Germans say “sauerkraut”. The French reply “choucroute”! Are they talking about the same ingredient? Yes. They both refer to raw, shredded cabbage that has been fermented in salt until it is tender and tart. But no, after they are cooked, they don’t taste anything alike.
French recipes call for the preserved cabbage to be rinsed free of its salt and vinegar packing. Choucroute is then simmered with white wine, hard cider or broth. Additions of bay leaf, juniper berries, black peppercorns and fresh thyme add subtle, forest aromas. Served by itself, Julia’s recipe for choucroute garni tastes disarmingly delicate. The first time I prepared it, my husband excused himself from the table and returned with a bottle of ketchup.
After that, I began to embellish choucroute with smoky bacon, thick pork chops and juicy sausages, just as they do in Alsace near the French border with Germany. It’s a delicious but decidedly limited use for this cold weather vegetable.
Then on a late winter visit to the Isle de Re off the Atlantic coast, I was amazed to see choucroute de la mer on village restaurant menus. Now I prefer to garnish my choucroute with mussels, shrimp, salmon and, when time permits, poached patties of cod and scallops. Did I forget to mention the addition of small white potatoes?
If your guests are francophiles, this is a feast to serve after Sunday bowl games. Choucroute de la mer is easy to assemble and won’t wreck your waistline. Hide the ketchup and dress it up with a beurre blanc sauce if you dare.
CHOUCROUTE DE LA MER
Ingredients:
Choucroute;
2 pounds choucroute
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 onion, sliced
1 bottle white wine
1 bay leaf
3 sprigs fresh thyme
12 juniper berries
12 black peppercorns
12 small white potatoes, cooked
Directions:
Drain and rinse the choucroute in three changes of water until it tastes mild. Spin the cabbage dry in a salad spinner. Melt the butter in a large casserole, add the onion pieces and cook them for 2-3 minutes. Stir in the choucroute and seasonings. Pour in white wine to just cover, put on the lid and simmer slowly for 30 minutes.
Cod Patties:
1 tablespoon butter
2 shallots, minced
12 ounces skinned cod, cut-up
4 sea scallops or 12 bay scallops
1 large egg yolk
Grated zest of 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Kosher salt and black pepper
Pinch of cayenne
2 tablespoons chopped parsley
Directions;
Heat the butter in a small saucepan and saute the shallots until they wilt and turn translucent. Cool. Combine shallots, cod, scallops, egg yolk, lemon zest and juice to the workbowl of a food processor. Process for 15 seconds allowing little chunks of fish to remain in the mixture. Season to taste with bursts of the processor to mix. Pulse in the parsley last. Chill.
Variation: If you have no processor or no time to prepare the patties, simply add serving portions of cod or skinned salmon fillets with the shellfish.
Shellfish:
1 pound mussels,* rinsed, trimmed
1 pound shrimp, shelled and deveined
Directions:
Add the cooked potatoes, mussels, shrimp and scoops of the cod mixture to the choucroute. Cover the pot and continue cooking 10 - 12 minutes until the potatoes are heated through and the seafood is cooked.
*Shopping for Mussels: Ask the salesperson behind the counter to check each mussel to make sure it is tightly closed. He/she should discard any ones that gape or have broken shells.
