Mussels.

ON MUSSELS 

"Mussels are beautiful. Mussels are delicious. Mussels are easy as hell
to cook."
--Anthony Bourdain, Anthony Bourdain's Les Halles Cookbook (2004)

"Mussels are sometimes called 'the oysters of the poor,' which goes to
show that poverty can be not only dignified, as some people claim, but
for brief periods even endurable."
--Irma S. Rombauer & Marion Rombauer Becker, The Joy of Cooking (1975)

"Of the crow-blue mussel shells, one keeps adjusting the ash heaps;
opening and shutting itself like an injured fan."
--Marianne Moore, from The Fish (1935)

What else can we say about mussels? They're gorgeous, versatile, buttery, crowd-pleasing and cheap, especially when compared to their fellow edible bivalves. Although Escoffier's Guide Culinaire indicated that mussels were to be "chiefly used as garnish," and A.J. McClane claimed, "There was literally nothing that came in its aquatic season that didn't have a role in [my grandmother's] kitchen--with the exception of mussels," we think they belong in the center of the plate. Chefs Christopher Lee and David Pasternack agree, as you'll see on the following pages.

CHRIST OPHER LEE

STRIPED BASS

PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA

THE ART OF THE MEAL

If you were among those watching the televised 2005 World Pastry Cup, you couldn't have missed Team France's elaborate demonstrations of delight at having defeated the Americans. Is there any end in sight to the Franco-American war being waged in restaurant kitchens? Christopher Lee is not so sure. "The French guys I've worked with, they haven't necessarily respected the American cooks, because we weren't working at age 14 in Michelin three-starred restaurants. The idea that France is inherently superior is really just a lot of hot air. A lot of talented people come out of France, it's true, but just as many come out of the United States."

Lee started working at the age of 14 as a busboy and salad cook at a family restaurant in his native Huntington, NY. After high school graduation, he did some catering, then enrolled in college, a decision he calls "a favor to my mother," who thought it would help him to mature. Lee graduated from The College of Wooster, in Ohio, with a bachelor's degree in political science and, after a break to ski in Vermont, enrolled in San Francisco's California Culinary Academy. The Golden State gave Lee an appreciation for raw ingredients and farming, and his style was influenced by the light, clean cuisine that defines the West Coast. He went on to cook at the Fifth Floor, with George Morrone, before returning to New York, and positions at Daniel, Jean-Georges and Oceana. At Oceana, his mastery of seafood cought the notice of Alfred Portale, who had recently been lapped to reopen Philadelphia's renowned Striped Bass. He hired Lee as his opening chef de cuisine, and once Portale's work was done in Philadelphia, he approved Lee's ascension to the kitchen's top spot. In 2004, Travel + Leisure included Striped Bass in their "Best New American Restaurants" issue, and Gourmet selected it as one of the country's top restaurants. In 2005, Lee was named Rising Star Chef of the Year by the James Beard Foundation; most recently, Food & Wine named him a 'best new chef' for 2006.

As a child, Lee was inspired by the authentic Chinese home cooking he observed and savored in his grandparents' kitchen, an experience that ultimately fueled his desire to attend culinary school. Lee's father, a photographer, bequeathed an acute sense of aesthetics to his son. These days, he finds inspiration among Philadelphia's myriad art galleries. "I derive a lot of pleasure out of the artistic element of what a plate looks like,' he says. "If you can wow the guests before they eat anything, I guarantee you the other half of their brain says that the food will taste good."

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Striped Bass is obviously a seafood-focused restaurant, and Lee emphasizes the importance of using sustainable products. He uses wild fish whenever possible, but only in accordance with the "respectable quota system." He is proud to use carefully-sourced farmed fish as well. "I use farm-raised fish, no doubt about it," he says, adding, "There are too many unregulated fisheries out there, so you can't always know whether these guys are playing by the rules. Who wants to be the guy serving or eating the last beluga caviar?"

Making the decision to move from New York to Philadelphia to help open Striped Bass wasn't easy for Lee, but he says that his first look at the refurbished restaurant convinced him that he was uprooting himself in the service of "something special, with a certain presence." Still, it hasn't all been easy. "It's not New York, and you can't charge them New York prices," says Lee. "People in New York are a little more open-minded, more interested in food that's a bit more adventurous. But really, Striped Bass has great support from the community, and people are starting to loosen up their belts a bit, get away from that steakhouse mentality." His strategy for winning the hearts and minds of Philadelphians, he says, is to "make sure everything tastes good. To me, flavor is most important, then art, and then we get funky with it."

Mussel Carpaccio with Potato Gaufrettes, Beer "Caviar" and Dill Foam (Serves 8)

Prosecco di Valdobbiadene

Bele Casel

Veneto, Italy NV

For the mussel broth: In large saucepan, heat oil over high heat. Add onions and garlic and cook until softened. Add mussels, ale and juices and simmer until mussels open Remove mussels from pan and set aside. Reduce cooking liquid by half, strain through fine-mesh sieve and reserve. Remove mussels from shells, cover and refrigerate. Discard shells.

For the beer "caviar": In small pot, bring broth to boil. Using hand-held immersion blender, mix in sodium alginate and sodium citrate. Remove from heat, let cool, and transfer to squeeze bottle. In small pot, combine water and calcium chloride, stirring to dissolve. Squeeze about 20 small drops of broth mixture into calcium chloride mixture. Let drops set 30 seconds and lift out of calcium chloride mixture. Rinse and set aside. Repeat with remaining broth mixture.

For the potato gaufrettes: In small pot, heat oil to 400 degrees Waffle-cut potatoes into thin slices on mandoline and fry until golden brown. Drain on paper towels and season with salt.

For the dill foam: Bring pot of salted water to boil Blanch dill one minute and transfer to ice bath. Squeeze out excess water and place in blender with two tablespoons water. Puree until smooth. In small pot, bring broth and cream to simmer. Remove from heat and add dill. Blend with hand-held immersion blender until foamy.

To serve: Place four mussels between sheets of plastic wrap and pound each into thin "carpaccio," using flat side of meat mallet. Lightly coat one side of plastic with oil and place, oiled-side down, in small plastic bowl. Using a rounded scraper and the shape of the bowl, form flat mussels into circle using all four mussels. Transfer to plate, removing plastic wrap. Drizzle with olive oil, garnish with tomatoes, celery and shallots, and dot with foam. Top with gaufrettes, dill and amaranth. Place "caviar" in spoon alongside and serve.

For the mussel broth:

1/1 cup canola oil
2 onions, peeled and thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
32 mussels, scrubbed and debearded
3 cups Belgian white ale
Juice of 1 orange
Juice of 2 lemons

For the beer "caviar":

7 ounces mussel broth, from above
1/2 teaspoon sodium alginate*
1/8 teaspoon sodium citrate**
4 1/4 cups water
1 1/1 teaspoons calcium chloride***

For the potato gaufrettes:

2 cups canola oil
2 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled
Salt to taste

For the dill foam:

1 bunch dill
2 tablespoons water
1/2 cup mussel broth, from above
1 tablespoon heavy cream

For the garnish:

Olive oil
Finely diced tomato
Finely diced celery
Finely diced shallots
Dill
Micro amaranth

*The salt of alginic acid, a seaweed extract used as a thickener and emulsifier. Available through Gallade Chemical, [phone] or www.galladechem.com.

**The salt of citric acid, also known as sour salt. Used primarily as a flavoring, it gives club soda its distinctive taste. Available through Gallade Chemical, [phone] or www.galladechem.com.

***Compound with strong salt taste, used as an ingredient to add saltiness without adding sodium. Available through Gallade Chemical, [phone] or www.galladechem.com.

White Asparagus Soup with Mussel Escabeche and Lomo Chips (Serves 4)

Engelgarten Bergheim

Domaine Marcel Deiss

Alsace, France 2000

For the mussel escabeche: In small pan, heat oil, garlic and shallols over low heat until softened. Stir in paprika, vinegar and juice and season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and let cool. In covered pot, steam mussels in two cups water over medium-high heat until mussels open slightly. Carefully remove mussels from shells and discard shells and cooking liquid. In bowl, toss together mussels and vinegar mixture, cover and refrigerate one hour.

For the asparagus soup: In medium pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook until softened. Add asparagus, stock and zest, bring to a simmer and cook until asparagus is very tender, about 20 minutes. Add cream and return to simmer. In food processor fitted with metal blade, puree until smooth. Keep warm.

For the lomo chips: Heat oil in saute pan over medium-high heat. Add lomo and saute until lightly browned and crisp. Drain on paper towels.

For the five-minute egg yolks: Bring small pot of water to simmer. Add eggs and cook five minutes. Transfer eggs to ice bath and chill. Carefully remove shells and whites and break yolks into small bowl, discarding solids. Reserve.

To serve: Ladle soup into shallow bowl and top with four mussels and lomo chip. Drizzle with escabeche marinade and yolks, garnish with asparagus tips and serve.

For the mussel escabeche:

1 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and sliced
1 shallot, peeled and sliced
1 1/2 teaspoons smoked paprika
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
2 tablespoons tomalo juice
16 mussels, scrubbed and debearded
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the white asparagus soup:

2 tablespoons canola oil
1 onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 1/2 pounds white asparagus, peeled and chopped
2 cups vegetable stock
Zest of 1/2 lemon
1/4 cup heavy cream
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the lomo chips:

2 tablespoons canola oil
4 thin slices lomo*

For the five-minute egg yolks:

3 eggs

For the garnlsh:

Blanched green asparagus tips

*Dry-cured pork loin from Spain, seasoned with garlic, paprika and sugar, Available through La Tienda, [phone] or www.tienda.com.

Crispy Black Sea Bass with Shrimp, Piperade and Saffron Mussel Broth (Serves 4)

Rioja Rerserva

Castillo Labastida

Rioja, Spain 1998

For the aioli: In blender, combine yolks, mustard and garlic and blend on medium speed. Slowly add oils to emulsify. Season with salt and pepper and set aside.

For the saffron mussel broth: Heat oil in heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook until softened. Stir in saffron and wine, bring to boil and reduce by half. Add stock and mussels and cover. Cook until mussels open, then remove mussels and reserve eight for garnish. Strain broth into small pot and reduce by one-third, or to taste. Whisk in butter, season with salt and pepper and keep warm.

For the piperade: Heat oil, peppers, onion and garlic in heavy-bottomed pan over medium-low heat and cook until vegetables are almost tender. Add thyme and chorizo and cook until vegetables are softened. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm.

For the potatoes: Place potatoes in pot of salted water and bring to a boil. Cook until potatoes are tender and drain. In small saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add potatoes and crush with fork, tossing to heat through. Season with salt and pepper.

For the shrimp: Place garlic and bay leaf in pot of salted water and bring to boil. Add shrimp, cook until just done and drain, discarding garlic and bay leaf.

For the sea bass: Heat a cast-iron pan over high heat and add oil. Season fillets with salt and pepper, and sear, skin side down, for three minutes. Turn fillets and continue cooking until just done, about three more minutes.

To serve: Top potatoes with fillet and piperade and arrange shrimp and reserved mussels alongside. Spoon broth around potatoes, garnish with aioli and micro basil and serve.

For the aioli:

2 egg yolks
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
6 cloves garlic, peeled and mashed into paste
1/1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup grapeseed oil
Salf and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the saffron mussel broth:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 onion, peeled and thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
Pinch of saffron threads
2 cups white wine
1 cup chicken stock
4 pounds mussels, scrubbed and debearded
2 ounces butter
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the piperade:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 red bell peppers, seeded and julienned
2 yellow bell peppers, seeded and julienned
1 yellow onion, peeled and thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
1 sprig thyme leaves
2 ounces chorizo, peeled and finely chopped
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the potatoes:

6 red bliss potatoes, peeled and coarsely chopped
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the shrimp:

1 clove garlic, peeled
1 bay leaf
8 large shrimp, peeled and deveined

For the sea bass:

1/4 cup canola oil
4 6-ounce black sea bass fillets, skin on and scales removed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the garnish:

Micro basil*

*Available through The Chef's Garden, [phone] or www.chefsgorden.com.

DAVID PASTERNACK

ESCA

NEW YORK, NEW YORK

AQUA MAN AND THE APPEAL OF THE REAL

There are a few things that we think we know for sure about American chefs striving for Italian authenticity: they won't serve a fresh tomato out of season. Their pastas will be tossed in, not smothered under, their souces. And they will never condone the congress of cheese and seafood.

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Or maybe not, says David (call him Dave) Pasternack. "That whole no cheese and seafood thing, it's folklore,' says the chef most often credited for ushering in the crudo revolution. 'The lost couple of times I was in Italy, I had mozzarella with anchovies at this place in Rome, and young pecorino with scampi. If they're doing it in Italy, I can do it in New York. I don't do it very often. But if you're making pesto, you need a little cheese. It's like adding salf to the dish. Every once in a while, you goatta bend the rules.'

Pasternack is a lifelong fisherman and a native of Rockville Center, NY. He attended Johnson & Wales University in Providence, RI and, ofter cooking at a slew of New York restaurants, including La Reserve, Sam's, Provence, Bouley, Prix Fixe, Steak Frites, and Prive, Pasternack gained national recognition as Terrance Brennan's chef de cuisine at Picholine, a position he describes as 'the toughest job you'd never want to have.' He'd worked for Brennan for seven years when, in 1999, Mario Batali and Joe Bostianich came looking for a chef to helm their new seafood concept. The three men undertook a 10-day journey along the Adriatic coast, expecting to find inspiration of the classic. Venetian voriety. What they found instead was that the Italians were beginning to eat their seafood raw, seasoned with salt, maybe a squeeze of citrus juice, maybe a splash of olive oil. More immediate than ceviche and subtler than sashimi, crudo was about to hit New York in a big way, thanks to Batali, Bastianich and Pasternack It's hard to find a serious Italian restaurant today, and not just in New York, that does not serve some version of raw seafood. In his two-star review of Esca for the New York Times, William Grimes called Esca's crudi "the freshest, most exciting thing to happen to Italian food in recent memory."

While the parallel universes of produce, spice and meat purveyors seem to welcome new stars every day, none can compare to the web of fishermen and brokers that supply chefs like Pasternack with all manner of seafood. Some of it comes from as far away as Finland or Japan, while some of it makes just a short interborough commute from Brooklyn's Sheepshead Bay to Manhattan's West Side, where Esca is located. Pasternack says that he's cultivated and maintained his extensive network of single-chef suppliers by "just being nice, being a normal guy. Some of these guys I knew from growing up. I'm not trying to be somebody that I'm not. I'm the same person I was ten years ago."

In 2004, Bastianich, Batali and Pasternack, along with Esca's general manager Simon Dean, opened Bistro du Vent, a rather Gallic departure from their Italian restaurant collection. Although reviews were generally favorable, business never met the group's expectations, and despite a menu overhaul, courtesy of French chef Laurent Gras, the restaurant closed in May 2006. Though only a block apart from each other, Pasternack says that the Bistro's position on 42nd Street, a heavily-trafficked fourist mecca facing the Port Authority bus station, was in some ways 'a thousand miles away from 43rd Street,' the relatively quiet, theater- and brownstone-lined street that Esca calls home.

Despite his disappointment over the Bistro's demise, Pasternack seems perfectly content with one very successful restaurant, and has resisted the ever-more tempting offers he's received to open a flashy version of Esca in a Las Vegas hotel. Of one potential deal, he says, "They wanted me to commit to a third of a year in Vegas, but I'd rather be poor than live there. I own my house, and I'm married and have a kid. It's a different lifestyle out there, great for some people but not for me, not now. Maybe in my next life I'll understand the sensuality of the fake breast. Then I'll move to Vegas."

Seafood Salad (Serves 4)

Rosato at Refrosco

Bastianich

Friuli, Italy 2005

For the seafood: Cut bulbs from ramps and reserve greens. In large saute pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add ramps and saute briefly. Add clam juice and mussels, cover, and cook until mussels open, about two minules. Remove mussels and add squid. Cook one minute and remove from pan. Place scallops in pan and simmer until just cooked through, about two minutes. Remove from pan. Strain cooking liquid through fine-mesh sieve and reserve one cup. Cover and refrigerate seafood until ready to serve.

For the dressing: In large bowl, whisk together cooking liquid, juice and oil. Season with salt and pepper and reserve.

To serve: Toss ramp greens and lettuce with several tablespoons dressing and divide among plates. Combine seafood, ramps and fava beans and toss with remaining dressing. Season with salt and pepper, arrange atop greens, drizzle with oil and serve.

For the seafood:

12 ramps
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cup clam juice
1 pound mussels, scrubbed and debearded
4 squid cleaned, bodies sliced into rings, tentacles reserved
4 U-10 scallops, surface scored with paring knife

For the dressing:

Cooking liquid, from above
Juice of I lemon
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

To serve:

Ramp greens, from above, thinly sliced
3 ounces green leaf lettuce
4 ounces blanched, peeled fava beans
Extra virgin olive oil to taste
Sall and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Sorrel and Potato Soup with Mussels and Razor Clams (Serves 6)

Verdicchio di Matelica Mirum

La Monacesca

Le Marche, Italy 2001

For the soup: In stock pot, heat canola oil over medium heat. Add garlic and leeks and cook until softened. Add half of sorrel and cook until wilted. Stir in stock and potatoes and season with salt. Cover and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 10 minutes. Bring large saucepan of salted water to boil. Blanch watercress 30 seconds and transfer to ice bath until chilled. Blanch remaining sorrel one minute. Transfer to ice bath until chilled. Transfer soup to blender and puree until smooth. Squeeze excess water from watercress and sorrel and add to blender. Puree until soup is completely smooth. Blend in juice and salt and pepper. With blender running, slowly add olive oil until emulsified.

To serve: Bring soup to simmer. In separate pot, steam mussels and manila clams until they just open. Remove mussels and manila clams and set aside. Steam razor clams until they just open. Ladle soup into shallow bowl and top with mussels and clams. Garnish with flowers, drizzle with oil and serve.

For the soup:

2 tablespoons canola oil
2 stalks green garlic, thinly sliced
2 leeks, white part only, thinly sliced
10 ounces sorrel, coarsely chopped
5 cups mussel stock
1 pound Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and coarsely chopped
2 bunches watercress, thick stems removed
Juice of 2 lemons
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

To serve:

18 mussels, scrubbed and debearded
18 manila clams, cleaned
18 razor clams, cleaned

For the garnish:

Wild mustard flowers
Extra virgin olive oil

Mussels alla Livornese (Serves 4)

Gewurztraminer "Kastelaz"

Elena Walch

Alto Adige, Italy 2003

For the tomato sauce: In large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and garlic and cook until softened. Add anchovies and break up with spoon. Stir in puree, pepper flakes, olives and capers, bring to simmer and cook 10 to 15 minutes. Add zest and season with salt and pepper.

For the croutons: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In bowl, drizzle oil over bread and toss to coat. Transfer to sheet pan, season with salt and pepper and bake until browned and crisp, about ten minutes.

For the mussels: Bring sauce to boil and stir in butter. Add mussels, cover, and cook until mussels open.

To serve: Divide mussels and sauce among bowls, garnish with parsley and basil, top with croutons and serve.

For the tomato sauce:

4 tablespoons olive oil
1 onion, peeled and finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, peeled and finely chopped
2 anchovy fillets, rinsed and drained
24 ounces tomato puree
1 tablespoon crushed red pepper flakes
4 ounces Gaeta olives, pitted
1/4 cup capers, rinsed and drained
Zest of 2 lemons
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

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For the croutons:

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
8 slices French bread, crusts removed, cut into 1/2 inch dice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the mussels:

Tomato sauce, from above
2 ounces butter
4 pounds mussels, scrubbed and debearded

For the gamish:

Parsley and basil leaves

Farro Fusilli with Parsley Pesto and Wild Mussels (Serves 4)

Barbera D'Asti

Braida di Giacomo

Bologna, Italy 2003

For the tomatoes: Preheat oven to 225 degrees. In bowl, combine tomatoes and oil, season with salt and pepper, and toss to coat. Transfer to sheet pan and place in oven until dried but still tender, about eight hours.

For the pesto: In food processor fitted with metal blade, combine walnuts, garlic and cheese and mix until walnuts are coarsely chopped. Add parsley and, with machine running, slowly add oil. Transfer to large bowl and season with salt and pepper.

For the fusilli: Bring large pot of salted water to boil and add fusilli. Cook until fusilli is tender, about seven minutes, and drain. While fusilli cooks, bring juice to boil in large saute pan. Add mussels, cover and cook until mussels open. Remove mussels from shells and discard shells.

To serve: Place mussels and fusilli in bowl with pesto and tomatoes and to combine. Season with salt and pepper and serve.

For the tomatoes:

1 pound cherry tomatoes
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the pesto:

2 ounces walnuts, toasted
1 clove garlic, peeled
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 bunch parsley, stems removed
1 cup olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

For the fusilli:

1 pound farro fusilli*
1/2 cup clam juice
1 3/4 pounds wild mussels, scrubbed and debearded
Sall and freshly ground black pepper to taste

*Fusilli made from farro, an ancient Mediterranean grain related to wheat. Available through Gustiamo, [phone] or www.gustiamo.com.