[Serves 6 to 8]
Ingredients:
- 3kg fresh black mussels
- 100g salted butter
- 1 medium sized red onion, diced
- 1 bunch of spring onions, finely chopped
- 1 ½ tablespoons fresh thyme
- ½ teaspoon dried chilli flakes
- ½ cup finely chopped parsley to garnish
- Salt and pepper to season
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
- 1 can of Windhoek Draught
- ¼ good quality local olive oil
- Crispy buttered Portuguese buns
Method and preparation of the Black Mussel Pot (Chef’s Tip on how to clean mussels below recipe)
- Melt butter together with olive oil in a large pot and sauté the red onion, spring onion and thyme
- Add ½ the Windhoek Draught, sugar, chili flakes, salt and pepper for seasoning
- Simmer for about 5 min
- Add your cleaned mussels to the large pot and add the other ½ of the Windhoek Draught
- Put the lid on the pot and simmer until mussels are open
- Discard any mussels that are not open or less than a quarter open
- Serve mussels in a big bowl/dish and pour over the simmering liquid
- The crispy Portuguese buns and butter are essential to mop up all that delicious mussel/Windhoek Draught liquid.
Chef’s Tip – How to Clean Fresh Black Mussels
Scrub the outer shell with a hard nail brush under running water
- Then place your black mussels in a bucket of salted water, this keeps them alive for several hours
- While in the salted water, the mussels expel any sand or grit
- Place the mussels into a large colander and wash well under running water
- Using a sharp knife scrap off any barnacles and seaweed
- Very important: Any mussels that appear damaged or are broken or opened must be discarded immediately
- And lastly remove the “beard” – pull it like you would unzip something. Sometimes the “beard” stays fast, then leave it until after you have cooked the mussels and you can easily pull it off
Note:
Black mussels can be obtained fresh or frozen from most local supermarkets and fish mongers/shops as well as specialty deli shops
Recipes Prepared by Chef Peter Ayub – www.senseoftaste.co.za
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