Seafood platter

Cook the langoustines and the crabs.

If you have a steam oven, put the langoustines in a perforated dish for two minutes and the crabs for 30 minutes at 100 °C.

If you cook them in a saucepan, bring salted water to the boil (you can add a few aromatics), drop in the langoustines for two minutes and drain them.

Put the crabs into cold salted water with a little vinegar added, bring to the boil and count 20 minutes of gentle simmering for a crab of about a kilo… Best to ask your fishmonger for the cooking time. They’ll give you the soundest advice.

Some fishmongers also sell crabs ready-cooked… I’d steer clear of any who only have very full, near-perfect ones. They’re most often frozen. It’s like fruit and veg: perfection can be suspicious. That said, don’t hesitate when you know your fishmonger. They often handle the cooking better than we do!

If you want to make your own bread, take a look at my recipes or at specialist blogs like le Pétrin. You can also pop to a good baker’s!!! It’s quicker! The advantage of making your own, though, is knowing exactly what’s gone into it. If you decide to do it, buy local organic flour. It would be a shame to go and buy flours full of pesticides and insecticides!

Here’s a quick recipe for no-knead bread