Whisk Wednesdays—Billy Bi (Mussel Soup)

We’ve left the tricky emulsion sauces behind and moved onto the first in a series of soups. The first soup on the list is Billy Bi (pronounced BILL-ee BEE and sometimes spelled bilibi or billi-b), which is a cream of mussel soup said to be one of the most elegant and delicious soups ever created.

Traditionally, the mussels are strained out, leaving a creamy smooth and silky soup. Now it is more often served with the mussels. I even went and bought more mussels the next day to finish off the leftover soup! There’s nothing like Le-Cordon-Bleu-style leftovers!

History
This mussel soup was created by chef Louis Barthe at Maxim’s in Paris, named after a regular customer William “Billy” Brand (not William Bateman Leeds, a late 19th century tin tycoon, who is often said to be the namesake), and is a signature dish at this famous restaurant. In the 1930s, Maxim’s was one of the first restaurants in the world to win three Michelin stars (the highest number possible). It was highly controversial at the time to serve mussels in such a fine establishment since they’re normally considered trash seafood.

In an online search for the Maxim’s menu to see if this soup is still listed, I found that a 1979 version was sold on eBay in May 2008 for $20 (Cdn). 

Mussels
I was able to find fresh, live mussels at our local specialty grocery store. They had been flown in from Prince Edward Island, and the fish monger asked me if I was going to have them for dinner that night as he carefully selected the mussels and placed them on top of a bed of ice in a bag. Then, he punctured some holes in the bag for them to breathe and reminded me to open the outer bag when I got home so that they would remain alive until I was ready to steam them.

I’ve generally had good luck with mussels, but once got a bag of mussels that tasted very fishy. It was awhile before I would cook with mussels again. Thankfully, this bag turned out to be fresh-tasting and juicy.

Mussels are so easy to prepare. Although some instructions tell you to remove the bunch of brown fibers found between the two shells of the mussel (called the byssus threads) by cutting them with scissors or pulling them out with a quick tug, the ones I buy seem to have this done for them already. (This is an indication that they’re farm raised and not wild.) A quick rinse under water to remove any residual sand, and a check to make sure their shells are closed tightly, then they’re good to go. If the shells are already open, then they’re dead and these ones should be thrown out. (When the mussel is unable to hold the two halves of its shell tightly shut together, it’s dead.) Throw out any that have chipped or broken shells as well. Also, if after cooking, they don’t open up, don’t eat them. Mussels spoil quickly after dying and could cause food poisoning. 

Also, in my reading about mussels, I stumbled across this rather funny quote from Anthony Bourdain, world renowned chef and tell-it-like-it-is kind of guy:

"mussels in restaurants…are allowed to
wallow in their own foul-smelling piss."
~ Anthony Bourdain in Kitchen Confidential ~

And then there were the dishes
When I first looked at this recipe, it seemed easy. However, when I went to make it I was surprised how long it took to finish and how many dishes and pots I ended up using!

Pot #1: In the first pot, you start preparing the first flavor base by cooking the shallots. Then, after adding the wine and water and a bit of aromatics in the form of celery, and bringing this mixture to a boil, you steam the mussels.

Pot #2: Into a second pot, you strain the liquid to avoid any sandy elements to the soup. Then, you have to remove the shells from the mussels, keeping the meat in a separate bowl. Taking half the mussels, you squeeze as much juice out of them as you can and add this to the cooking liquid, saving the other half to serve in the soup. {I would save the squeezed and disintegrated mussels next time and just chop them fine and serve them with the soup too instead of having just 5 mussels in each soup bowl!}

Pot #3: In the third pot, you make a roux and add the cooking liquid, which characterizes it as a velouté. Simmer this mixture for 20 minutes. After that, you add the cream and bring it to the boil. Finally, you add the saved mussels and warm them in the soup before serving.

Although your sink is overflowing at this point, each step is not difficult and you are rewarded with an amazing soup.

Recipe

Serves 6

You can find the recipe for Billy Bi (Mussel Soup) in the book Le Cordon Bleu at Home. To see how the rest of the Whisk Wednesdays group fared with this week's recipe, click here (or check out the sidebar) and then click on each blogger!

This soup can be served hot or cold.

If you don't like mussels, I would suggest anything fresh as a substitute, such as lobster, langoustines, oysters, or clams. Although the recipe doesn't list salt in the ingredients, it definitely needed it.

Tasting Notes
This was an amazing soup that was creamy and delicious. I’ve always enjoyed mussels, and the simplicity of this soup was perfect, even though it wasn’t so simple to make. Each pot had its purpose in developing the flavor. The first with the wine and aromatics, the second with the mussels and their juices, and the third with the roux, cooking liquid, and the cream. Each added a complexity and layer to the soup to make it more delicious with each step. I found out in one of the blogs I read regularly, Chez Christine, that “restaurant cooks try their best to push a pan's limits: to get things darker, browner, more flavorful.” I think this soup does this with each dirty pot that piles up in the sink. It’s definitely worth the dishes.

Next Week (July 16)
• Julienne Darblay (Creamed Leek and Potato Soup with Julienned Vegetables) page 133-134 (I will be camping, but I hope to find time to make it and post about it before I go.)

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Running total: $465.58 + $9.68 = $475.26

Butter used so far: 6 pounds, 8 tablespoons

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