Steamed Shetland Mussels

Serves 4

Ingredients

2kg mussels, fresh

50g unsalted butter

2 shallots, finely diced 200ml white wine

½ bunch of flat leaf parsley, chopped

Squeeze of lemon

Seasoning to taste

Method

The first job is to clean the mussels, wash them under cold running water, using a table knife scrape away any barnacles. Pull out the beards that protrude from between the closed shells. If you find any mussels are open, give then a short little tap on the side of the sink, which should encourage them to close. If they don’t close they should be thrown away. For this dish you will need a large pot with a tight-fitting lid. My method for cooking mussels is to cook them very very quickly, to do this place the cleaned mussels into a bowl add the chopped shallots, butter, salt, pepper and wine. Heat a large pot until it is as hot as you can get without burning the pot.

Pour in the mussels with the rest of the ingredients and quickly place on the lid. The idea is that the heat from the pot creates instant steam cooking the mussels very quickly. Resist the urge to lift the lid and look in the pot as you will lose the steam and stop the cooking. Another thing to avoid is shaking the pot. If you shake the pot the mussels will simply fall out of the shell and you will be left with a bowl of empty shells. After a few minutes, if you have managed to keep the steam in, the mussels should be cooked. Have a little look and if the mussels are wide open then they are ready. Spoon the mussels into your serving bowls, discarding any that have not opened.

To finish sprinkle with chopped parsley, a squeeze of lemon juice and a couple of lemon wedges.