Do you ever go to a restaurant and see a specific appetizer or entree that you just have to have, even though you have tried various versions on it? Joseph and I do that all of the time. I personally always love to order duck because I love the rich flavor and different ways to cook it but another item would be mussels.
I had never really had them until we moved to California. Now I see and order them from anywhere between a gastro-pub to a fine dining establishment. I love the flavor that they offer, even though I can't stand the flavor of oysters.
After years of trying different chefs versions, I thought "why haven't I tried making them", the concept seemed to easy, and I am usually am pretty full after eating them for an appetizer. So, I went on a search for them and found them at Whole Foods.
Almost every recipe I looked through, called for (3) pounds, so that is exactly what I bought. Let me tell you now, it is a lot of work to clean these little suckers. Not to mention you have to distinguish the live ones between the dead ones. Not only do you have to soak them to get the sand out of them, then you have to pull out their "beard", and scrape the gunk off the outside of them. Joseph wanted to help me but I told him that if he saw what they looked like before I was done cleaning them, he may not want to eat them!
BUT, once they were clean and I started making the "broth", it changed everything. In my big red Creuset pot, I melted butter with garlic, onion, fresh parley, and white wine. I may have added a few other fresh herbs but it is escaping my mind right now. Like I said, there is a variation of recipes from broths to bisque's to red sauces, but I stuck to the simplest form, as this was my first time!
Once I added the mussels and steamed them with this great broth, they opened up and this was the end product. I served them with fresh lemon wedges and grilled pieces of a french baguette.
Were they good? Need I say that we finished them in one sitting?! They were amazing. If you have the time, I would recommend making them but it is a lot easier ordering them off a menu and having a chef make them for you. I have such an appreciation for that chef in the kitchen making them now!
Here are some of my favorite places to have mussels:
1.) Cafe Chloe in the East Village
2.) Cody's in La Jolla
3.) Banker's Hill Restaurant
I had never really had them until we moved to California. Now I see and order them from anywhere between a gastro-pub to a fine dining establishment. I love the flavor that they offer, even though I can't stand the flavor of oysters.
After years of trying different chefs versions, I thought "why haven't I tried making them", the concept seemed to easy, and I am usually am pretty full after eating them for an appetizer. So, I went on a search for them and found them at Whole Foods.
Almost every recipe I looked through, called for (3) pounds, so that is exactly what I bought. Let me tell you now, it is a lot of work to clean these little suckers. Not to mention you have to distinguish the live ones between the dead ones. Not only do you have to soak them to get the sand out of them, then you have to pull out their "beard", and scrape the gunk off the outside of them. Joseph wanted to help me but I told him that if he saw what they looked like before I was done cleaning them, he may not want to eat them!
BUT, once they were clean and I started making the "broth", it changed everything. In my big red Creuset pot, I melted butter with garlic, onion, fresh parley, and white wine. I may have added a few other fresh herbs but it is escaping my mind right now. Like I said, there is a variation of recipes from broths to bisque's to red sauces, but I stuck to the simplest form, as this was my first time!
Once I added the mussels and steamed them with this great broth, they opened up and this was the end product. I served them with fresh lemon wedges and grilled pieces of a french baguette.
Were they good? Need I say that we finished them in one sitting?! They were amazing. If you have the time, I would recommend making them but it is a lot easier ordering them off a menu and having a chef make them for you. I have such an appreciation for that chef in the kitchen making them now!
Here are some of my favorite places to have mussels:
1.) Cafe Chloe in the East Village
2.) Cody's in La Jolla
3.) Banker's Hill Restaurant
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