Saturday, February 18, 2012

Mussels & Rice

I had mussels steamed in wine sauce last night -- and didn't use all the mussels.  You buy them live and keep them on ice -- and I think you should use them almost immediately -- but the next day is usually fine.

When I buy mussels -- I only buy them from an upscale grocery store where they are likely to sell a lot of them.  I ask to smell them -- if they smell like "low tide" even a little bit -- maybe you should buy some chicken instead.

Before I'm ready to cook them I check all of them to make sure there are no cracks in the shells and when tapped they all close up -- any that have cracks or stay open get chucked out.  I pull off their beards and set the rest aside until I'm ready for them.

So -- on to the leftovers.

I had

1 leek (leftover from making potato leek soup) cut into small pieces
5 small boiled red potatoes left over from the night before (set aside -- not cooked with the mussels)
2 or 3 leftover sliced mushrooms (raw)
1 cup of sushi rice (raw)
1 box of chicken broth
2 pieces of bacon - cooked and chopped (leftover)

I also had some
salt
some korean chili paste
black pepper
concentrated garlic (or you could add some fresh or dried)
concentrated tomato paste (just a bit -- you could leave it out)
butter
olive oil

I sauteed the leeks in a heavy bottomed pan with the cooked potatoes (quartered), olive oil and the mushrooms until soft.  I added a few Tbsp of butter and the seasonings and pastes and stirred in the rice and about 1/4 cup of chicken broth -- and cooked stirring for about 2 minutes -- adding 1 3/4 cup broth in and then covering it for about 15 minutes on med low -- stirring every few minutes

I kept tasting the rice -- when it started to get soft (but not completely soft ) -- I added a bit more broth and tasted it -- adjusted the seasoning and decided that the chopped bacon would be awesome in it.

at this point the rice is about 95% done -- add the mussels - stir them in and add a bit more broth -- cover -- check every 3 or 4 minutes and stir

stir -- take it off the heat and let it sit for a few minutes.

If any of the mussels did not open -- pick them out

eat and enjoy -- this was good -- and the next version will be better -- maybe some curry powder? -- hmmm