Valentine Thomas abandoned corporate life to dive into the most remote areas of the world. While in South Africa, she reconsidered her relationship with nature and a desk job. With the ability to freedive up to 170 feet and hold her breath for six minutes, Thomas is on a quest for sustainability and ocean conservation.
Thomas can free dive 170 feet underwater, holding her breath for up to six minutes. Photo by Andrew Thomas Lee.
She describes eating raw fish three meals a day in Cape Verde off the coast of Senegal, being dragged by a 400 pound marlin around Baja Mexico for two hours, and why the cold waters and large sharks around California are a deterrent, but the fish keep her coming back.
"The problem with the word 'sustainable' is that it's been overused, becoming empty," says Valentine Thomas. Photo by Andrew Thomas Lee.
Among her culinary discoveries is how to make gummy bears with an odorless, tasteless gelatin made from fish scales. Her book is Good Catch: A Guide to Sustainable Fish and Seafood with Recipes from the World's Ocean - A Cookbook.
Éclade de moules uses raw mussels covered with pine needles that are lit on fire. Photo by Andrew Thomas Lee.
Mussels Éclade
with Brown Butter and Rosemary Dipping Sauce
Serves 2-4
When I was a teenager, I once had dinner at the house of one of my father’s childhood friends in Charente, which started with the friend nailing four mussels to a wooden board, then placing a pile of mussels around them. Having no clue what was happening, I watched him and my dad gather brown pine needles, scatter them over the mussels, and then set the whole thing on fire. I didn’t know at the time that they were preparing a classic southwestern French dish called éclade de moules, or mussels éclade, inspired by local fishermen who, after landing their boats on beaches that neighbored pine forests, cooked their mussels by surrounding them with burning pine needles. It’s not a particularly complicated preparation, but the resulting flavor is smoky and complex. Plus it makes for a pretty impressive show.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds mussels, cleaned
- 3 pounds dried pine needles
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 2 fresh rosemary sprigs, leaves removed and chopped
Instructions
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Nail 4 of the mussels onto a big flat wooden plank; it’s okay for them to be touching. Using the first 4 mussels as a reference point for the center, place the remaining mussels around them in a single layer, wide-side down.
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Place the pine needles all around the mussels, then, using a long-arm lighter, set the needles on fire. Once the needles have burned down, about 5 minutes, the mussels are ready to eat. Let them cool for an additional 5 minutes before serving. Discard any that haven’t opened after that time.
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While the needles are burning, add the butter, garlic, and rosemary to a stainless steel pan set over medium-high heat. Melt the butter and continue to cook until the milk solids have browned and the butter smells nutty, 5 to 6 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and transfer the sauce to a serving bowl. Serve alongside the mussels for dipping.
Inspired by her dives, world-class spearfisherwoman Valentine Thomas shares recipes in Good Catch. Photo courtesy of Union Square & Co.