It's time to fancy it up today in the Hart Kitchen! I made the most amazing mussels dish the other night and after I instagram-ed (@princesskuttah) it I could not wait to share it with everyone! I must admit, mussels were never my favorite thing but they had such lovely looking mussels at Wegmans and Jason loves them so I thought I would try to recreate the classic Mussels Fav Diavolo at home. OMG-was I glad that I did. If you are on the fence about mussels go to a good quality fish market and check them out and give them a try! If you like clams or oysters you will probably like mussels.
Sometimes I love going out to eat- getting dressed up, people watching, having an elaborate cocktail, etc. BUT making restaurant dishes at home is one of my favorite things to do. There are up sides to cooking your own food; You know the exact ingredients that went into a dish, strangers aren't touching your food and more importantly you get to eat the fruits of your labor at the end! The best part about this dish is Jason and I actually made it together- he cleaned and washed the mussels and then let them sit in a flour bath while I made the delicious sauce they would be cooked in. It was a team effort and I definitely ate too much but it was so much fun and definitely tasted better than any restaurant I have been to!There are a couple steps that are involved in this dish but they are noting too complicated.
Step 1: Cleaning the Mussels
2 lbs mussels, beards removed
1/3 cup flour
Water
Start off my putting the mussels in a large bowl and removing the beard if any have it- it is a kind of fuzzy looking piece that is between the two mussels shells. The mussels we got had most of them already removed but Jason took the rest off and threw them away. If any are really dirty you can scrub them with a sponge.
So, in the large bowl add the mussels and cover them with water and the flour. Mix with a big spoon until the flour dissolves and let them set for 30-35 minutes.
This step is very important because it cleans out the mussels. They spit out any sand or grit they were carrying. P.S. They will move and wiggle! They are alive!
Step 2: The Marinara Sauce
For this step you need to make your signature marinara sauce.
The sauce I used was my simple marinara sauce that I use for almost everything!
Click here to get my recipe for Simple & Fresh lil carb Marinara Sauce!
You can also use jarred sauce- then just skip to the next step. Whatever you prefer!
Step 3: Cooking the Mussels
3 tbsp olive oil
1-3 tsp red pepper flake
2 shallots, chopped
8 cloves garlic, minced
2 1/2 cups marinara sauce
1 cup white wine
3 tbsp fresh chopped parsley
In a large stock pot add the olive oil over medium heat. Add in the shallots, garlic, and red pepper flake. Adjust the red pepper flake to your desired spice level- I used 3 tsp and it was perfect! Stir constantly for 1 minute.
Deglaze the pan with the white wine- I used Chardonnay!
Allow the wine to bubble for a few seconds then add in the marinara sauce. Stir well.
Turn up the heat to medium high and allow this mixture to come to a boil.
Drain the mussels and rinse them from the flour bath from step one.
Add them to the boiling sauce mixture.
Put the lid on the pot and wait 3 minutes.
Stir the mussels around and put the lid back on and wait another 3 minutes.
If some are still not open put the lid on for an additional minute.
Spoon out the mussels into a large serving bowl then pour the sauce right over the top of the mussels and sprinkle with fresh chopped parsley.
See! That wasn't too bad! The key is having all of your ingredients ready to pour and drop into the pot once you are ready to cook the oysters. It makes the process a lot smoother!
Since the theme of our day was shellfish- Jason decided to learn how to shuck oysters! He did amazing! The perfect appetizer before we stuffed our bellies with mussels!
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