Mussels in a spicy tomato broth, paired perfectly with crusty bread or pasta!
Prepping your Mussels:
- Immediately when you bring them home, prepare a bowl of salt water for them to soak in. Sometimes they look alive/open, but it’s just because they are trying to breathe. Allowing them to rest in salt water will give you a better gauge for whether they are still alive or not.
- Remove all “beards,” wipe down with a paper towel, and rinse quickly but thoroughly under COLD water. I get water out of my fridge because the tap is not cold enough. You don’t want them to have too much fresh water exposure
- Discard of any mussels that are not completely closed shut. Even if they are barely cracked open, if they spring back open when you try to close, they are already dead and should not be eaten. It is sad, but at least they’re cheap!
Mussels Fra Diavolo
Mussels in a spicy tomato broth!
Ingredients
- 2 lbs mussels
- 1 shallot
- 6 cloves garlic
- 4 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 tbsp calabrian chilis adjusted to spice preference
- 1.5 cup white wine
- 6 tbsp unsalted butter
- 1/3 cup parsley
Garlic Breadcrumbs
- 2 tbsp unsalted butter
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3/4 cup breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Clean mussels and discard any that are not completely closed.
- In a large saute pan that has a lid (preferably a glass lid,, so you can see), turn it on medium-low head and add 2 tbsp butter, 2 tbsp olive oil, butter, and shallots. Saute until fragrant.
- Once fragrant, turn head up to medium and add tomato paste and calabrian chilis, and saute until tomato paste has become a deeper color red.
- Add mussels to pan, shake around, add white wine, and cover.
- Remove each mussel as they open and put in a bowl. That means they are ready. Re-cover pan if you need to between removing them.
- To pan, add remaining 4 tbsp of butter and a pinch of salt, then toss with al dente pasta and fresh parsley.
- Serve with Mussels and garlic bread breadcrumbs
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!