Food & Drink

Michel Roux’s tagliolini with seafood recipe

Tagliolini with seafood from Michel Roux At Home (Cristian Barnett/PA)
Tagliolini with seafood from Michel Roux At Home (Cristian Barnett/PA)

“I love seafood, and pasta and shellfish are always a great combination,” says Michel Roux.

“Keep this simple with mussels and clams, or if you want to go to town, use other shellfish, such as razor clams or cockles, when they’re in season. The fennel seeds and pastis bring that lovely aniseed flavour that works so well with seafood.”

Tagliolini with seafood

Ingredients:


(Serves 2)

400g clams


500g mussels


2tbsp olive oil


1 shallot, chopped


1tsp fennel seeds


2 garlic cloves, chopped


50ml pastis


150g shelled raw prawns


4tbsp crème fraiche


300g fresh tagliolini or 180g dried tagliolini or tagliatelle


Handful of herbs (parsley, chives, chervil), finely chopped


Juice of 1 lemon


Salt and black pepper

Tagliolini with seafood from Michel Roux At Home
Tagliolini with seafood from Michel Roux At Home (Cristian Barnett/PA)

Method:

1. Wash the clams and mussels well in cold water and discard any that are broken or don’t close when tapped. Remove any beards from the mussels.

2. Heat the olive oil in a large pan, add the shallot, fennel seeds and garlic and sweat until they start to colour. Add the clams, then the mussels. Pour in the pastis, cover the pan and cook for five to seven minutes until all the shells have opened. Take care not to overcook the shellfish.

3. Tip everything into a colander placed over a bowl, then pass the cooking liquid through a fine sieve or a strainer lined with muslin. Pick the flesh from the mussels and clams, leaving a few in the shell to use as a garnish. Tip the cooking liquor back into the pan, bring it to the boil and boil for five minutes. Add the prawns and crème fraiche, then, when the prawns have turned pink, add the picked mussels and clams.

4. Bring a pan of water to the boil and add two tablespoons of salt. Cook the pasta until al dente, then drain. Add the drained pasta to the pan of shellfish and stir well. Add the chopped herbs and garnish with some mussels and clams in shells. Season with lemon juice, salt and pepper, then serve at once.

Michel Roux At Home
(Seven Dials/PA)

Michel Roux At Home by Michel Roux is published by Seven Dials, priced £26. Photography by Cristian Barnett. Available now.