Mussels With White Wine And Leek Recipes

MUSSELS WITH WHITE WINE AND LEEK

Steps:

• Melt the butter with the olive oil in a large heavy-bottomed pan over medium heat. Add in the leeks and celery, and cook, stirring occasionally, for 6 to 7 minutes or until the vegetables are soft. Add the garlic and continue cooking, while stirring, for 1 minute more.
• Drop in the mussels and stir the ingredients together gently until combined. Add the wine and thyme sprigs, cover the pan and simmer for 6 to 7 minutes. Stir in the cream, cover and simmer for another 5 minutes or until the mussels open.
• Serve with lots of crusty bread to soak up the sauce.

MUSSELS IN WHITE WINE

Steps:

• To clean the mussels, put them in a large bowl with 2 quarts of water and the flour and soak for 30 minutes, or until the mussels disgorge any sand. Drain the mussels, then remove the "beard" from each with your fingers. If they're dirty, scrub the mussels with a brush under running water. Discard any mussels whose shells aren't tightly shut.
• In a large non-aluminum stockpot, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook for 5 minutes; then add the garlic and cook for 3 more minutes, or until the shallots are translucent. Add the tomatoes, saffron, parsley, thyme, wine, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil.
• Add the mussels, stir well, then cover the pot, and cook over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until all the mussels are opened (discard any that do not open). With the lid on, shake the pot once or twice to be sure the mussels don't burn on the bottom. Pour the mussels and the sauce into a large bowl and serve hot.

STEAMED MUSSELS WITH LEEKS, THYME & BACON

Steps:

• Scrub and de-beard the mussels. Heat half the butter in a pan, then sizzle the bacon for 3-4 mins until starting to brown. Add the leeks and thyme, then sweat everything together for 4-5 mins until soft. Turn the heat up high, add the mussels and cider or wine, then cover and cook for 4-5 mins, shaking the pan occasionally, until the mussels have opened. Discard any that don't open. Scoop the mussels and the other bits into a dish, then place the pan back on the heat. Boil the juices for 1 min with the rest of the butter, then pour over the mussels and serve with crusty bread.

MUSSELS WITH LEEKS AND WHITE WINE

Steps:

• Scrub the mussels really well and remove their stringy beards. Chuck out any mussels that are damaged in any way or that are open and don't close when tapped on the side of the sink.
• Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan or saute pan - you need something with a lid - over a low heat. Very gently fry the leeks and garlic for 5 minutes until softened but not coloured, stirring occasionally. There's no need to cover the pan. Add a little water to the pan if the leeks start to stick before they are softened.
• Pour over the white wine and stir in the creme fraiche and parsley. Add the mussels, cover the pan with a lid and cook for 3-4 minutes or until all the mussels have steamed open, stirring once. Give the pan a good shake now and again. Mix the cornflour and water together to make a thin paste.
• Remove the pan from the heat and tip the mussels and their liquor into a colander over a large bowl. Throw away any that haven't opened, then divide the mussels between two warmed wide bowls.
• Tip the mussel liquor back into the pan and stir in the cornflour paste. Bring to a simmer and cook for 1 minute, stirring until thickened. Add a bit more salt and pepper to taste and pour the sauce back over the mussels in the bowls.
• Serve each bowl of mussels with a thick slice of crusty bread for mopping up the sauce. Heaven!

MUSSELS WITH LEEKS & SAFFRON

Steps:

• Wash the mussels in a sink of cold water, removing any little beards and scrubbing any barnacles. Tap each one on the side of the sink - if the mussel doesn't close tightly, discard it (also discard any with broken shells). Put the mussels in a colander (in batches) and rinse really well under cold running water.
• Heat the oil in a large pan (or two pans if you don't have one big enough to fit all the mussels). Sauté the leeks for 8-10 mins until softening, then add the garlic and cook for another few mins. Add the bouquet garni, pour over the sherry and wine, sprinkle over the saffron and bring to just under the boil. Stir to help the saffron flavour the wine.
• Turn the heat down to medium-low, then add the mussels and stir. Cover the pan and allow the mussels to cook until they open (this will take about 4 mins), shaking the pan a few times. Remove the bouquet garni. Add the cream, stir and heat through. Taste for seasoning (mussels are always pretty salty, so you shouldn't need to add anything). Scatter over the parsley, then transfer the mussels to a large, warm serving dish or serve them straight from the pan.