(no subject)

[luciazephyr]

Time for an installment of Lucy's Failed Adventures in Cooking.

So, I found a box of frozen mussels in the freezer. Searched the internet and discovered that no one talks about frozen mussels. They appear to be totally taboo. Anyway, the box said to cook them about six minutes in the oven. Made some makeshift herb butter (dab of butter, basil, and rosemary) and drizzled that onto the mussels. Tossed them in the oven at 275 for a few minutes.

When I took them out, they smelled awesome. Very sweet smell. Alas, when I tried to eat them, they tasted fishy. Really fishy. :icked face:

I know I've had mussels that were sweet and tender and yummy. But I have no idea how to do that. Anyone know?

-Luce

Comments

[darkecology.livejournal.com]

Try checking the tags of food_porn for recipes - that comm is a great resource.

The mussels I have had have been either steamed or broiled. But I don't think baking would have caused your problem, unless they weren't cooked thoroughly. (I think at the very worst, baking may have dried them out).

If they were cooked all the way and they tasted fishy, I would say they were either bad or not properly cleaned or both. They might need to be thoroughly soaked before cooking (like frozen crawfish do), but I'm not sure on that.

I'm probably biased because I think flash-frozen seafood is a crime, but I'm going to guess that the mussels were defective to begin with. I've never seen them frozen, only fresh, so...yeah.

[silver11016.livejournal.com]

If you want them really sweet and tender and yummy, I think you'll need fresh ones.

The frozen ones sometimes need to be soaked a little to regain their moisture, and I would really recommend steaming them with the herb butter rather than baking them, which dries them out and makes them kinda tough.

[canis-takahari.livejournal.com]

It might have been the fact that they're frozen? Fresh fish doesn't have that strong fishy taste at all, and nearly always turns out tender. Frozen fish, sadly, doesn't give you that option, especially for shellfish.

Finding a recipe on google with them boiled, or steamed, might be good for next time.

[mercystars.livejournal.com]

The fishy taste was definitely because they had been frozen. Fresh mussels are always the best. I like this recipe, myself. The sauce is very simple and light.

2 pounds mussels, washed with beards removed*

For sauce
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup light white wine wine (Pinot Grigio is great)
2 crushed garlic cloves
fresh chopped chives, dillweed, or a handful of capers
salt and pepper to taste

1. Using a vegetable steamer, or a collander in a heavy sauce pan, steam the mussels over one quart of boiling water approximately 20 minutes. At this point the mussels should open - discard those that have not opened.
2. Melt butter in a sauce pan over medium heat, add the onions, wine and garlic. Simmer (don't boil) until the wine reduces to half.
3. Add 1 cup of the mussel broth to the sauce and stir together.
4. Add the chopped chives, dillweed, or capers, salt and pepper to taste.
5. Place the opened mussels in a large bowl and pour the sauce over them.

*Before cooking, place the mussels in a pot of cold water with 1/2 cup of cornmeal stirred in, and then place the pot in the fridge for an hour or so. This causes the mussels to purge most of the sand in their shells. I don't know how or why this works, but it does.

[flakygoddess.livejournal.com]

Okay, when you called me, you didn't tell me that they were frozen. However, I still stand by my advice:

sautee them lightly - don't cook them on anything resemblling a high setting.

Also - apart from butter, I'd suggest pepperand mayyyybe garlic - though only if you have it fresh. Or green onions. If your mussels are fihy, then something's wrong in the state of mussels. Rinse 'em and if they're still fishy, toss the fuckers.