Basic Steamed Mussels Recipes

SIMPLE STEAMED MUSSELS

Steps:

• Place a cast-iron enameled Dutch oven over high heat and add the olive oil. Add the onions, garlic and butter and briefly cook until the onion softens, 2 to 3 minutes, then stir in the chili flakes. Add the mussels, Chardonnay and chicken stock. Season with salt and pepper. Cover and cook until all of the mussels have opened, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove the lid then add the parsley.
• Preheat a grill pan over medium heat. Brush the bread slices with olive oil on both sides. Grill until toasted on both sides, 30 seconds per side.
• Serve the mussels with a rustic piece of grilled bread.

STEAMED MUSSELS

Steps:

• Rinse the mussels under cold running water while scrubbing with a vegetable brush. Discard any with broken shells. Heat oil in a 6 to 8-quart stockpot. Saute the shallot, garlic and thyme to create a base flavor. Add the mussels and give them a good toss. Add wine, lemon juice, chicken broth and red pepper flakes; cover the pot and steam over medium-high for 5 minutes until the mussels open. Toss in the tomato, parsley and butter, recover the pot, and steam for another minute to soften. The tomatoes should keep their shape. Serve with plenty of grilled garlic bread to sop up the broth.

STEAMED MUSSELS I

Steps:

• Fill a large pot with mussels. Sprinkle chopped onions and garlic over the shellfish. Do not add water, as mussels produce all the water needed for steaming! Cook over high heat until most or all of the mussels open. Discard any that do not open.

STEAMED MUSSELS

Steps:

• Discard any broken-shell or open (dead) mussels. Scrub remaining mussels in cold water, removing any barnacles with a dull paring knife. Remove beards by giving them a tug (using a kitchen towel may help). If you have trouble removing them, use pliers to grip and pull gently.
• Place mussels in large container. Cover with cool water. Agitate water with hand, then drain and discard water. Repeat several times until water runs clear; drain.
• In steamer,* place half of the mussels and the boiling water. Cover and steam 3 to 5 minutes, removing mussels as they open. Discard any unopened mussels. Repeat with remaining mussels.
• Serve hot mussels in shells with butter.

EASY "6" INGREDIENT STEAMED MUSSELS IN BEER

Steps:

• Base -- In a medium wide saute pan, add the olive oil and bring to medium high heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute a couple of minutes.
• If you like a little heat, add a pinch of red pepper flakes, this is completely optional.
• Mussels -- One NOTE: Very important. Rinse the mussels well in cold water in a collander. Make sure that any opened mussels you tap a couple of times and if they do not close, they are BAD (dead) and make sure to toss those out.
• Add the beer and mussels to the pan and reduce the heat to medium and cover. Simmer approximately 5-7 minutes until the mussels begin to open. Turn the heat off and add the butter and parsley and stir well. Don't over cook the mussels. You just want to make sure they all open well.
• Serve -- As I mentioned - crusty bread. I like to drizzle with olive oil and toast, then rub with a garlic clove and a tomato. Just cut a tomato in half and rub over the bread. It has amazing flavor. The broth and onions in the broth are a great topping to the bread with. ENJOY! This very simple easy dish.

SIMPLE STEAMED CLAMS OR MUSSELS

Steps:

• Put the oil in a saucepan large enough to hold all the clams or mussels over medium heat. When hot, add the shallot and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to soften, 5 minutes.
• Add the liquid along with the clams or mussels, turn the heat up to high, and cover the pot. Cook, shaking the pot occasionally, until they all (or nearly all) open, about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat.
• Scoop the mussels into a serving bowl. Remove as many shallots as you can with a slotted spoon and scatter them on top. Pour or ladle off the accumulated liquid, leaving any sediment in the bottom of the pan, and pour it over the mussels. Garnish with parsley and serve with the lemon wedges.

STEAMED MUSSELS WITH GARLIC AND PARSLEY

Steps:

• Heat broiler. Put olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed soup pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the minced garlic and red pepper and let sizzle for 30 seconds without browning. Add the mussels, stir to coat and increase heat to high. Add the wine or water, and put on lid. After 2 minutes, give the mussels a stir, then replace lid and continue cooking until all mussels have opened, 6 to 8 minutes.
• Paint cut sides of the baguette pieces with oil and place cut side up under broiler to toast. Rub toasts with the remaining garlic cloves.
• Stir the chopped parsley into the mussels, then ladle mussels and broth into bowls. Serve with the garlic toasts.

BASIC STEAMED MUSSELS

Steps:

• In a large pot, combine wine, parsley, garlic, oil and bay leaf.
• Bring to a boil over high heat.
• Add mussels, cover and steam for 2 minutes, shaking the pot occasionally.
• Begin checking mussels; as they open, transfer them to 6 large soup bowls.
• Total steaming time will be about 5 minutes.
• Discard any unopened mussels.
• Strain mussel broth through a fine sieve lined with cheesecloth into a small saucepan.
• Bring broth to a boil over high heat and boil for 2 minutes.
• Pour broth over mussels and garnish with chervil (or tarragon).
• Serve immediately, with bread for sopping up broth.
• Makes 6 first-course servings.
• 205 calories per serving; 15 grams protein; 4 grams fat (0.3 gram saturated fat); 25 grams carbohydrate; 410 mg sodium; 42 mg cholesterol; 1 gram fiber.

STEAMED MUSSELS, ASIAN STYLE

Steps:

• Put the oil in a saucepan large enough to hold all the mussels and turn the heat to medium. A minute later, add the scallion, ginger, and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 1 minute.
• Add the mussels, turn the heat to high, and cover the pot. Cook, shaking the pot occasionally, until they all (or nearly all) open, about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat.
• Scoop the mussels into a serving bowl. Add the soy sauce to the liquid, then pass it through a fine strainer (or a coarse one lined with cheesecloth). Pour the liquid over the mussels and serve.
• Variations
• Curried Steamed Mussels: Substitute butter for the oil. Substitute shallot for the scallion and omit the ginger and garlic. When the shallot is soft, sprinkle with 1 teaspoon curry powder and cook, stirring, for another 30 seconds. Cook and finish as directed, substituting the juice of 1 lime for the soy sauce.
• Thai Steamed Mussels: Use peanut oil. Add 1 lemongrass stalk, roughly chopped; 1 small dried hot red chile; and 2 lime leaves to the scallion, ginger, and garlic. Substitute nam pla (fish sauce) for the soy sauce.
• Steamed Clams with Soy: Most mussel recipes will work for steamers, which are also known as soft-shell clams. But steamers must be rinsed after shucking to remove all traces of sand, and you don't want to dilute these delicious broths by dipping clams into them one after the other. The solution is to substitute littlenecks-small hardshell clams, the kind served on the half shell and used for pasta with clam sauce-for the mussels. These contain no sand at all, but because their shells are heavier, use 1 1/2 to 2 pounds of littlenecks to replace each pound of mussels. Proceed exactly as directed.
• Mussels
• Every year, we see more and more cultivated mussels, most often from Prince Edward Island, which is fast becoming the mussel farming capital of North America. These are easy to clean (almost clean enough to eat without washing, but still worth a quick going over), with very few rejects and plump meat. Wild mussels are far tastier but harder to clean. When cleaning mussels, discard any with broken shells. If the mussels have beards-the hairy vegetative growth that is attached to the shell-trim them off. Those mussels that remain closed after the majority have been steamed open can be pried open with a knife (a butter knife works fine) at the table.