Channa
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I am doomed all this foody chat, But one of the tastiest dishes has to be moules mariniere , Simple and delicious, sun cracking the flags it doesn't get any better than this surely ?.
One of my all time favourites, and i think really popular BUT people are not sure what to do with raw mussels ..so deterred from having a go ! ..So if you arent sure and I never poisoned any one yet Channa's simple rules ..you wont get it wrong and a delicious lunch .
A little bit about mussels , they are bi valves , filter feeders .. they basically filter water where they live and take nutrients , the issue is if they live where the water is polluted their stomachs absorb toxins and in turn makes us poorly .
So unless you really know the location is safe , you are better off buying from a supermarket or fishmonger.
Forget the prepacked mallarkeys, in a variety of sauces we want fresh ..because we are worth it .. a fishmonger sells by the litre ..supermarkets a bunch of these little gems but in a net bag ..far more common so we will assume thats what we have bought .
This is where folk get scared but really easy
1. split the netting and let the mussels loose in fresh water for 5 minutes
2 We need to remove any dead mussels , this is where they play crafty as a rule a dead mussel opens its shell but live ones "gape" too....its easy if the shell obviously damaged we discard .. others tap with a knife ...as you see the shell start to close ..mussell give the game away good for the pot !! if it doesnt close discard plenty more to eat !!!
3 some will be closed (anti social molluscs by default for the pot )
4 mussels farmed or otherwise grow on a rock or ropes if farmed, where they attach themselves you get a beard ...firmly grab and pull to remove ..
We are pretty much ready to cook
1 take a shallot or two and finely chop ..a little tip shallotts part of the onion family when you look at it has a flower end and root end .chop towards the root end discard the root ...
2 Fry off the shallot gently with a chopped clove or two of garlic (garlic has the same root structure)
3 add a good glass and a bit of white wine bring to the boil
4 add mussels cover the top let the mussels steam in the liquour 5 minutes max
5 at the 4 mins mark add freshly chopped parsley
6 thats it mussels that havent opened discard ...the rest will be delicious.
For me serve the mussels in a big bowl let guests tuck in. pour the cooking liquour over the mussels shells get filled with liquor and shallot ...serve with a fresh baguette sliced and buttered ...rest of the white crisp wine a fine accompaniment should an additional bottle be required dont blame me ...
A classic
bon appetit
Channa
One of my all time favourites, and i think really popular BUT people are not sure what to do with raw mussels ..so deterred from having a go ! ..So if you arent sure and I never poisoned any one yet Channa's simple rules ..you wont get it wrong and a delicious lunch .
A little bit about mussels , they are bi valves , filter feeders .. they basically filter water where they live and take nutrients , the issue is if they live where the water is polluted their stomachs absorb toxins and in turn makes us poorly .
So unless you really know the location is safe , you are better off buying from a supermarket or fishmonger.
Forget the prepacked mallarkeys, in a variety of sauces we want fresh ..because we are worth it .. a fishmonger sells by the litre ..supermarkets a bunch of these little gems but in a net bag ..far more common so we will assume thats what we have bought .
This is where folk get scared but really easy
1. split the netting and let the mussels loose in fresh water for 5 minutes
2 We need to remove any dead mussels , this is where they play crafty as a rule a dead mussel opens its shell but live ones "gape" too....its easy if the shell obviously damaged we discard .. others tap with a knife ...as you see the shell start to close ..mussell give the game away good for the pot !! if it doesnt close discard plenty more to eat !!!
3 some will be closed (anti social molluscs by default for the pot )
4 mussels farmed or otherwise grow on a rock or ropes if farmed, where they attach themselves you get a beard ...firmly grab and pull to remove ..
We are pretty much ready to cook
1 take a shallot or two and finely chop ..a little tip shallotts part of the onion family when you look at it has a flower end and root end .chop towards the root end discard the root ...
2 Fry off the shallot gently with a chopped clove or two of garlic (garlic has the same root structure)
3 add a good glass and a bit of white wine bring to the boil
4 add mussels cover the top let the mussels steam in the liquour 5 minutes max
5 at the 4 mins mark add freshly chopped parsley
6 thats it mussels that havent opened discard ...the rest will be delicious.
For me serve the mussels in a big bowl let guests tuck in. pour the cooking liquour over the mussels shells get filled with liquor and shallot ...serve with a fresh baguette sliced and buttered ...rest of the white crisp wine a fine accompaniment should an additional bottle be required dont blame me ...
A classic
bon appetit
Channa
