Name: Mussels with White Wine, Leek and Fennel
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 6 min
Total time: 26 min
Ingredients: 1.5 kg fresh live mussels; ½ bottle dry white wine; 1 large leek roughly chopped; ½ fresh fennel roughly chopped; 3 garlic cloves finely chopped; Fresh herbs - finely chopped parsley, basil & thyme - and a bay leaf; 70g sunflower margarine

Mussels with White Wine, Leek and Fennel

8 May 2015

by RickRock

Prep Time

20 minutes

Cook Time

6 minutes

Total Time

26 minutes

Background

Ever since I was a kid I've loved mussels. My dad used to buy little pots of cockles & mussels at the pub on a Sunday to have with vinegar, salt and pepper. They were great, but when I was a bit older I got completely bowled over by my first taste in France of moules marinière. This variation on the original delicious theme came about because my mum, being Welsh, had to involve leek and I love fennel! I use sunflower spread because I'm allergic to milk but do use butter if you wish.

Ingredients

1.5 kg fresh live mussels
½ bottle dry white wine
1 large leek roughly chopped
½ fresh fennel roughly chopped
3 garlic cloves finely chopped
Fresh herbs - finely chopped parsley, basil & thyme - and a bay leaf
70g sunflower margarine

Instructions

Thoroughly rinse the mussels in a large bowl of water. Pull out the ‘beards’ and any bits of seaweed.
If any mussels are still open give them a little tap on the side of the bowl.
IMPORTANT!!! If they still don’t close discard them – dead ones are dangerous.
Gently heat the margarine in a large heavy bottomed pan. Add the leek, fennel & garlic and stir for a minute or so but don’t brown.
Add the herbs and the wine, then turn up the heat until it starts bubbling.
Pour in the mussels and give them a good stir to get coated.
Turn down the heat, cover and leave for 2 or 3 minutes.
IMPORTANT!! This time discard any mussels that haven’t opened
Serve in a large shared bowl. Pick out and eat one at a time, slurping from the shell. Use fresh French bread to dip into the juice.

Tips

It’s important to inspect each mussel individually, which is why the preparation is a bit tedious – a labour of love, but worth it. You don’t have to scrub the shells spotlessly clean – just wash off any loose stuff.