Who likes mussels?
My daughter is scared of eating them but I have just polished off a kilo - with chips and mayo of course.
It’s my stand by order in any street side cafe bar along the coast anywhere between Belgium and Brittany - but despite being here at home in Cornwall they are hard to find. OK I’m 20 miles inland and there might be some when the nomadic fish stall sets up on Friday morning - but it’s Wednesday and the only place with them was M&S food hall.
What a difference from the mountain of shellfish in Super U in Roscoff. Here they come in cardboard boxes with sealed plastic inners. But don’t go, I bought the lot. And as I ate them all by hand and slurped up the sauce I now need a shower, though there’s still a couple of inches of Muscadet in the bottle, so first things first.
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We love them ET and usually get ours from Morrison's when Ros goes into Beverley. Not with chips though - Ros does a concoction with bits of salmon, noodles, leeks chopped up finely, white wine and garlic, I think. Eaten with a crusty baguette - delicious and seems very "French'!
I'm always meticulous when cleaning them and ditch any that haven't fully closed after being soaked in cold water and - touch wood - never had a problem.
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We also very much enjoy them, cooked simply in a liquor made from white wine, shallot and garlic with parsley added just before serving. Our weekly fish man often has kilo bags available, which make a nice lunch with some crusty bread. When in France I do think the Bouchot ones, where available, well worth the premium.
Another nice way of serving them is to open them and partially cook in a little wine. Then discard one shell and lay out the half shells on an ovenproof tray, put a blob of garlic butter on each, sprinkle with bread crumbs and flash under a grill until the butter melts and bread crumbs colour.
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Love mussels, love seafood. Shame that although we are an island we tend, the general UK population that is, to be fixate on just two fish, cod and haddock. Even then it is generally battered which I too enjoy but it has to be haddock with skin on for me. Such a pity that our waters should be filled with many edible species but much that is caught is mostly destined for foreign markets. Certainly the case with our crustaceans and mollusc catches. Shame we are not more adventurous in our culinary delights like that seen across the Channel.
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I enjoy all seafood, and like nothing better than being on holiday on an all inclusive hotel where I do go over the top on them and never had any issues.
However I can understand the OP's daughter's view. About 40 years ago Mrs C and I were in Bruges and had a plate of mussels but sadly she was violently ill for the rest of the trip and to this day she won't go near any of them.
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I like them. Remember having them in the South of France with frites and rose wine. Margaret makes a Tuna pasta dish and we always add mixed seafood (including mussels) into the mix. I am also always amazed at the volume of mussels for sale in French supermarkets, just wonder where all the shells go!
David
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We like all sorts of shellfish, mussels, pallourds, oysters (drop the "we" to just "I") clams and have to say this is the one type of food that I associate above all other with France. I adore the fish stalls over there and it puts the UK to shame when you think of the seafood that is on our own doorstep.
We're quite lucky that we can, in season, get hold of mussels from the Menai Strait off Anglesey.
I don't often envy people but did have a slight twang of it when reading ET's post.
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One of the great pleasures of spending a couple of months in Spain late winter/early spring is the amazing displays of fresh fish and seafood at supermarkets, especially Mercadona.
As well as the traditional ways of cooking mussels "à la française" we also enjoy them with Thai sauces, spanish tomato recipes and even a cheats recipe using a tin of Super U Bouillabaisse as the cooking liquor.
We love fresh mussels and eat them regularly although it is increasingly a challenge to get them at home now the local Tesco fresh counter has been closed.
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Another seafood lover here, and yes, fresh, not that easy to find away from good fishmongers. We still have a very good fishmonger in our local indoor market, and I often head off to get something really nice. Love mussels, crayfish, whelks, clams, oysters, cockles, etc……. It’s not a proper fish pie without mussels in! We used to buy from the local shops in Newlyn when in Cornwall. Crab central is based in East Yorkshire, Withernsea, but of course most goes overseas. Growing up, we had seafood a lot, and Mum adores crab. I doubt many folks would know how to cook and prepare one safely nowadays.
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I think this is a very close razor clam recipe to that we enjoyed while on holiday in Northern Spain a few years back. We sometimes see them on sale in our Fishmongers and often think about buying some. This thread has tempted me to have a go, they were truly delicious.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/shangurro_razor_clams_898450 -
In Cape Verde in late February I was eating fried Cuttlefish, I thought it was a fish but I found out it's not a fish as they are molluscs.
I have to tell you it was absolutely fantastic. One of the best seafoods I've ever tasted. All was going well till near the end when I googled what they look like.
Lesson learnt if you like something don't look at what it looks like!
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Who likes mussels?
Another mussel, seafood and fish lover here.
Just returned from Portugal where I had the best octopus ive ever tasted.
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In Tenerife we always go for a sea food tapas which include my favourite fried chipirones. Now they really are delicious in that traditional light crispy batter with garlic dips and a squeeze of lemon downed with a cold Dorada Especial, the beer not the fish! . My mouth is watering as I type!
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My OH will eat Crab as all his family came from Norfolk so Cromer Crabs, have both tried Mussels here just up the road from where we live not again not keen on any shell fish but will eat fish instead have tasted other folks dishes but not my thing at all, but we do eat different fish but very expensive here.
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Yes, ttda - I wasn't aware until recently - that, apparently, three quarters of the UK's shellfish are landed on the East Yorkshire coast - Bridlington, Hornsea and Withernsea. I'm still not sure that isn't a bit of marketing, though!
Strange thing is, there isn't a wet fish shop in Hornsea and the one we used to go to in Brid, closed some time ago. Someone did try with a shellfish shop in the town a year or so ago, but it didn't last long - lack of demand, I suppose - but strange if that was the case.
As you say, most of the shellfish landed here goes to Europe.
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Best seafood we have ever experienced was in - Amsterdam - of all places. At a restaurant called Lucius. It was many years ago and we were staying at the Sofitel in the middle of Amsterdam. Asked the receptionist for recommendations of where to eat and she recommended the Lucius. We decided to 'sus' it out before we made a booking and wandered down there - in a very scruffy part of the University quarter - everywhere seemed to be covered in graffiti and we felt a bit unsafe - even in the middle of the afternoon. Obviously it was closed at that time of day and when we looked through the window, it was all white tiles and looked very stark - indeed, Ros said it looked a bit like a 'gentleman's urinal'!! (How did she know?)
Anyway, we went back in the evening - and what a transformation. It was packed - obviously the business people of Amsterdam going there after work. We didn't know what to order so went along with the recommendation of a 'seafood platter for two'. It arrived later and turned out to be a platter about 2' in diameter, piled high with every shellfish imaginable - starting with lobster right down to what I suppose where periwinkles and everything in between.
What a feast - if somewhat messy - but the best seafood I have experienced ever and the most wonderful of atmospheres with everyone being crowded in together. Certainly a dining experience we will never forget.
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Oh well, it had to be done because of this thread. On our visit to M&S food hall today what popped into our trolley, yay, mussels!! We love them and unfortunately our favourite restaurant, where we usually enjoy them when we visit didn’t have them on this week so feel we missed out. Never mind we will enjoy some tonight with M&S ‘frites’ as well, easy cooking for me tonight! Won’t be like the proper French ‘moules frites’ experience but it’s better than nothing.
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We bought seafood fresh from boats when we stayed up at Carradale. Delicious. You do have to be careful prepping though, being “musselled” isn’t pleasant🤢
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