Our March food and wine pairing does not require cooking – A seafood platter – paired with Champagne Thiénot Cuvée Brut.

A seafood platter is a lovely treat and perfect for special occasions such as Easter, Christmas, or summer parties. The hardest thing is opening the oysters; the rest is easy.

Starter or main event?

First, you must decide if your seafood platter will be the starter or the main event. You want to do the full work if it’s the main event.

Shopping List

Next, decide on what you are going to have on your platter. If you plan to have it with friends or family – let’s face it, you will not have a whole seafood platter to yourself – make sure you find out what they like. Nothing is worse than buying many oysters if only one of you loves them.

Once you have made your shopping list, go to a good fishmonger or fish counter with plenty of choices and fresh seafood. A safe bet would be to pre-book your seafood platter. We love the platters at La Petite Poissonnerie!

An excellent seafood platter will include shrimps, prawns, langoustines (if you can find them), clams, winkles, and oysters. If there are just a few of you, some dressed crabs or crab claws are a delicious addition.

Portion sizes

Seafood feels lighter than some foods, but you can quickly feel up, so don’t go overboard with the portions. Your fishmonger will give you their recommendations on an amount per person, but this is a good rule of thumb:

Oysters: Six oysters per person – some guests might want two or three, but oyster lovers would be happy with more than six, so it balances out.

Shrimps: You will order these in weight, so 150 grams per person will be enough.

Prawns: Same as the shrimps, about 150 grams per person.

Langoustines : Six per person.

Winkles: About 150 grams per person, added in small bowls on your platter.

Clams: 6 per person

Dressed crab: Half a dressed crab per person.

Again, this is an average per person. If you are all oyster lovers, you will eat twelve with your eyes closed!

Condiments, sauces and must have

Scatter ice all over your platter and serve your seafood with plenty of lemons, shallots in vinegar and tabasco sauce for the guests who want it for the oysters.

To go with the prawns and crab, homemade mayonnaise is a must! It tastes so much better than shop-bought ones. Another must is a good bread and salted butter with sea crystals.

Ensure each guest has a finger bowl with lukewarm water and lemon – it can get pretty messy!

If you haven’t got them in your kitchen, your shopping list should include a good oyster knife, a nutcracker for the crab and some picks for the winkles.

And to drink?

We love pairing seafood with champagne Thiénot cuvée Brut. The iodine of the seafood enhances the freshness of the champagne. A match made in heaven!! Bon appétit!