Steamed mussels with white wine

If you’re recovering from an Easter feast, then I hope you had a great time! Our Easter celebration is taking place this coming Sunday, and this means two things:

1. We’re going back home to Greece soon! Yesssss! (says while doing a little happy dance) 🙂
2. There WILL be lamb. A whole lamb. On a spit. So delicious I’m drooling only thinking about it. So delicious.

Until then, fasting continues and seafood is our main guest.

There are plenty of ways to prepare steamed mussels, but the version with the white wine was always my favorite. The taste of the wine blends with the natural taste of the mussel juices fantastically!

And it’s actually a quite easy and fast dish to prepare. After you clean the mussels that is.

I will not lie. It took me quite some time to prepare the mussels and have them ready to cook. But this very well can be because it was my first time, and I was testing the mussels like a paranoid. Are they open? Do they close when I drop them hard in the sink??

Anyway, it just requires some patience. And it’s worth it!

So, start by preparing the mussels. If the shells are open, drop the mussel on a surface and see if it closes. If not: trash it.

Pull the beard and remove any hair. Clean the shells with a sponge.

Slice the tomato, chop the onion (rings or half rings), peel the garlic, chop the parsley, chop the celery sticks.

In a large, deep pan or a pot heat the olive oil and fry the onions, garlic and celery until soft.

Add the sliced tomato and mix.

Add the tomato paste and the mussels. Shake the pot really well.

Pour the white wine and add the parsley. Season with salt and pepper and cover with lid.

Let the mussels cook until they are open. This will take approximately 10min or less.

If by the end of steaming you find closed mussels: trash them.

Serve and EAT!

Look how nicely all the ingredients are tangled between the shells!

I don’t use forks, I don’t use spoons. I use my hands… And I use the shells as spoons to enjoy the delicious sauce with the vegetables! 😀

Have a nice day!

INGREDIENTS

Serves 1 (very generously) or 2

700g mussels

4 celery sticks

2 medium-sized onions

2 cloves of garlic

1 tomato

A bunch of fresh parsley

1 tsp tomato paste

25ml olive oil

1 cup of white wine

Salt

Pepper

QUICK INSTRUCTIONS

Prepare the mussels. If the shells are open, drop the mussel on a surface and see if it closes. If not: trash it. Pull the beard and remove any hair. With a sponge clean the shells.

Slice the tomato, chop the onion (rings or half rings), peel the garlic, chop the parsley, chop the celery sticks. In a large, deep pan or a pot heat the olive oil and fry the onions, garlic and celery until soft. Add the sliced tomato and mix. Add the tomato paste and the mussels. Shake the pot really well. Pour the white wine and add the parsley. Season with salt and pepper and cover with lid.

Let the mussels cook until they are open. This will take approximately 10min or less. If by the end of steaming you find closed mussels: trash them.