Now make a 45 degree angle and cut the topside off.
  • 3 Pour the stock through a strainer. The stock is now ready to use.
  • 4 Prepare the other ingredients in the following order:

    Cockles: cook them in 4 table spoons of stock and cover the pan. They are ready when the shells have opened. Get them out with a skimmer and let the cockles cool down.

    Mussels: cook in 4 table spoons of stock and cover the pan. They are ready when the shells have opened. Let them cool down.

    Whelks: cook the whelks, for 12-20 minutes, covered in the court-bouillon. Get them out and let them cool down.

    Langoustines: cook the langoustines, covered in the stock, for 4-6 minutes.

    Lobster: put the pre-cooked lobster, covered in the stock, until it is lukewarm.

    Crab legs: put the pre-cooked crab legs, covered in the stock, until they are lukewarm.
  • 5 Make a shallot vinaigrette by mixing the chopped shallot with the red wine vinegar.

    Cut the lemons in half.
  • 6 Dress the platter by arranging all the ingredients on a bed of ice.

    Serve with finger-bowls (bowls with water and a piece of lemon to rinse your fingers), a bowl with mayonnaise, a bowl of shallot vinaigrette and utensils to eat the shellfish: lobster crackers and –picks.