Pickled mussels

Ingredients for the mussels

• 1 kg mussels
• ½ onion
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 small tomatoes
• 1 dl dry white wine or rosè
• 1 tea spoon of olive or sunflower oil 

Ingredients for the pickles

• 150 g apple cider vinegar
• 2 small onions
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 table spoon of smoked paprika
• 1 chilli
• 2 table spoon extra virgin olive oil
• fennel flowers
• salt

Ingredients for the finish

• parsley leaves

Preparation of the mussles

• Slice onions, garlic, and tomatoes into fairly big pieces.
• Select a pot that is wide and thick-bottomed.
• Sauté the vegetables in the oil at high heat and add all the mussels at the same time.
• Give a little stir and add the wine, cover with a lid.
• Leave to steam for 1 minute
• Pull the put to the side with the lid still on and keep covered for 5-10 min.
• Strain the mussels through a fine colander or cloth and keep the liquid.
• Pick through the mussels and take care in discarding the broken ones and the ones that have not opened – it is a sign that they might have been spoiled!
• Pick out the mussels from the shells - you can use an empty shell as a thong for pulling the others out. In case the “beard” is still left in some of them, take care in pulling it out while you keep the mussel closed around it. This keeps the flesh intact.

Preparation of the pickles

• Once you have pulled out the mussels from the shells, add them to the liquid.
• It is a good idea to pick the mussels while they are still warm so they can cool down in the liquid and avoid drying out too much.
• You can add a few ice cubes to the stock to cool it down faster.
• Strain the liquid off once again and reduce it down to about half.
• Add about 75 g of it to 150 of apple cider vinegar.
• Leave it to cool down to room temparature.
• In the meantime, add the mussels to a jar or a glass.
• Slice the garlic and the onions finely and add them + chili to the jar with the fennel flowers.
• Season the liquid with salt, toast the paprika in a pan and add it to the liquid.
• Pour the liquid over the mussels in the jar and add the olive oil on top.
• Reserve in the fridge until cold or for a few days.

Preparation for the serving

Serve with toasted bread spread with butter and a few parsley leaves. Or as a condiment to a creamy vegetable soup or just as a snack with bread to dip.