I know that sometimes it can be intimidating trying to make some of your favorite seafood dishes at home. Mussels in wine sauce is one of my favorites. Here is my version that cost about $6 to make, 10 minutes to prepare and was gone in 60 seconds. Fresh seafood is so easily had at home for a fraction of the price. I served this with toasted bread and a dry white wine and it was a luxurious make at home meal that was really simple.
Moules au Vin Blanc
2 lbs. mussels rinsed, scrubbed
4 cloves garlic minced
2 shallots minced
2 tsp. red pepper flakes
2 tbs. olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 C. chopped flat parsley
2 c. dry white wine or 1 c wine 1 c seafood stock
1. Heat the oil in a deep stock pot over medium high heat and add the garlic and shallot, add the crushed pepper, salt and pepper and saute until translucent and aromatic.
2. Add the parsley and the mussels and toss in the garlic mixture until all are covered and then quickly add the liquid. Cover the pot and allow mussels to steam until all are opened.
3. Serve in a wide bowl with broth at the bottom for dipping with toasted garlic bread.
Serves 6 appetizer portions or 2 dinner portions.
Sunday Saucer
5 Comments
February 3, 2010 at 11:14 am
Dear MSS,
What should one know about purchasing mussels? Which are good? Which are bad?
F
February 3, 2010 at 4:06 pm
Check out Seafood Watch…it’s a great Iphone app from the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
February 3, 2010 at 7:41 pm
when i tried making mussels at home, i spent over an hour scrubbing and de-bearding! did you not count that in your ten minutes, or do you get them pre-scrubbed someplace? thanks!
February 3, 2010 at 8:17 pm
The mussels I bought at Whole Foods were already de-bearded. I gave them a minor scrub…and into the pot they went.
February 8, 2010 at 6:47 pm
Just make sure they’re alive when you throw them in. Seafood gone bad, isn’t something you want to experience.
Just gently tap on a mussel, and it should close by itself, the ones that don’t – I throw away.
They usually do this at our store – and throw away the bad ones, so you don’t even have to pay for them.
And yes, extraordinarily simple, exquisitely delicious.