Fresh Spanish mussels have their own distinctive flavor and they don’t need much added to them to bring out their natural taste. Mussels and cockles are great for making appetizers, or starter recipes. Mussels steamed are great, as are mussels cooked in other ways. One of the best ways to work with this seafood is to try out this Catalan mussels recipe. You can turn it into Soanish mussels with chorizo by adding chorizo to this flavorful dish. Either way, it’s really delicious if you’re in a seafood mood!
Adding Flavor to Spanish Mussels
In this Catalan mussels recipe, I used vinegar, lemon, oil and basil to add flavor and encourage the natural mussel recipe taste to shine through. Chill this overnight if you can, so allow plenty of time to do that.
This is also a bonus if you are planning a number of recipes to make the following day because once this is made, it is made, meaning it is out the way and you can forget about it until serving.
The onions, vinegar, tomato and more in this recipe for Catalan mussels is a classic combination and if you want to make starter recipes with mussels this is a very good recipe to opt for.
Catalan Mussels Recipe in Tomato Sauce
Mussels in tomato sauce are so good and everyone is sure to love this dish. As you probably know, Catalonia is a region in northeast Spain and seafood is very popular there.
Perhaps you have tried a similar dish before, although many people are only familiar with mussels that have been steamed in broth/white wine, so this Catalan mussels recipe is a novel way of enjoying them.
Lemon Catalan Mussels Steamed with Garlic and Tomato Sauce
Mussels are always good and this recipe sees them prepared in the Spanish style, adding vinegar and lemon for a piquant touch, as well as fresh tomatoes, onion and basil to finish off the dish. If you want to make Spanish mussels with chorizo, you can add some of that as well.
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 5 mins
- Total Time: 20 mins
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Starter
- Cuisine: Spanish
Ingredients
- 1 kg (2 lbs) mussels
- 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
- Juice of half a lemon
- 1 small onion, peeled and finely sliced
- 250g (1/2 lb) ripe cherry tomatoes, halved
- 100ml (2/5 cup) extra virgin olive oil
- Small handful chopped cooked chorizo (optional)
- Handful fresh basil leaves, torn into pieces
- Salt
Instructions
- Wash and de-beard the mussels.
- Put them in a covered pot over a high heat for a couple of minutes until they open.
- Remove and strain.
- Take the mussels out of their shells, discarding any that haven’t opened.
- Place them in a serving bowl.
- Add the cherry tomato halves, onion slices, chorizo (if using) and basil.
- Whisk the lemon juice, olive oil and vinegar and pour over the mussels.
- Season and mix well.
- Cover the dish and chill overnight or for at least 2 hours.
- Serve with salad and flatbread.
Mussels are wonderful seafood and their flavor is very much-loved all over the world. Although steaming the mussels and serving them in their opened shells is perhaps the most common way of presenting these tasty little shellfish, using them in a salad is another nice idea. For this reason, I like to make this in the summer.
The basil, vinegar and lemon adds lots of flavor to this Spanish mussels recipe. There are not too many ingredients because you don’t want to overpower that marvelous seafood taste.
For this reason, Catalan mussels make great starter recipe before a meat main course. Now you can enjoy a great appetizer vs main dish contrast and not be too full before the entrée.
Photo by FreeDigitalPhotos.net
