Spicy French mussels

Recipe for French mussels with a spicy twist:

I love seafood! Especially, spicy seafood. Today I bought some French mussels from a local supermarket for a bargain! 1.5 kg of mussels for only 4 euros! What a good deal, right?! I am sure you have heard of the traditional French mussels recipe: mussels mixed with white wine, lemon zest, garlic, parsley, etc. This recipe is too conventional for me so I have decided to jazz it up with a little spice. 

In order to make this luscious meal, you will be needing the following ingredients: 

1. mussels (the amount does not really matter but at least 300 grams) 
2. olive oil 
3. tomato sauce
4. mushrooms (250 grams)
5. salt and pepper
6. onions
7. spices (curry and coriander) 
8. 1 bottle of beer (250 ml)

   

   (Please, disregard the balsamic vinegarette in the picture and substitute a bottle of beer instead.)  

Now, let's make this baby -

1. Dice up the mushrooms and onions. 

2. Heat up a non-sticking frying pan over high heat, and pour in 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil (sunflower and other types of oils will work as well). 

3. After thirty seconds, throw in the mushrooms and let it fry for about 30 seconds. Afterward, throw in the onions and mix it with the mushrooms. 

4. Once the mushroom has cooked and the onions are a bit brown, pour in 3 tablespoons of tomato sauce. 

5. Add 3 pinches of salt and pepper to the mixture. It is also time to sprinkle some coriander and curry after the salt and pepper. The amount you should add is really up to your liking. I like my curry (like, a lot) so I usually put in about a big spoon full but that might be a little too much for some people.

6.  Once the paste is ready, you need to add your mussels to the mix.

(Just, a little reminder about your mussels. Make sure they have been cleaned and the beards have been pulled out. If there are any open ones, you should discard them immediately because they have probably already died. Before cooking, I usually rinse my mussels with cold water in a colander just to thoroughly get rid off any impurities or filths that may not have been removed before). 

7. Once you have stirred the mussels into the mixture, pour in the bottle of beer. Make sure to slowly go in circles over the pan so the beverage can hit all the mussels. Do not mix after. 

8. Turn down the heat to low-medium, and close the frying pan with a lid. Mix the mussels around every one-two minutes. 

9. Check on the food once five minutes has passed. If a majority of the mussels have opened, then your meal is ready! If you still see several closed mussels, then mix the mussels again and close for a couple of more minutes. 

10. In general, mussels should cook within five-six minutes, in total (sometimes, it takes even less but there are some stubborn ones! It is no wonder they are called mussels, right?! Watch out for their muscles! HAHA). And if there are still some which have not been opened then you need to throw them out because it means they were already dead before cooking. In other words, they are not edible.  

Hope you enjoy this delicious, savory recipe! 

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