[Serves 6 to 8]

Ingredients:

• 3kg fresh black mussels
• 100g salted butter
• 1 medium sized red onion, diced
• 1 bunch of spring onions, finely chopped
• 1 ½ tablespoons fresh thyme
• ½ teaspoon dried chilli flakes
• ½ cup finely chopped parsley to garnish
• Salt and pepper to season
• 1 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 can of Windhoek Draught
• ¼ good quality local olive oil
• Crispy buttered Portuguese buns

Method and preparation of the Black Mussel Pot (Chef’s Tip on how to clean mussels below recipe)

1. Melt butter together with olive oil in a large pot and sauté the red onion, spring onion and thyme
2. Add ½ the Windhoek Draught, sugar, chili flakes, salt and pepper for seasoning
3. Simmer for about 5 min
4. Add your cleaned mussels to the large pot and add the other ½ of the Windhoek Draught
5. Put the lid on the pot and simmer until mussels are open
6. Discard any mussels that are not open or less than a quarter open
7. Serve mussels in a big bowl/dish and pour over the simmering liquid
8. The crispy Portuguese buns and butter are essential to mop up all that delicious mussel/Windhoek Draught liquid.

Chef’s Tip – How to Clean Fresh Black Mussels

Scrub the outer shell with a hard nail brush under running water

• Then place your black mussels in a bucket of salted water, this keeps them alive for several hours
• While in the salted water, the mussels expel any sand or grit
• Place the mussels into a large colander and wash well under running water
• Using a sharp knife scrap off any barnacles and seaweed
• Very important: Any mussels that appear damaged or are broken or opened must be discarded immediately
• And lastly remove the “beard” – pull it like you would unzip something. Sometimes the “beard” stays fast, then leave it until after you have cooked the mussels and you can easily pull it off

Note:

Black mussels can be obtained fresh or frozen from most local supermarkets and fish mongers/shops as well as specialty deli shops

Recipes Prepared by Chef Peter Ayub – www.senseoftaste.co.za

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