Mussels and haddock soup: Antony Cointre’s recipe

Ingredients for 6 to 8 people

• 1.5 kg of mussels (from Groix if possible),
• 500 g of haddock (from Fumaisons de Groix if possible),
• 50 g chopped shallot,
• 150g stalk celery (tender inner stalks),
• 200 g potatoes (Alliance or Charlotte),
• 1 liter of buttermilk,
• 500 ml of liquid cream.

The preparation

Peel the potatoes, cut them into 1 cm cubes and boil them in a pan of salted water, until just cooked. Drain, rinse in cold water and let cool.

Place the mussels in a sauté pan, over high heat, with a little water (no white wine to avoid altering the taste) and covered, until they are all open Drain and reserve the mussels, keep the juice. Put the chopped shallot in the juice of the mussels, add the buttermilk and half of the liquid cream. Leave to infuse and heat over very low heat, while you prepare the rest.

Shell the mussels (apart from a few for decoration). Slice the celery into strips, cut the haddock into 1 cm cubes. Whip the rest of the liquid cream.

Filter the buttermilk broth, incorporate three quarters of the whipped cream and emulsify with a hand blender. Add the potato cubes, haddock, shelled mussels and celery to the pan.

Heat over very low heat (avoid boiling), serve in bowls, decorate with 2 or 3 whole mussels and a few sprigs of celery. Add a dollop of whipped cream, enjoy hot or warm.