Grilled wild garlic/ramps mussels
A rich and tasty way to serve mussels, this recipe offers a great contrast of textures between the crunchy crumb crust and the juicy mussel flesh below. It serves 4 as an appetiser or 2 as a main dish.
Servings: 4 people
Ingredients
- 1 kg/2¼ lbs mussels
- 30 g/1/3 cup fresh breadcrumbs
- 15 g/¼ cup wild garlic leaves/ramps thoroughly rinsed and finely chopped
- 60 ml/¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- Rinse the mussels well under cold running water, discarding any that are open or cracked. Scrub them well to remove any beards or grit.
- Put the cleaned mussels in a large pan, adding cold water to a depth of 2.5 cm/1 in. up the side of the pan. Set the pan over medium heat, cover, and cook the mussels for around 5 minutes, until they have steamed open.
- Drain the mussels, discarding any that haven't opened during the cooking process.
- Once the mussels are cool enough to handle, pull one half of each shell off each mussel, leaving the mussel anchored in the remaining half. Place the mussels, shell-side down, on a baking sheet.
- Mix together the breadcrumbs, wild garlic/ramps, and olive oil, seasoning with salt and freshly ground pepper. Spoon a little of the breadcrumb mixture over each mussel, so that it forms a topping.
- Preheat a grill/broiler to its highest setting and cook the topped mussels for 2-3 minutes until the crumb topping turns golden brown. Serve at once.