How much and how to cook mussels (fresh, frozen)? Baked mussels. Mussel Recipes

Mussel dishes are becoming more and more popular. Because they are not only tasty, but also healthy. However, how to cook this overseas delicacy? What subtleties do you need to know? We will talk about this later in the article.
Recipe content:

Mussels are an exquisite delicacy containing many useful properties. The product consists of a natural high-quality protein, which is equivalent in terms of the number of amino acids to chicken eggs. More than 30 minerals and trace elements are also in the composition of mollusks. But to save all nutritional value seafood, you need to learn the secrets of its preparation.

What shellfish to buy

In order to cook mussels deliciously, get the maximum benefit and protect the family from serious poisoning, it is important to choose them correctly. Experts recommend purchasing freshly caught marine reptiles (caught no more than 3 hours) or frozen ones. If there is the slightest suspicion, then it is not worth the risk.

How to choose seafood

Fresh mussels smell exclusively of the sea. If there is an unpleasant odor and extraneous odors, the product is spoiled. When choosing mollusks in shells, you need to pay attention to their valves - they must be tightly closed. Frozen peeled marine inhabitants have a light yellow color. The shells must be intact, the surface without cracks and damage. If this is present, then the clams were thawed or stored incorrectly. These have already been lost. beneficial features and may not be safe for health. More tasty mussels of large size than their small counterparts.

You can check live mussels or not in the following way. Immerse them in cold water and soak for half an hour. Live (good) mussels will drown, floating on the surface - not the first freshness. More important feature- live mussels always with closed shells. An ajar shell of a living product - tap on it and it will immediately close, those that do not cover can be thrown away.

How to cook mussels - secrets and subtleties

Buy mussels of the same size. Small shells are not useful, they have little meat, somewhere with a tiny pea.
You need to defrost clams in the refrigerator, putting them in a bag. Slow thawing will retain flavor and useful material product. After, clean them, rinse and fold in a colander.
Blanch the mussels by pouring boiling water over them for a few minutes, or steam them.
Mussels are cooked quickly - 6-10 minutes. The shell flaps must open after cooking. If this does not happen, then they are not fresh.
Since mussels are a perishable product, they must be cooked immediately.
Before cooking, they must be thoroughly washed under running water and gently scrape off small algae with a brush or knife. They must be washed to a shine.
To be sure that the clams do not contain sand and debris, they can be soaked in cold water for 4-6 hours.
To prepare mussels, you can use the following products: vegetable oil, lemon, salt, pepper, dry white wine, parsley, tomato, onion, Bell pepper, garlic, sour cream, carrots, cheese. As herbs and spices - celery, fennel, thyme, parsley, rosemary, cilantro (coriander), star anise (star anise), basil, ginger, saffron. Any products can be additional components: sour cream, yogurt, cheese.
It is delicious to eat shellfish with beer and dry white wine.
Use the mussels with your hands using a fork. In one hand, they take the opened boiled shell, in the other fork, with which they scroll the meat and separate it from the wings. You can replace the fork with a shell sash, and restaurants serve tongs for this.
Cooled ready-made clams can be added to salads, main courses or sauces. After, they must be washed to exclude the possibility of ingress of foreign particles, dried and scattered on a flat plate.

How to cook mussel meat

Fresh clams must be cooked on the day of purchase, or stored in the refrigerator for a couple of days. They must first be cleaned of shells and rinsed. Mollusks in shells - rinse thoroughly, remove shells and cracks. Further, it all depends on the imagination and taste preferences. The main thing is not to digest them: peeled mussels are boiled for 5 minutes, clams in shells - until the valves open.
frozen mussels are prepared in the same way as fresh ones. They are thawed and washed thoroughly. Readiness is determined as follows: peeled frozen seafood is cooked for 7 minutes, and shellfish in shells - until the shells open. Mussels in shells should be brought to a boil, drained and boiled for 10 minutes in fresh water until open.
Serving hot clams, because cooled ones lose some of their taste. They are not prepared for the future because of the high risk of poisoning. Therefore, they are not advised to warm up and store them.

How to cook frozen mussels: a step by step recipe

Before cooking frozen mussels, they should be selected. They are usually sold by weight, or packaged in vacuum bags. Seafood must be covered with a thin layer of ice - it retains its beneficial properties and taste. Carefully feel and shake the frozen bag: the mussels should not be a frozen lump, and there should be no snow crunch inside the bag. The presence of these flaws suggests that the mussels have already been defrosted. If possible, choose marine reptiles packaged in a transparent bag or a bag with transparent "windows" so that you can evaluate them. appearance.

Calorie content per 100 g - 172 kcal.
Servings - 2
Cooking time - 10 minutes

Ingredients:

Frozen mussels without shells - packaging
Water - a large pot filled 2/3 with water
Edible salt - to taste
Seasonings and spices - to taste

Cooking:

Wash the mussels well running water, remove all dirt and algae.
Fill the pot with water, add salt, spices, herbs and bring to a boil.
Boil and drop the clams in boiling salted water.
Bring to a boil again, reduce the gas to a minimum and cook them for 5 minutes. The specific cooking time depends on the size of the clams. Large reptiles can be boiled for 5 minutes, small - 3.
After a certain time, transfer the mussels to a plate. If you leave them in a saucepan, for example, so as not to cool down, then the clams will become rubbery.

How to cook frozen mussels in shells

The housewives of coastal countries have more than one favorite recipe for cooking mussels in stock, which cannot be said about the housewives of the middle lane. And although seafood recipes are becoming more and more popular and all more people they are mastered, yet not many people know how to cook them correctly.

Ingredients:

Mussels in shells - 1 kg
Drinking water - 4 l
Salt and spices - to taste

Step by step cooking mussels at home:

Defrost the shells of frozen inhabitants of the sea, wash well and clean to a shine. Completely remove sand and dark hard ingrown algae from them.
Place a pot of water on the stove and boil over high heat. Salt and add spices.
Reduce the heat to low and cook the frozen reptiles at a low boil without a lid for 3-5 minutes. After skimming, take them out of the water and use as directed.

Mussels are a delicacy loved by many that can be boiled to festive table or just for dinner, and also cook a lot of them delicious meals, therefore, in this article we will consider how much and how to properly cook mussels (fresh, frozen) at home.

How long to cook mussels?

The cooking time of mussels depends on the type of mussels (fresh, frozen), as well as whether they are shelled (shell) or not. Consider separately how much you need to cook mussels in a saucepan:

How long to cook fresh mussels in a pan? Fresh mussels in shells should be cooked for 4-5 minutes after boiling water in a saucepan.
How long to cook peeled frozen mussels? Freshly frozen mussels should be boiled for 5-7 minutes after boiling water in a saucepan, and boiled frozen peeled mussels should be boiled for 2-3 minutes after boiling water.

Note: when cooking mussels, you should observe their cooking time, as overcooked mussels will be tough and less tasty.

Having learned how much time to cook mussels, we will further consider the process of cooking these clams in a saucepan.

How to cook mussels (frozen, fresh) in a pan?

Regardless of the type of mussels - fresh or frozen (boiled, fresh), the sequence of their cooking is the same, only the preparation for cooking differs (fresh mussels in the shell must be thoroughly washed before cooking and manually remove the remains of algae, if any). Consider step by step how to cook mussels in a pan:

Pour cold water into a saucepan (an average of 1 kg of mussels per liter of water) and bring to a boil over high heat.
Add salt to boiled water, seasoning if desired ( Bay leaf, herbs, garlic), after which we lay the mussels. Cook the mussels for 4-5 minutes if the mussels are fresh in shells, freshly frozen for 5-7 minutes or peeled and frozen for 2-3 minutes.
At the end of cooking, the cooked mussels are immediately taken out of the pan (you can drain the water through a colander), because if they are left in the water, they will boil and become rubbery.
We serve boiled mussels to the table, while to improve their taste, mussels can be poured over with lemon juice or prepared sauce (for example, from olive oil, garlic and fresh herbs).

Note: if fresh mussels do not open during cooking, then they are missing and should not be eaten (after cooking, unopened mussels are selected and discarded).
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Mussels are relatively inexpensive but very healthy shellfish. Despite the fact that they are called "oysters for the poor", the dishes from them are very tasty. Today, shellfish can be purchased both peeled and in shells. Many prefer the second option, since in the process of cooking clams in shells, it is easy to find and discard all stale ones. Of course, in this case, you need to know how to cook mussels in shells correctly. Today, the subtleties of this technology are familiar not only to chefs of elite restaurants. Many housewives easily cope with the task at home.

Features of selection and preparation

In order for a dish of mussels in shells to turn out tasty, healthy and safe, you need to know the basic rules for their selection and preparation.

When choosing fresh or frozen mussels in shells, preference should be given to large ones, since there will be very little valuable meat in small ones - with a bean seed.
Carefully consider mussels when buying. You can take only mollusks, the shells of which are not damaged and closed. Damaged shells usually occur if the product has been repeatedly frozen and thawed. Open shells indicate that the mollusk is sick, dead, or simply very stale. If you buy fresh mussels, you can try to knock on the sink - if it closes, then everything is in order, the mussel is alive, and you can safely take it and cook it.
If you are going to cook frozen mussels in shells, they must first be thawed. Let them thaw in the refrigerator. So the mollusks retain their beneficial properties better.
Mussel shells must be cleaned until smooth before cooking. You can do this with dull knife, which shells should be well scraped.
Before washing, mussels can be dipped in cold water for a couple of hours. In this case, it will be easier to wash them from sand. In addition, this procedure will help to immediately get rid of dead mollusks: the living ones will go down to the bottom, and the dead ones will remain on the surface.
Mussels in shells can be boiled, stewed, baked in the oven. Regardless of the method of preparation, it is important to select and discard mussels whose shells have not opened after 5-7 minutes of cooking. This indicates the staleness of the product, and it is easy to get poisoned by the missing mussels.
To improve the taste of mussels, you can boil and stew them with the addition of wine, lemon juice, tomatoes, milk, garlic sauce, dill, pepper, celery. The choice of one or more of these ingredients depends on the recipe.
Serve the mussels, removing upper part shells. You can remove the clam from the bottom of the shell with a fork. In some restaurants, when serving mussels, the table is served with tongs. They are needed in order to grab the removed part of the shell and use it to extract the clam meat from the rest.

Mussel meat goes well with white wine. If you offer these clams to guests, it does not hurt to put a bottle of white wine on the table.

How to cook boiled mussels in shells

mussels in shells - 2 kg;
water - 1 l;
lemon - 1 pc.;
salt - 20 g;
ground black pepper - to taste.

Dip the mussels for half an hour in cool water, remove, brush on all sides with a brush, scrape with a knife and rinse in running water.
Wash the lemon, cut it in half, squeeze the juice out of it. Remove the bones that have fallen into the juice. Pour the juice into a thick-walled saucepan.
Pour a liter into the pot cold water, add salt and pepper, stir.
Put clean mussels in shells into the pan. Place the saucepan over medium heat with a lid on.
When the water boils, wait 5 minutes and check the mussels. Remove clams whose shells have already opened from the pan.
Re-check the readiness of mussels after 2-3 minutes. Remove the opened ones from the pan, discard the unopened ones.

Serve boiled mussels immediately after they are cooked. From drinks other than white wine, beer is suitable for them.

You can cook mussels in water mixed with dry white wine. The optimal ratio of these components is 1: 1. The taste of ready-made mussels in this case will be completely different, more delicate and refined.

It is not necessary to ensure that the liquid completely covers the clams during cooking. Mussel shells open with steam.

You can cook any mussels according to the above recipe: both frozen and fresh. They can be eaten right away, but are often used to prepare other dishes. Including salads.

How to cook stewed mussels in shells

garlic - 5 cloves;
water - 1 l;
lemon - 1 pc.;
fresh parsley - 50 g;
ground black pepper - to taste;
salt - to taste;
butter - 50 g;
drinking cream - 150 ml.

Clean and rinse the mussels well. Put them in a saucepan.
Fill with water, squeezing the juice of one lemon into it, adding a little pepper and salt.
Put the pan on high heat and wait until the mussels begin to open. Take them out as soon as the shell opens. Instances that did not have time to open in 7 minutes will have to be thrown away.
Remove the top of the shell from each mussel.
Put the clams in a frying pan, after melting the butter on it.
Pass a clove of garlic through a press, pour over the cream, stir.
Pour garlic cream sauce into the pan with mussels. Put it on medium heat. Simmer the clams for 5 minutes.
Remove the mussels from the sauce and place on a platter.
Wash, dry, finely chop the parsley with a knife, add to the creamy garlic sauce. You can add pepper and salt. Stir.
Pour the prepared sauce over the mussels.

Mussels stewed in a creamy garlic sauce can be served in portions.

Fresh mussels baked in shells

fresh mussels in shells - 1 kg;
fresh tomatoes - 0.3 kg;
stale bread - 40 g;
olive oil- 20 ml;
garlic - 2 cloves;
parsley - 1 sprig;
carnation - 1 pc.;
salt, pepper - to taste;
water - 0.5 l.

Pour water into a saucepan. Put in it peeled and washed mussels in shells.
Put the pot on high heat. Wait for the shells to open. Remove the tops by removing the mussels from the pan and cooling slightly.
Crush the garlic.
Pour boiling water over tomatoes, peel off the skin. Grate the tomato pulp, chop with a blender or rub through a sieve. Mix with garlic.
In a mortar, grind salt, pepper, cloves.
Grate stale bread, add to tomato puree.
Put the spice mix in there.
Add olive oil, stir.
Place the mussels, shell side down, on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Place the tomato mixture on each mussel.
Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and place a baking sheet in it.

Baked after 10 minutes tomato sauce mussels are ready. Most often, fresh mussels are prepared according to this recipe, but it can also be used for frozen clams.

Mussels baked in shells with cheese

large frozen or fresh mussels - 1 kg;
hard cheese - 120 g;
mayonnaise or sour cream - 100 ml;
lemon - 0.25 pcs.;
garlic - 2 cloves;
water - 0.5 l.

Wash thoroughly, clean the mussels, pour cold water and put on a strong fire.
Boil 7-8 minutes. Throw away any unopened shells. Cool the rest.
Remove the mussel meat, cut each into 3-4 pieces.
Place the mussel meat in a bowl. Squeeze lemon juice on them.
Add garlic, sour cream or mayonnaise passed through the press to the mussels, mix.
Fill the sinks with the mixture.
Finely grate the cheese, sprinkle it with shells.
Fold the shells on a baking sheet and send to bake for 5 minutes in an oven preheated to 200 degrees.

The dish prepared according to this recipe can be called exquisite. It will perfectly decorate the holiday table.

Do not be afraid to buy mussels in shells. It's easy to cook them at home. At the same time, the appearance of the finished dish and its taste will almost certainly impress your guests.

More and more people are mastering seafood recipes. Shrimps and squids begin to confidently push croutons to beer and crab sticks in salads. But so far, not everyone knows how to cook mussels.

You will need:

Mussels;
Water;
Salt, spices to taste.

Show the rest

In regions far from the sea, these delicious mollusks most often get in the form of a semi-finished product. They can be smoked, canned, boiled or frozen. True, in coastal countries every housewife has long had a favorite recipe with them, but in middle lane Few people know how to properly cook mussels. But it's quite easy!

Instruction 1

The broth left after them can be filtered and used for sauces or soups. And the meat marine life you can already eat. Or cook frozen mussels according to some more interesting recipe- as you please.

The situation becomes slightly more complicated if you are lucky enough to get unpeeled clams in shells. They will be even tastier, more tender and fragrant, although it will take a little longer to tinker with them.

Instruction 2

Further, everything is the same as in the case of frozen mussels. Clams are fully prepared. You can return them to one of the shell doors, pour lemon juice and eat like that. Or put them in a salad, stew with onions or come up with something else. Either way, it will be delicious.

Enjoy your meal!

Delicate taste, low calorie content, high content amino acids and trace elements, the presence of vitamins B, D and E - this is an incomplete list of all those excellent qualities that make mussels popular among gourmets around the world.

To this should also be added a large number of glycogen - the body's reserve energy reserve, as well as the fact that the amount of protein in these bivalve mollusks exceeds its content in beef and fish. In addition, mussels are easy to prepare and can be both an independent dish and part of complex recipes. On the table to the Russian consumer, this seafood can get in two forms - fresh (which is quite rare and available only to residents of coastal areas) and frozen. In addition, you can buy clams, peeled and in shells. And it is precisely on the degree of their freshness and on whether they have been subjected to pretreatment, and will depend on how long it takes to cook and how to cook mussels.

How to determine suitability for consumption

Despite the fact that this shellfish is an excellent tasting product, it should still be remembered that seafood food poisoning is the most dangerous. Before you cook mussels, you need to make sure they are suitable for eating. In Russian stores, you can buy frozen clams in a whole shell, on one leaf, and in the form of a peeled fillet.

How suitable these seafood are for food can only be understood after they are thawed. However, when buying, you should pay attention to whether there is a lot of ice on the package, whether there are yellow influxes - all this is evidence that the mussels have already been defrosted, and it is better to refuse to purchase such products. Unspoiled are thawed shellfish without bad smell, with elastic light meat. If these are seafood in shells, then they are also examined for integrity - the shells must be tightly closed and not deep cracks. Those who were lucky enough to purchase freshly caught mussels should remember that mollusks must go through a mandatory heat treatment within a day after capture.

How to cook clams in shells

Before cooking mussels in shells, regardless of whether they were purchased frozen or fresh, they must be pre-processed. To do this, the surface of the shells is cleaned under running water from sand and algae, and then boiled for two minutes in a container with large quantity salted water with spices.

By the way, from the fact whether the mollusk is already peeled or in the shell, it also depends on how much to cook the mussels. Seafood in shells requires a longer cooking time - they must be boiled twice. After the first boiling, the shells are poured with cold water for the second time, brought to a boil again and boiled, but already for seven to ten minutes.

How to cook clam fillet

And in conclusion, a few words about how to cook peeled mussels. These clams have already been pre-cooked, so their preparation will require much less time and effort. You can boil seafood both on fire and in microwave oven. The only condition is that before cooking the mussels, they should be thawed at room temperature. Then they are washed and placed in a container with water, where salt and the necessary seasonings are added. After boiling, the mussels are boiled for another five to seven minutes. In the microwave, peeled clams are cooked in a small amount of water at maximum power for ten minutes.