Until recently, mussels were a food item I strictly ordered ONLY in restaurants, mostly because the little-shelled, protein-packed beauties were intimidating and I had no idea how to cook them. What I didn’t realize was how gosh darn easy (and affordable!) they are to cook at home.
A couple tips to know when cooking fresh mussels. Store your mussels in a large bowl in cool, dry place (like your refrigerator) until you’re ready to cook them. It is important to let them breathe – you should always remove any packaging they come in so that they get oxygen. Separate out any mussels whose shells are opened and give each shell a gentle tap. For those that close after the tap, you can add them back with the others. For those that remain open, discard. Finally, ensure that your mussels are clean and properly debearded. An excellent how-to on debearding can be found from The Kitchn here.
Serve with a crisp veggie side salad and crusty bread to sop up the delicious broth. Oh, and a delicious glass of sauvignon blanc of course. 🙂 This recipe will feed 2 for dinner, or 4 as an appetizer.
Heat olive oil and butter in a large saute pan with lid over medium heat. When the oil butter mixture begins to bubble, stir in the shallot and garlic. Cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken stock, white wine, and herbs and let simmer for about 5 minutes until flavors are combined. Next, lightly toss mussels in broth mixture. Cover the pot with its lid and cook until all mussels have opened, 6 to 10 minutes. If any mussels do not open, discard them. Remove the pot from the heat then stir in the cream. Add salt, pepper, and more cream to taste. Serve in big bowls (we like to have a "discard" bowl in the middle to put the shells after each delicious bite) with lemon wedges for squeezing and plenty of crispy bread to sop up the broth.Steamed Mussels in a Creamy White Wine Broth
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