giovedì 5 agosto 2010

Spaghetti alle cozze (spaghetti with mussels)


It is summer and definitively seaside time. I live now 600 km far away from nearest sea coast, and I really miss a nice walk on the beach. Therefore I tried to push away this “sea-sickness” (so to say) by cooking a nice recipe that I want to share with you. The trick for a good result of this dish is the pan. You need a large aluminum pan to sautee the spaghetti. When I mean large, consider that I have one measuring around 40 cm in diameter!

For 4 persons:

1 kg of mussels (fresh = alive)
450 g of Spaghetti (good quality pasta, i.e. De Cecco)
1 clove garlic
1 chilly pepper
1 handful of parsley
Extra virgin olive oil
1 glass of white wine.

To start with clean the mussels. With a knife scrape off all the “scale” that is attached to the shell and pull the rope that they have on one side in order to remove it. You should end up with perfect black shells!

In the pan place the chopped garlic and chilly in plenty of extra virgin olive oil and fry a few minutes (be careful that it does not burn!). Add the mussels, decrease the heat to medium power and cover. Let it cook this way for 5-10 min stirring continuously with a wooden spoon. You should see the shells opening and on the bottom the juices should be released. I don’t know where you are, but in Italy the mussels have been pre-purged prior to commercialization. If this is not your case (and you have just realized this) a sand layer will be covering the bottom of your pan. Don’t dispair! Once ready, remove all the shells in the pan and set aside. Filter the juices in order to remove all the sand. Prepare another chopped garlic and chilly, stir fry and then add the juices. The result will be the same. In case the sand is not hunting you, set aside the shells. In the meanwhile cook the spaghetti in plenty of salted water (be careful as the mussels will be very tasty, so put less salt than usual). Reduce the juices at high heat and add the glass of red wine. Make the wine vapourize and then put the spaghetti cooked “al dente”. Sautee for a few minutes adding finely chopped parsley and extra virgin olive oil to your taste. Put in the dishes and add on top the mussels prior to serving. Serve the dish with a small side dish for the shells. It is delicious!!!!

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