Mmm…mussels! Eat them in a lemon butter sauce or white wine broth. Steam them and serve them simply with some pasta.
Or enjoy them as part of a luxurious seafood platter. However they’re prepared, mussels are undeniably a treat.
What are mussels?
Mussels are bivalve mollusks that are largely unappreciated. Their fancier cousins, oysters, seem to get all the attention.
This is sad because mussels are sustainable, affordable, highly nutritious, but most of all – delectable.
We mentioned nutrition. Yes, mussels contain good amounts of protein, iron, iodine, omega-3, and selenium.
They contain very little saturated fat but of course, you have to be aware of what’s in the sauce you spoon over them!
How to cook mussels
For those of you who are unfamiliar with cooking seafood, mussels are a good place to start. They are the simplest seafood to cook because all that’s needed is to steam them for three to six minutes until the shells open.
Done! They can then be used in a paella or served with a creamy sauce. They are also good with pasta.
How to choose mussels
Avoid frozen mussels if you want the best experience. Frozen mussels are rubbery in texture, often have added coloring, and will have lost much of their delicate flavor and texture.
So, we’re looking for fresh mussels. These will be sold at a fishmonger or the seafood section of a supermarket. They will be on the ice.
If they’re fresh, they will smell salty, clean, and not at all fishy. Their shells will be wet and they’ll be closed. Open ones should close as soon as you touch them.
If they don’t, they should be discarded because they are dead. Keep them on ice until you get them home then store them in the fridge.
Cook them within 48 hours of purchase.
Green Stuff In Mussels: Is It Safe To Eat?
What color should mussels be?
Farmed mussels have shiny blue-black shells with no barnacles attached and very little “beard”. These are the best to buy because they grow on ropes hung into the sea that do not touch the sand.
They are therefore sustainable and very clean. Don’t worry if the mussels you’ve purchased are different colors inside.
Pale, whitish meat shows it is a male while a pinky, orangy color shows it’s a female. The color also changes a little with the age of the shellfish.
What about the green stuff?
Sometimes after cooking your mussels, you may notice that in some of them, the fleshy part seems to have two halves with some green stuff in between.
You may be wondering if your mussel is off, toxic and whether it is safe to eat. Yes, as long as your mussels were fresh, it is safe.
The green color is either the digestive organs (the hepatopancreas) or undigested plankton or algae. Either way, you can happily eat the whole thing.
To conclude
We hope you enjoy your next mussel dinner now that you know that it’s okay to eat the green bits too.