Waterzooi

Ever since The Blog Tech was a little boy, he has loved seafood.  Since it was his birthday, I made him one of his favorite dishes.....waterzooi.   This is a Belgian dish which we fell in love with when we traveled there.  A funny name which means simmering water.
 These are the vegetables I used in mine.  Leeks, shallots, carrots, potatoes, fennel, thyme, chervil and celery.  That is not celery you are seeing because someone that ran to the store for me bought cardones, thinking they were celery.  What the heck, I used them anyway.

 I had some celery root so I julienned it and added it along with the thinly sliced vegetables. Quarter the potatoes.

 Melt some butter in a heavy pot and add the vegetables.  Stir them and let them cook for a bit.

 Add 4 cups of chicken or fish stock.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add about 1 tablespoon of thyme.

 Bring it to a boil and then turn it down to simmer.  You don't want to overcook the vegetables, they should still have a bit of a bite to them.

 I added hake, shrimp and scallops, which I sliced thin.  Hake was not the right fish to use because it fell apart.  Salmon would have been better.

 I also added clams and mussels.

 Some people make this with chicken and not seafood.  I had some chicken which I had just roasted so I added some of it too.


 Throw all of the seafood in the pot, cover and cook until the shells open and the shrimp are pink.  Just before serving whisk 3 egg yolks with 2 cups of whole milk or half and half, temper it with 1 cup of the broth and pour it into the pot.  Taste for seasonings and adjust.

 Chop the chervil and stir it in.

Serve it with crusty french bread and good butter.

Comments

Anonymous said…
it is a pretty dish, everything about it is lovely to look at
( well not the shrimp, bleck )
I am not a sea food fan at all but many of my family are, they would love this, the broth sounds lovely with the egg and cream,
Suzanne said…
I would be more than happy to come sample any and all food you make. You know, for quality control purposes. :)
I first had this in Brussels many years ago - one of the best fish and seafood dishes - and yours looks especially good!
Anonymous said…
I love seafood so it was a good thing I grew up by the ocean :-)

This look just delicious! I wouldn't mind missing the celery at all :-) I can eat it but prefer not to :-)

Have a great day!Christer.
Susan said…
Any leftovers? I'll be right over!
Ellen in Oregon said…
Between this delicious seafood dish & that amazing chocolate cake the Blog Tech had a birthday meal fit for a king. I love all seafood with the exception of oysters (it's a texture thing). I have never seen cardones in the markets out here, so I had to look them up. Who would have known they are members of the aster family and considered a thistle. I guess they have a bitter taste that soaking in water for an hour can lessen. I think I would prefer to stick with the celery you asked for. We can't get Hake out here either, but there is plenty of salmon or bass would likely work well in this dish. It sounds like the perfect cold weekend meal. I hope the Blog Tech had a great birthday. He sure has a special Mom for cooking up all his favorites.
TARYTERRE said…
The Blog Tech is one lucky guy. That dish seriously looks delicious.
Guillaume said…
I love a good seafood meal! Especially hearty.
thewiildmagnola said…
A very special dish for certain.
I could eat a bowl myself. Yum!
Barb said…
With all our good sea food, I should give this a try.
chickpea678 said…
Can't believe you know how to make waterzooi! We are it once in Brussels and I loved the name!
brokenteepee said…
Those are some monster shrimp. I miss shrimp like that