Saffron seafood in puff pastry
A festive recipe starring saffron! The sauce is made with the base of Mariniere Mussels. Many steps can be done ahead of time allowing you to simply reheat the sauce and seafood just prior to serving.
To cook the mussels
- 1 lb mussels
- 1 onion
- 1 celery branch
- 1 carrot
- 2 garlic cloves
- 4 Tbsp olive oil
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 tsp peppercorns
- 1 pinch thyme
- 1 tsp fennel seeds
- 6 allspice berries
- 1 3-inch length of orange zest
- ½ cup dry Sherry OR white wine
Seafood preparation
- ½ lb shrimp (shell on, if possible)
- ¼ lb lobster meat
- ¼ lb crab meat
- ½ lb firm fish (Monkfish, Halibut, Salmon…)
- ¼ lb scallops
- ¼ lb squid, cleaned
- ½ lb Oyster mushrooms OR another mushroom
Sauce
To cook the mussels
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1
Wash mussels under running water, drain.
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2
Cut the vegetables into large 1 ½-inch pieces.
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3
Heat a large pan on high heat. Pour in olive oil, the vegetables, all the spices and the orange zest. Sauté lightly for 2 minutes. Add the mussels and the Sherry. Mix well and cover.
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4
Cook until steam escapes from the cover.
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5
Verify that the mussels are cooked. Place a colander over a large bowl and drain all the contents of the pan. There is no need to wash the pan, you’ll be needing it for the following step.
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6
Shell the mussels once they cool down. Set aside. Throw out the shells. Pour the cooking juices, vegetables and the spices into the pan. Move on to preparing the remaining seafood.
Seafood preparation
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1
Shell the shrimp. Set aside in a bowl. Add the shells to the pan with the mussel stock.
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2
If necessary, repeat with the lobster and crab.
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3
Cut the fish into 1-inch cubes. Rinse, then add the bones, if you have them.
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4
If large enough, cut the scallops into rings. Cut the squid.
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5
Chop the mushrooms.
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6
Pour enough cold water into the pan to barely cover the shells and bones. Bring to a boil, lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes.
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7
Strain the mussel stock through a fine sieve into a bowl. Set aside the stock and discard the shells.
Sauce preparation
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1
Grind the saffron in a mortar and pour in ½ cup of hot mussel stock. Use the pestle to ensure that no precious saffron threads remain at the bottom of the mortar. Allow to infuse.
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2
Delicately pour the stock into a pan, making sure not to include any sand that may have settled in the bowl.
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3
Bring the liquid to a boil and poach the shrimp for 2 – 3 minutes: enough to barely cook them. Remove the shrimps with a skimmer and set aside.
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4
Follow the same steps with the remaining seafood, fish and mushrooms; barely cooking, reheating or simply steeping in the hot stock.
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5
Measure 4 cups of stock and return to the pan. Keep the remainder of the precious liquid for another recipe (this stock freezes well).
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6
Pour the saffron infusion into the pan and simmer on low heat.
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7
You now have two options: 1) You can mix the butter and flour in a bowl to make a beurre manie 2) Or, make a roux by melting the butter on medium heat, in a small pan. Incorporate the flour and cook for another 2 minutes, stirring continuously before incorporating into the sauce, using a whisk to thicken. There is no doubt that the roux would add a more refined taste to the sauce.
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8
Let simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Pour in the Sherry, then add the mace to the pan and cook for another 5 minutes.
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9
You can now stop and continue the preparation just prior to serving. The sauce and seafood should however be kept in a cool place if you don’t plan to finalize the recipe within the hour.
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10
Boil the sauce if its cold. Pour in the cream. Bring to a boil and taste. Add salt or pepper, if needed.
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11
Incorporate the seafood into the sauce without bringing to a boil, to avoid the seafood becoming tough.
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12
Meanwhile, reheat the vol-au-vent in a warm oven.
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13
Fill the vol-au-vent and serve immediately.
