Sean D. Francis

Steamed Mussels

Posted on 12 April 2009

I followed a variation of Alton Brown’s recipe for these steamed mussels.

I started with about 30 mussels.  I originally purchased two pounds and I threw out about 15 mussels based on what Alton Brown said about whether the mussel is open or closed.  Since this was my first attempt and I am paranoid about shellfish as it is, I was extra cautious.  Still, out of the little net sack, 30 mussels were a lot.

In a huge pot, I started with 3 tablespoons of olive oil, half a sweet vidalia onion, and 2 tablespoons of minced garlic.  I also added 1/4 cup of chopped celery.  I let it sweat for a bit with a pinch of sea salt before adding 1/4 cup chopped tomatoes and 1 and 1/2 cup of white wine.  I chose Black Swan chardonnay which of all the lower cost chardonnay’s I’ve had recently has the most buttery flavor which I thought would make a great base for the sauce.

I put the cleaned mussels in a stainless steel colander and put it over the pot and covered it.  Four minutes later, I checked and the mussles had popped open.  I shook out the juices leftover in the shells and dumped them into a bowl.  Ten mussels were selected and the meat added into the pot before blending with a stick blender.

The sauce was then poured over the mussels in the bowl and a loaf of french bread added to the side.