Creamy herby mussels with rose harissa, chilli and lemon
If you haven't cooked mussels at home before, this is your sign
I LOVE mussels. You know how everyone has those things that if they see them on a menu then they have to order them? Well for me it’s mussels. And Tiramisu. Oh god I love Tiramisu. If I found a restaurant that served both mussels and tiramisu I would probably never go anywhere else. Mussels are brilliant and deserve a place on your supper table because they are so easy to cook, so quick and they make such a wonderful supper.
And there are so many delicious ways you can have them. In fact I’m going to give you 3 ways you can serve them as I couldn’t decide which mussel recipe to share with you today. This creamy herby sauce with harissa, chilli and lemon is SO good. A gentle fiery heat but creamy and perfectly balanced with the lemon. You must serve with crusty bread for dunking and honestly this is a restaurant worthy supper. Or chips - homemade or otherwise. (Picking up a paper bag of chips from our local fish and chip shop on the way home to serve with mussels or steak is one of my favourite things to do). This dish takes 10 minutes to pull together. Now that’s an easy way you can turn a bad day into a good day.
I love them the classic way - moules mariniere with creamy white wine sauce. So easy too. Perfect with a side of skinny fries. That is very close to heaven for me. A gorgeous tomato sauce spiked with chilli and plenty of herbs is also very good. This I tend to like with buttered hunks of bread. Bread not toast as I want the bread to do some serious mopping of the sauce, but whatever you like is obviously fine! Both of these recipes which you will find below as a little added extra. And I love them with a saffron coconut sauce but I might save that for another day…I have to maintain an air of mystery somehow! So you see there are so many ways you can serve them, all easy, all very very good.
If you haven’t cooked with harissa a lot before, you are in for a treat. You buy it in jars and it’s a secret weapon in the kitchen. I particularly love Rose Harissa which has a slow burning chilli heat balanced with sweet smokiness that adds an incredible depth of flavour. It adds a little piquant hit.
Honestly cook mussels for yourself, cook them for your family or serve them when you’ve got friends coming round. You cook them all in one pan and bring them steaming hot to the table and I mean seriously what could be more delicious? And because no one really cooks them at home they will all think it’s the most brilliant treat and that you are a very excellent cook. Do not under any circumstances tell them how easy it was to prepare. (Oh unless you want to point them in the direction of this newsletter and then they can sign up too…then most definitely do tell them).
Now acquiring the mussels might mean finding your local fishmonger, but that is a very good thing to do in any case. You can order online and get them delivered to you but I actually haven’t had the best success doing that. Your nearest big supermarket should have a fishmonger in it and they will be able to help. I know you can buy mussels in vacuum sealed bags from the supermarket too - they come already in a sauce, but I’m not talking about them. You want a bag of fresh mussels. And in the UK peak mussel season is from October to March. Don’t be nervous of them, I promise they’re so easy to prepare.
Here are my top tips:
Margie’s Mussels 101
Store mussels in a colinder covered with a damp cloth in the bottom of the fridge, and use within 24 hours. Do not keep in fresh water or the mussels will die.
Check that all the mussels are closed. Give any that aren’t a gentle tap and discard those that don’t close, along with any that are cracked or damaged.
To clean the mussels, I just rinse them under cold water and scrub them with a clean scrubbing brush. I also pull out the “beards” which are the hairy-looking stings on the side of the mussel. Not all mussels will have beards to remove.
Knock off any large barnacles off with a knife but also don’t stress about this too much as they won’t do any harm if you can’t get them off.
Cook the mussels according to your recipe and discard any shells that have not opened up.
I love the act of eating mussels - the way you choose one mussel shell to act as little pincers to then extract the mussels from the other shells, slowly accruing a satisfying pile of shells in a bowl to your side. Then greedily mopping the sauce up with some crusty bread. Ugh I just love it so much. I came across a poem by Elizabeth Garrett who describes the cooking and eating of mussels with your fingers as:
‘I pour on wine; it seems they beg for more. The beaked shells yearning wide as if in song – Yet dumb – and lewdly lolling parrot-tongues. Cream licks the back of a spoon and drawls a slur of unctuous benediction for this feast. We smooth our cassocks; bow our heads; and eat.’
Gorgeous! Hope you love this recipe and try it.
Serves 2
Olive oil for drizzling
1 red onion, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic minced
1 tbsp rose harissa paste
1 kg mussels scrubbed clean and de-bearded - see Notes
½ cup white wine
¾ cup double cream
2 tbsp chopped chives
2 tbsp dill, some chopped and some left in sprigs for garnish
2 tbsp parsley
Maldon salt and pepper
Juice of 1/2 lemon
Bread for serving or chips
Lemon wedges
Method
Drizzle olive oil in the the bottom of a medium sized pan (you want one that has a lid). Once hot add red onion and garlic and cook until softened - about 3-5 minutes.
Then add the chilli and cook for about 30 seconds more before tipping in the cleaned mussels. Pour in the wine and bring to a boil and cover with the lid.
Reduce heat to medium-low and steam until all the mussels have opened, about 3-5 mins, shaking occasionally. If after most of the mussels have opened, some refuse to open, throw them out as it’s not worth the risk.
Scoop the mussels from the sauce and set them aside.
Pour the cream and harissa into the pan, stir to incorporate with the delicious mixture already in the pan and simmer for 2-3 minutes to warm the cream. Add the chopped herbs and a squeeze of lemon. Season to taste.
Return mussels to the hot sauce and stir to coat.
Scoop into bowls and serve with lemon wedges and crusty bread for dunking in the delicious sauce. Delicious!
Eating for one
This recipe is very forgiving so just buy the amount of mussels you want and I would be inclined to use the same amount of everything else.
Quantities
So this is actually a little tricky as most of the weight of the mussels obviously comes from the shells so it’s hard to say the volume of the mussels you actually get to eat. I would say 1kg between two with bread or chips on the side is good. But if you want a few more get a few more - it’s that kind of recipe where it’s forgiving enough. And if in doubt, ask your fishmonger for advice! They know it all so don’t be afraid to tell them what you want and then ask them what they think - I do this all the time.
Take care of salt
Mussels are naturally salty (from living in the sea?) so be careful with adding too much salt as they may not need it. This dish sings with flavour beyond just seasoning so you shouldn't have to add too much salt.
Mussels
Store mussels in a colander covered with a damp cloth in the bottom of the fridge, and use within 24 hours. Just a note but don’t keep the mussels in fresh water or the mussels will die.
Check that all the mussels are closed. Give any that aren’t a gentle tap and discard those that don’t close, along with any that are cracked or damaged.
To clean the mussels, I just rinse them under cold water and scrub them with a clean scrubbing brush. I also pull out the “beards” which are the hairy-looking stings on the side of the mussel. Not all mussels will have beards to remove.
Cook the mussels according to your recipe and discard immediately any shells that have not opened up.
To wine or not to wine
The honest truth is the same amount of water would also do a good job - you need the liquid to steam the mussels when you pop the lid on, so if you don’t want to open a bottle of wine then you don’t have to but the wine does just add something else. A depth of flavour, a specific taste. The same way you can technically make a risotto without wine, but it is just that bit better when you do.
Harissa and chilli
I’ve gone for the double whammy here of chilli and harissa as they both add a slightly different kind of flavour and bring a different kind of heat. Don’t worry I’m actually not amazing at handling super spicy food but this is a mellow lovely kind of heat,m not the kind that removes your tastebuds. But by all means adjust accordingly. I like the Belazu one (this one). You can leave out the chilli if you like, and in the same token if you can’t get your hands on rose harissa, harissa will also work perfectly. I also love Calabrian chilli paste - which is SO good. Having little jars of things like this in the cupboard / fridge does just mean you have some shortcuts to hand for making things delicious very quickly and easily
Herbs
Really any herbs will work. Chives, Dill, Parsley, Coriander, Tarragon…all would be great so use what you have and what you like! But do add some green. You want the little bursts of freshness and flavour that come from sprinkling fresh herbs to something hot and steamy.
Now for the BONUS recipes as why have 1 recipe when you can have 3?!
Spicy tomato mussels - tomato sauce spiked with chilli and plenty of herbs
You will need: