Seafood Platter Recipe (Plateau de Fruits de Mer)
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This seafood platter recipe combines oysters, clams, crab, prawns, langoustines, mussels, whelks, winkles and brown shrimp on crushed ice. I usually serve homemade mayonnaise, mignonette and lemon on the side.
The French name is plateau de fruits de mer, which means seafood platter. Some platters include lobster or sea urchin as well, although neither is required. I like being able to choose the shellfish according to what the fishmonger or fish market has that day.
I advise buying the crab, prawns, langoustines, mussels, whelks, winkles and brown shrimp already cooked unless you know how to prepare each one correctly. Ask the fishmonger to shuck the oysters and clams close to serving time if you aren’t confident doing it yourself.
Seafood Platter Recipe at a Glance
- Prep time: 30 minutes
- Cook time: None if using already cooked shellfish
- Servings: 2
- Cuisine: French
- Main ingredients: Oysters, clams, crab, shrimp, prawns, langoustines, mussels, whelks and winkles
- Method: Arrange the chilled shellfish over crushed ice
- Serve with: Mayonnaise, mignonette and lemon wedges
- Storage: Assemble shortly before serving and keep the shellfish chilled
Why You’ll Love It
- Several kinds of shellfish: Oysters, clams, crab, prawns, langoustines and sea snails all have different flavors and textures.
- Flexible selection: You can either use the listed combination or choose whatever is freshest and available from your fishmonger.
- Most items can be bought cooked: That just leaves the sauces and arrangement to do at home.
- Easy to replenish: Put out enough seafood to cover most of the ice and keep the remainder chilled until you need it.
What is Fruits de Mer?
Fruits de mer means “fruits of the sea.” On a French menu, a plateau de fruits de mer is a cold shellfish platter rather than one fixed recipe. It commonly includes a mixture of oysters, clams, crab, prawns, langoustines, mussels and sea snails.
The seafood is traditionally arranged on a platter or stand. A tiered stand holds more shells while using less table space, but a large rimmed platter is fine.
I’ve enjoyed this dish in Holland, Belgium, Paris and California, and it’s always slightly different – the presentation, the variety of seafood and the sauce pairings. There’s no such thing as a traditional seafood platter or authentic fruits de mer, because you can mix and match any types of seafood and choose your preferred sauces, dips and garnishes.
What Goes on the Platter?
- Oysters and clams: Serve them freshly shucked. I try to keep each shell level so the liquid doesn’t spill over into the ice.
- Small crabs: I like these in the center of the platter. Don’t forget the crackers and seafood picks.
- Prawns, brown shrimp and langoustines: Serve these cooked and chilled. Leaving the shells on is best for the most traditional presentation.
- Mussels: Use cooked mussels and discard any that didn’t open during cooking.
- Whelks and winkles: You can buy these cooked and supply picks so they can be removed from their shells.
- Sea urchin roe: These soft, creamy bites are also known as “uni”. Optional but I like the contrasting texture.
- Crushed ice: Use food-safe ice to keep the shellfish cold.
- Seaweed or parsley: Either can be added as a garnish. Only use seaweed sold as food.
Choosing and Preparing the Shellfish
Order the seafood from a fishmonger and explain that it will be served cold. Check whether the prawns have been deveined and whether the whelks and winkles are ready to eat. It’s important that you keep everything refrigerated on the way home.
Don’t use one cooking time for all the shellfish. Crab, prawns, langoustines, mussels, whelks and winkles need different preparation. Buying them cooked is the easiest way to make a homemade seafood platter recipe.
How to Arrange a Seafood Platter
Make the mignonette and mayonnaise first and refrigerate both. Put the serving platter on a tray, add the crushed ice and set the crabs in the center. Arrange the cooked shellfish around them. Add the oysters and clams last, keeping the open shells level.
Don’t overload the platter. Keep anything that doesn’t fit in the refrigerator and add it later with clean tongs. Put the sauces, bread and lemon wedges in separate dishes.
Equipment
- 14-inch aluminum seafood tray: The raised rim holds the crushed ice and melted water.
- Oyster knife: Use this with a thick folded towel if you’re shucking the oysters yourself.
- Clam knife: The narrower blade is designed for opening clams.
- Seafood crackers and picks: The crackers open the crab shells and the picks reach the meat inside crab, whelk and winkle shells.
- Locking tongs: Use clean tongs when replenishing the platter.
- Stoneware bowls: Put these out for the discarded shells.
What to Serve with a Seafood Platter
Serve mignonette with the oysters and clams, and mayonnaise with the crab, prawns and langoustines. Add lemon wedges, crusty bread and salted butter. Cocktail sauce is optional.
Each guest will also need a small fork or seafood pick, plenty of napkins and somewhere to put the empty shells. Finger bowls are traditional, although damp napkins do the job.
Raw Shellfish Safety
Raw oysters and clams can carry harmful bacteria, viruses or toxins, and contamination can’t always be detected by sight, smell or taste. Buy them from a reputable supplier and keep them cold. Anyone who is pregnant, very young, older or immunocompromised should avoid raw shellfish. People with liver disease, diabetes or other conditions that increase the risk of serious infection should also choose cooked shellfish.
Use a pasteurized egg yolk for the homemade mayonnaise. Store-bought mayonnaise is the simpler choice if pasteurized eggs aren’t available.
How to Store
Prepare the mignonette up to 1 day ahead. The mayonnaise can also be made ahead and refrigerated in a covered container. Keep all the seafood refrigerated until shortly before serving and return unused cooked shellfish to the refrigerator promptly.
Don’t freeze the assembled platter. Discard raw oysters and clams left out for 2 hours, or 1 hour if the temperature is above 90°F (32°C). Keep cooked leftovers only if they remained properly chilled and weren’t handled by guests. Eat them within 1 day.
Seafood Platter FAQs
Fruits de mer means fruits of the sea. A plateau de fruits de mer is a cold platter of raw and cooked shellfish.
It usually includes both. Oysters and clams may be raw, while crab, prawns, langoustines, mussels, whelks and winkles are cooked and chilled.
No. Lobster is common on larger platters, but the selection depends on availability and budget. My recipe below has small crabs as its largest shellfish.
Make the sauces and chill the cooked shellfish ahead, then add the crushed ice and assemble the platter shortly before serving. Add freshly shucked oysters and clams last, for freshness.
No. A large rimmed platter is easier to store and works just as well. Set it on a tray to catch melting ice.
Seafood Platter Recipe (Plateau de Fruits de Mer)
Ingredients
- 6 raw oysters, freshly shucked
- 8 cooked whelks, chilled
- 3 cooked small crabs, chilled
- 24 cooked small brown shrimp, chilled
- 12 cooked shell-on prawns, deveined and chilled
- 6 raw large clams, freshly shucked
- 6 cooked langoustines, chilled
- 24 cooked mussels, chilled
- 24 cooked winkles, chilled
- Crushed food-safe ice, as needed
- Food-safe seaweed or parsley sprigs, for garnish (optional)
- Lemon wedges, to serve
- 1 pasteurized egg yolk, at room temperature
- 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
- ¾ cup (180 ml) neutral vegetable oil, at room temperature
- Lemon juice, salt and black pepper, to taste
- 4 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 tablespoon finely diced shallot
- Salt and black pepper, to taste
Equipment
- 14-inch aluminum seafood tray
- Oyster knife
- Clam knife
- Seafood crackers and picks
- Tongs
- Bowls for empty shells
Method
- Stir the red wine vinegar and shallot together. Add salt and black pepper to taste, then cover and refrigerate the mignonette.
- Whisk the egg yolk and mustard together. Add the oil a few drops at a time while whisking constantly. Once the mayonnaise starts to thicken, pour in the remaining oil in a light steady stream and continue whisking.
- Add lemon juice, salt and black pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate the mayonnaise.
- Set the platter on a tray and fill it with crushed ice.
- Arrange the crabs in the center. Add the whelks, brown shrimp, prawns, langoustines, mussels and winkles around them.
- Add the oysters and clams last, keeping the shells level.
- Add the seaweed or parsley if using. Serve immediately with the mayonnaise, mignonette and lemon wedges.
Notes
- Buy your shellfish from a reputable fishmonger and keep it refrigerated until use. Also, keep any seafood that doesn’t fit on the platter refrigerated until you’re ready to replenish it.
- Use a pasteurized egg yolk for the mayonnaise, or serve store-bought mayonnaise.
- People at greater risk of serious foodborne illness should skip the raw oysters and clams.
- Discard any raw shellfish left out for 2 hours, or 1 hour if it’s above 90°F (32°C).
Serving the Platter
Put the seafood platter on the table as soon as it’s assembled. Refill it from the refrigerator instead of leaving all the seafood out at once, and replace the ice if it melts heavily. Shell bowls, crackers and picks should already be on the table.
More Shellfish Recipes
Use extra winkles in my easy winkles recipe. The lobster tail guide is useful if you decide to add lobster, while grilled seafood pizza gives you a hot main course option to try another day. Seafood fettuccine with lemon and dill is another tasty dish.
