Your dinner guests will always be impressed when you place a big bowl of these white wine butter mussels on the dinner table. With a rich butter and white wine base, this is a very Belgium way to cook your mussels.
White wine butter mussels
For me, cooking with mussels is not only about their sweet and salty taste but also about their sound. I love listening to their shells clattering on the sides of my metal sink as I wash them clean or my pan rattling side to side as they cook while their shells pop open and release their salty brine into my sauce.
There is a certain intimidation that is associated with cooking mussels however, they are one of the easiest proteins you can cook with that require very little of your attention. This recipe is my take on a very traditional Belgium recipe, moules-frites that translates to mussels and fries. Unlike the French, I serve my mussels with olive oil fried baguette however, my garlic butter fries would also make the perfect addition to this meal!
Cooking with mussels
You can either buy them ready to go or you will need to clean them yourself but don’t let this scare you off! All you need is a scourer, water and a little bit of time. Rinse the mussels under running cold water and scrub the barnacles off their shell. There will be little tufts of hair poking out of the mussel shell that is called a beard. Clasp the beard between your index finger and thumb and pull in an upward motion until it releases from the shell. Depending on how many mussels you are cooking, cleaning them can be a little time consuming but absolutely no skill is required!
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you store live mussels?
Most of the time when you buy mussels from the store they will be live. The best way to store them is to place them into a large bow or colander and cover them with a damp paper towel.
Do I need to toss away any mussels that refuse to open?
This is actually a myth and there is no need to toss out any mussels that have not opened when cooked.
How long can I store mussels for?
I recommend to only keep them in the fridge for 1 day when live and uncooked and up to 2 days when cooked.
If you make this recipe, please tag me on Instagram, Tik Tok or Pinterest so I can see your wonderful creations!
If you have any questions or would like to leave a review, please do so here! I always love answering your food and recipe related questions and hearing your feedback on my recipes
White Wine Butter Mussels
Ingredients
- 1 - 2 kg live mussels
- 1 tbsp olive oil + extra for drizzling bread
- 2 shallots finely diced
- 4 garlic cloves crushed
- 50 g butter unsalted
- 1/2 cup white wine
- fresh parsley finely chopped
- Squeeze of fresh lemon
- 1 baguette sliced
Instructions
- Begin by de-bearding and cleaning the mussels. To de-beard the mussels, pull their beard in an upward motion until you can pull it out of the shell. Clean their shells under running water and scrub them until all their barnacles have been removed.
- In a deep dish pan on a low heat, bring your olive oil to heat and fry the shallots and garlic for five minutes or until fragrant and translucent. Stir occasionally to avoid the garlic from burning.
- Bring the heat to medium and add the white wine. Cook until the white wine has reduced by half.
- Turn the heat to low and add the butter to the pan. Stir the butter through the sauce until it has completely melted.
- On a medium heat in the same pan, add your mussels and stir them through the sauce. Pop the lid on and leave the mussels to steam for 10 minutes or until all of the shells have opened.
- While the mussels steam, slice the baguette and drizzle with olive oil. Add the baguette to a fry pan and fry on a low heat for several minutes on each side or until golden and crispy.
- Take your mussels off the heat and sprinkle with fresh parsley and a squeeze of lemon juice. Serve immediately with the fried bread and enjoy!
Hi there. First at all Congrats!
This is a great version i’ve found on insta.
For your info:
‘moules & frites’ is not a French recipe, but their neighbor Belgium. Same thing happens with the ‘french-fries’ they are not French from France, but Belgium as well.
Anyway, when it comes to food, never mind !
keep going!
Thank you so much for letting me know! I will update that reference 🙂