L-A At Home

I love making mussels in white wine, it is one of my favour dishes ever! I love them so much, I have posted recipes before but this one is a bit different. When the weather is nice, I like to do them on the BBQ. Very quick, simple and delicious.

Here is what you will need:

• 3 pounds of mussels
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 tbsp good olive oil
• 1 cup chopped scallions
• 1 1/2 tbsp minced garlic
• 1/2 cup canned dice tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp good saffron threads
• 1/3 cup chopped basil
• 1 tbsp fresh thyme leaves
• 1 cup good white wine
• 1 chopped hot pepper for extra spice
• 1 tsp of salt
• 1 tsp of fresh ground pepper

Here is how to make it:

• To clean the mussels, put them in a large bowl with 2 quarts of water and the flour and soak for 30 minutes, to release any sand.
• Drain the mussels, then remove the “beard” from each.
• Heat the BBQ, one burner on (low flame) and one burner off and close the lid.This will create an oven like effect.
• When the BBQ is heated up, place a large cast iron pan on the grill on the flame side of the grill.
• Heat the butter and olive oil watching that it doesn’t burn.
• Add the scallions and cook for 5 minutes, then add the garlic and cook for 3 more minutes, or until the scallions are translucent.
• Add the tomatoes, saffron, basil, thyme, wine, salt, and pepper.
• Bring to a boil and add the mussels, stir well and close the lid of the BBQ for 8 to 10 minutes, until all the mussels are opened (discard any that do not open).
• With and oven mitt on, shake the pan once or twice to be sure the mussels don’t burn on the bottom.
• Pour the mussels and the sauce into a large bowl and serve hot.

I hope this inspires you to be creative in your kitchen – enjoy!