Steamed Mussels In Pernod Broth - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup chopped fennel bulb
2 cups julienne onions
3 tablespoons minced shallots
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/2 cup Pernod
1/2 cup peeled and chopped Italian plum tomato
2 cups white wine
40 mussels, cleaned and debearded
1/2 cup finely chopped parsley
1 loaf crusty French bread

Preparation

Heat the olive oil in a large pan. When the oil is hot, saute the fennel, onions and shallots for 2 minutes. Add the garlic. Remove the saute pan from the heat and add the Pernod(R). Place the saute pan back on the heat and flame the vegetables for 1 minute. Season with salt and pepper.
Stir in the tomatoes and wine and bring the liquid to a simmer. Add the mussels and parsley, cover and steam the mussels until all of the shells have opened, about 4 minutes. Discard any mussels that do not open their shell. Remove the mussels and let the broth cook for 2 minutes. Season the broth with salt and pepper, if needed. Remove the broth from the heat. Divide the mussels between two large shallow bowls. Spoon the broth over the mussels. Serve the mussels with the crusty bread.