I feel quite lucky to live in San Mateo and be only about three miles from a bi-weekly Farmer's Market at the College of San Mateo. The Wednesday market has less vendors but plenty to choose from while Saturday has almost double the vendors and many more people shopping. Last Saturday my six-month old Sophie and I braved a blustery day and were rewarded by getting some great mussels that I steamed for lunch and served with a sourdough baguette. Simple food served family style is always a treat when the all the components are of high quality and prepared honestly.
Steamed Mussels
6 cloves garlic, minced
3 shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
1 large stalk of celery, roughly chopped
10 sprigs fresh thyme
2 dried bay leaves
1 teaspoon red chili flakes
½ C. dry white wine
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon good quality butter
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 sourdough baguette
1. Clean the mussels. As with oysters and clams, mussels should still be alive when they are cooked. Clean the mussels under running water and discard any mussels that are open as they can make you very sick if eat them. Mussels have what is commonly referred to as a “beard” attached to the mussel and this needs to be yanked off. Set the cleaned mussels aside.
2. Cook the mussels. In a large pot heat the butter and oil over medium high heat until the butter begins to foam. Add the garlic, shallots, and celery and sauté for 2 minutes (be careful not to burn the garlic!). Next add the thyme (yes sprigs and all), bay leaves, and chili flakes. Wait 30 seconds (stirring everything with a spoon would be useful at this point) and then add the mussels and white wine. Cover the pot and cook for about 3 minutes or until all the mussels have opened. If a few don’t open but the rest have then discard those unopened ones out as they were also DOA and you don’t want to eat them.
3. Cut the bread and serve. While the mussels are merrily steaming away cut the baguette in 1/2 inch slices. Grab a bowl big enough for the mussels and the accumulated “juice” to fit into without making a big mess and empty the entire contents of the pot into the bowl. To make this easier you can lift the mussels out with a big spoon and then pour the juice into the bowl last. Don’t worry about the thyme sprigs or bay leaves being in the bowl because this is a rustic dish meant to be served family style in the center of the table.
4. Eating the mussels. If you have those dainty little forks available this is the time to get them out because they are perfect for plucking the mussels from their shells. The bread as you most likely know is for dipping into the “juice” in the bowl which is intensely flavored and some would argue better eating then mussels themselves.
Chef’s Note: The most important thing is that you buy nice fresh mussels from a fishmonger you trust. There are literally hundreds of variations you can make of this recipe. In the summertime you can use basil and diced tomato in place of the thyme and bay leaves or the mussels can be steamed in beer instead of wine.
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