Ingredients

  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 1 small leek, thinly sliced
  • 1 small shallot, thinly sliced
  • 1 lemon’s zest, removed with a vegetable peeler
  • 1 pint Allagash White
  • 5# mussels, scrubbed clean
  • 1 knob butter
  • Mussel salt (recipe below)
  • 4 Russet Potatoes
  • Canola oil for fryer

Mussel Salt Instructions

  1. The night before preparing the moules-frites place a small pot, with a lid close to hand, on a burner set to high. The pot should be ripping-hot, but not smoking. Add five or so mussels to the pot, and carefully add a splash of water, be mindful of the steam (water added to a hot pan will create a good amount of steam that will kill mussels and potentially burn hands), quickly lid the pot. The mussels should open within a few minutes.
  2. Once opened, place the mussels on a metal tray and transfer to an oven set to 150F or lower. The mussels will dehydrate overnight, you’ll have shriveled mussel raisins the next day—they won’t look like much but they’ll have a very concentrated flavor.
  3. Using a spice grinder, grind the mussels along with a tablespoon of salt to a fine powder.
  4. Store in a lidded container at room temperature.

Fries Instructions

  1. Peel potatoes and store in water as you peel and cut the remainder.
  2. Cut potatoes into roughly 1/3” x 1/3” x potato’s length and store in cold water. Change the water several times to rinse away excess starch. When water is nice and clear, place cut potatoes onto towels and blot dry.
  3. Use a Deep Fryer and heat canola oil to 310F.
  4. Place potatoes in fryer and fry for 5 minutes.
  5. Freeze the fries for at least an hour.
  6. Once frozen, re-fry at 375F until golden brown.
  7. Season with mussel salt and serve hot.

Mussels Instructions

  1. Place a large pot, with a lid close to hand, on a burner set to high. The pot should be ripping-hot, but not smoking.
  2. Place garlic, leek, shallot, lemon zest, and mussels in the hot, empty pot.
  3. Being mindful of steam, (steam burns are no fun) add beer and put the lid on the pot.
  4. After three minutes, the mussels should be plump, open and cooked through.
    Important: Toss any mussels that haven’t yet opened.
  5. Scoop out the cooked mussels and transfer to a large bowl.
  6. To the hot pot and cooking liquid that remains, add a knob of butter and bring to a boil.
  7. Strain through a sieve directly onto the bowl of mussels.

Mayonnaise Ingredients

  • 1 egg
  • 1 cup canola oil
  • 1/2 garlic clove, minced

Mayonnaise Instructions

  1. Place egg, and garlic in a small bowl.
  2. Use Immersion Blender to combine. With blender running, stream in canola oil to make an emulsion.
  3. Season mayonnaise with mussel salt.
  4. Serve mayonnaise alongside the fries, the Belgians insist on mayo with fries.

Enjoy with Allagash White

Our interpretation of a traditional Belgian wheat beer. Brewed with a generous portion of wheat and spiced with coriander and Curacao orange peel, this beer is fruity, refreshing and slightly cloudy in appearance.