Mussels In White Wine

• 1kg mussels
• 175ml Muscadet
• 1 shallot, finely chopped
• 1 bunch of parsley, finely chopped

I’ve always loved Rick Stein’s approach to cooking with wine and that is ‘If you wouldn’t drink it, don’t cook with it!’ So let’s bring out the good stuff for this mussel dish!

Make life easier and buy from your local fishmonger. Most mussels you’ll find in the supermarket or fishmongers are farmed to ensure they feed on clean water that makes them safe for consumption. Farm-raised mussels arrive pretty clean but you’ll want to give them a rinse!

Tip the mussels into a large bowl of cold water and give them a good swish around. You can knock off any barnacles with a sharp knife and discard any mussels with broken shells. If any mussels are open, give them a firm tap and if they don’t close, get rid of them!

Grab a large saucepan so there is plenty of space for the steam to circulate and add your mussels, muscadet, shallot and half the parsley. Turn the heat to high, cover and once the pan starts steaming, time the mussels for 4 minutes, giving the pan an occasional shake to ensure they’re cooked evenly. They are cooked when the shells have opened. Mussels that have not opened are fine to eat if they can be easily opened otherwise discard them.

Serve with a lovely glass of Muscadet. Muscadet is a dry white wine from the most westerly region of the Loire valley – the largest white wine appellation in France. Sur lie means it’s been aged in contact with the dead yeast cells, giving this Muscadet a distinctively crisp, vibrant taste.

This recipe contains paid for advetorial.